The Bride Repurposed Her Mom’s Wedding Dress For Her Dreamy, Intimate New Orleans Wedding

The Crescent City. The Big Easy. No matter what you call New Orleans, you can’t escape the things about it that everyone falls in love with: Strolls through the French Quarter. Sunsets over the Mississippi. The mossy Oak trees and wrought iron balconies and colorful mishmash of European architecture. 

Brittany + Tyler’s New Orleans wedding leaned into all of the city’s innate romance and then added plenty more. There are SO many unique + meaningful choices these two made that we can’t get over.

How did the couple make their intimate destination wedding in NOLA feel like their own? First of all, the location. Choosing one of their favorite cities was key to creating a celebration that really felt like them. Then there was the design. Brittany + Tyler leaned into all sorts of nostalgia by surrounding themselves with antique architecture and vintage details. And when it came to the guest list, keeping it intimate at only 55 on the guest list was another way they did the day on their terms. 

“Our love for old buildings and architecture drew us to our venue,” say Brittany + Tyler of their choice to celebrate in the heart of The Quarter at BK House, “and the guests loved how it replicated our sense of home and relationship.”

One of our favorite ways Brittany + Tyler broke the traditional wedding day mold? These two said “I do” in private – just them and their witnesses – before joining their guestlist for the reception. 

And the element we can’t stop thinking about: Brittany’s gorgeous gown was a custom creation constructed out of pieces of (be still our hearts) her mom’s wedding dress.

So grab a sazerac and a plate of beignets, and let’s dive into these stunning shots from Soph Fulk Photo of Brittany + Tyler’s dreamy NOLA nuptials!

Very into the sheer florals of the Showstopper Chemise by Flora Nikrooz that Brittany rocked while getting ready.

“I always knew I wanted to use my mom’s dress somehow,” Brittany shares.

“I found an independent designer, Nicole Castañeda, who hand-made an original piece out of the detailing of my mother’s wedding dress.”

The bride added some hight with these super cute ankle strap block heel platform wedding shoes from Zara.

How brilliant is this bouquet!! The gold metallic wrist hoop. The dangling pearls. The horizontal arrangement.

Innovative bouquets like Brittany’s — wearable on your wrist like a chic handbag — are such a fresh take on the traditional carryable bunch. This wedding’s floral purses or this Schiaparelli-inspired wedding shoot’s unique bouquet are some of our other fave examples.

Very into this effortless twisty bridal updo and the way it showed of Brittany’s strapless neckline and Old Hollywood glam bridal scarf.

A Bride + Her Besties

Is there anything prettier than pastels? We love these playful, colorful paper parasols and how perfectly they pair with this vibrant, mx-and-match bridal party color palette.

Explore our collections of the best blush pink bridesmaid dresses, the best sage green bridesmaid dresses, and the best floral bridesmaid dresses to recreate this crew’s color world.

OMG — Brittany’s flowy, ethereal sleeves!! (Spoiler: they’re removable 🤯)

A Private Ceremony

“Choosing to have our ceremony private, surprisingly was a pretty easy decision for us,” the couple shares.

“We felt it ultimately represented our relationship and how we value marriage. No outside opinions, no noise, just me and him,” Brittany adds. “No audience to perform for. Just us. With of course, the groom’s best friend as the officiant and bride’s best friend and our dog (George) chaperone to witness. Two people who ultimately taught us everything we know about love and friendship.”

“We made sure to include our dog George in as much of the day as possible! We are obsessed with him,” say Brittany + Tyler of this handsome fella in the snazzy tuxedo bandana.

“We really set the intentions from the beginning that our wedding day was going to be entirely how we wanted it. There was little to no pushback from our family. I love seeing the shift in the wedding world to less traditional and more intentional.”

“It was so worth it and made for it to be short, sweet, and to the point. Every detail of the wedding was so intentional on reflecting our love and the love we have for our people”

Very into the sage green linen of Tyler’s custom Indochino suit. Perfect for a NOLA courtyard wedding.

A Colorful Celebration

Our Favorite Memory
Walking into our garden cocktail hour and seeing all of our guests.

“Guests were told to ditch the neutrals and bring the drama,” remembers photographer Sophie. “The dress code? Bold colors, fearless fashion, and unapologetic self-expression. Think sequins, neon, vintage glam, and a whole lot of personality.”

We love when guest are encouraged to go all out. Absolutely in love with this pink floral evening bag.

“The result,” Sophie says, “was a wildly expressive kaleidoscope of looks that turned the ceremony into a living, breathing fashion editorial.”

Our Musical Choices
Processional
None
Recessional
"Ventura Highway" - America
First Dance
"Strawberries" - Caamp

“We curated all of our wedding decor,” say Brittany + Tyler of their hands-on approach to the day’s design, “and the bride and the moms did all the flowers together!”

In love with this DIY hydrangea arrangement. Cascading arrangements like this one are one of our fave floral trends of the moment.

True Value Rental outfitted the 19th Century French Quarter mansion with plenty of round tables, floral china, and crisp white linens.

The intimate group of guests enjoyed a feast of New Orleans cooking from Elysian Events.

Why have just one wedding cake when you can have FIVE?!

Bywater Bakery knocked it out of the park with these beauties.

Our Advice
As always soak it all in! Every moment of it goes by so quickly. Try to be present and remember you have the freedom and creativity to make the day customized to you and your partner!

Congrats from all of us at GWS, Brittany + Tyler! Your intimate NOLA wedding day was nonstop nostalgia + romance.