Bride & Horse – Houston Bridal Photography | Anna

TRASH THE DRESS! The 3 words that strike terror into hearts of many brides around the world!  What if it never washes? What if it’s ripped? What if I ever want to wear it again? For me, well it was the best decision I ever made.

You might know a little about myself from Kori’s wonderful blog last month, or if I have had the opportunity to meet you since joining the Motley team. For those that don’t know my wonderful wedding story, let me give a short (trust me I can go on all day) summary of how I came to be Mrs. Morrison!

I met my amazing husband, Ben, in August 2009. After several months of long distance dating (I lived outside Austin at the time, he in Houston), I did what every Dallas girl knows never to do, I moved to Houston.  In July of 2010, on the balcony of a Domaine Carneros Winery in Napa California, Ben asked me to be his wife! And while the cloud-9 lasted a few weeks, reality soon hit and the details of my wedding had to be planned. After long discussions and soul searching, Ben and I decided our dream wedding was a small destination wedding, creating memories with our parents as witnesses that he and I would share forever, and for it to be absolutely stress free! And it was! We exchanged personally written vows and said our “I do’s” in the glow of the setting sun on a picture perfect beach in Manual Antonio, Costa Rica. And while my wedding pictures were stunning, I just couldn’t let go of my little girl dream of having wedding photos with my horse! White dress, stunning steed… it was my fairytale.

Over drinks one day I shared the idea with Kori, who jumped on it, and for my 1 year wedding anniversary, we trashed my wedding dress!  My little girl fantasy of a bride and her horse became a  beautiful reality!

7am brought rainclouds and 90% chance of thuderstorms, but we braved the elements, mudboots and all, and headed to Blue Ribbon Meadows for the shoot!

Kori and I both quickly realized that shooting a groom is much easier than shooting a horse with a bride, as grooms tend to behave better, stand still better, and usually don’t nose-punch the girls in the stomachs when they get bored!

Some of you might wonder who the horse is, and there is a beautiful story behind that! Skye is a stunning 9 year old warmblood who joined the Morrison family as Ben’s wedding gift to me! Couldn’t be a more appropriate partner for the shoot!

Despite wind, the occasional short rainfall, and Skye’s terror of the umbrellas, Kori  captured the essence of the simple beauty of the horse, pairing it with the raw elegance of nature, and creating a perfect harmony.

Trashing my dress was a bit easy, as I had already been in the ocean in Costa Rica, running thru the surf after our wedding, much to my mother’s amazement! So as the rain came down, the mud came up, we laughed at the awesome ability of chiffon to be “shaken out” and “rinsed off” in the nearby pond.

Skye couldn’t have been better, and after about an hour, he settled into the “modeling gig” and tolerated insanity of a photo shoot quite well. He especially liked the photos where he was allowed to eat grass, or in some cases, eat the bouquet! The purple ones were his favorite!

Unfortunately, just as Skye decided it was time to drag Anna into the pond with him (Kori was sure it would have made for an awesome shot!), a thunderstorm hit and we ran for cover!  Arriving back at the barn, soaked and laughing, we both anxiously awaiting the editing process, to see just what we had accomplished.  And for that opinion, I will leave it up to you…

As for my dress, despite Skye’s numerous “kisses/slobbers” and the sand and mud up to my waist, it was nothing a little detergent and an overnight soak in the tub couldn’t fix! It’s back to white and perfect, and ready for our next trashing adventure!

Kori, you are a miracle worker! I could never thank you or repay you enough for the gift you have given me in these treasured photos I will keep forever! You are an amazing person, an awesome friend, and a talented artist!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!      <3, Anna