Love + Live Music: A Colorful Concert-Wedding in Austin, TX

Brantly + Nick’s wedding day was destined to be a particularly full circle moment for them since they first met, well, at a wedding. 

“I actually approached Nick on the dance floor,” Brantly recalls of the fateful festivities that brought them together. “It was one of those nights that just felt like magic, and for us, it definitely was.”

When the time came to plan their very own wedding, Brantly + Nick knew exactly what they wanted. The couple teamed up with Epoch Co Events and started building a celebration full of music + joy that was intentionally designed to support quite the crowd. “Nick and I come from huge families, and they’re both incredibly close, so our first priority was hosting a wedding where we could invite everyone,” Brantly says of how they approached planning their Austin, TX “I do’s.” “We wanted a limitless guest list—no one left out. We also both come from very musical families, and with Nick being an amazing musician, it felt like a no-brainer to put music at the forefront of everything.”

Music. A big crowd. The boundaries between “wedding” and “concert” were getting blurry in the best way, and Brantly knew just what to do: “I’ve lived in Austin for 15 years, so I started reaching out to all of my favorite concert venues in hopes that one would let us host a wedding,” Brantly remembers. “Never did I think Stubb’s would say yes.”

That’s how this fun + colorful Austin concert-wedding came to be. After a beautiful ceremony at St. Austin Catholic Church, Stubb’s Bar-B-Q filled with all of Brantly + Nick’s nearest and dearest, and together they danced the night away in wild + wonderful David Bowie-inspired reception looks.

Love. Live Music. What could be better? Let’s get into all these amazing pics from SMS Photography!

Not only did this incredible custom wedding poster by Fez Moreno establish the funky Summer of Love-worthy vibe, it also outlined all of the amazing musical acts performing on Brantly + Nick’s big day!

“For the ceremony, it was actually my mother-in-law who found the dress,” Brantly remembers of shopping for this bow-shoulder floral wedding gown, “and when I put it on, it was pretty obvious it was the one. My mom found the veil, and it was a perfect match.”

A Joyful First Look

If you can pull your eyes away from Brantly +Nick’s absolutely adorable pooch, check out that bright + beautiful bridal bouquet from Poppy Flowers! A little teaser of all the color in store for the reception.

Lovelykind Beauty did such a beautiful job with Brantly’s effortless bridal updo and softly shimmery wedding makeup.

Just a reminder to all our maximalist brides out there: you have permission to pack your bridesmaid dress color palette with all sorts of bold + fabulous prints like Brantly did.

First Stop: The Ceremony

We love the way that Brantly + Nick’s guests filled St. Austin with all sorts bright + joyful color.

How sweet is that hand painted unity candle set!

Nick had a colorful embroidered groom look in store for the reception, but for the ceremony he opted for a more traditional wedding suit in blue from Suit Supply.

Time To Celebrate!

Not only did iconic Austin institution Stubb’s Bar-B-Q set the stage for Brantly + Nick’s celebration, they catered too!

Okay, this has to be one of the most creative approaches to wedding reception florals we have ever seen. Brantly + Nick set out tons of colored glass bud vases for their guests to grab…

…then they let everyone build their own arrangements! Such a brilliant way to make the most of wedding day florals. Not only were they beautiful table decor, they were an immersive reception activity AND a perfect wedding favor!!

We spy some of those guest-arranged bud vases looking gorgeous!

The Panacea Collective provided furniture pieces that helped get the open-air venue reception-ready.

“Our goal was for everyone to show up to the reception in their most outrageous and wild party outfits…” Brantly + Nick say of the reception’s fabulous dress code.

“…so we made it David Bowie themed seeing that he would be the perfect inspiration.”

“The reception outfit is my favorite evolution of all,” Brantly says of her post-ceremony look. “I found the most amazing beaded cape and built from there! I got a silk jumpsuit to go underneath, and (because Stubb’s is all dirt) ended up wearing sneakers.”

“Nick and I wore matching eyeball headpieces and wild glasses, parading into the venue behind Minor Mishap Marching Band followed by our families and wedding party.”


“Our first dance was super special,” Brantly says, “because it was actually a phone recording of Nick playing guitar that he sent me after the first time I visited him in New York.”

“We were long distance for the first year, and that trip to New York marked the moment I knew this was different and Nick was the love of my life. He dropped me off at the airport, and when I got to my seat on the plane, I had a text from him with a voice memo titled “BB” (my initials). It’s such a beautiful song, with the natural sounds of New York in the background. My eyes were full of tears and my heart was bursting as I listened to it on repeat the whole flight home.”

“‘BB’ has always been so special to me—it’s the perfect timestamp of when we were both overwhelmed with love and just “knew.” I always thought I would walk down the aisle to it, but since we got married in the church, we had to choose from their list of songs. I thought dancing to it during our first dance was the perfect way to include it in our special day.”

“We told everyone to dress in their best Bowie-inspired look—and the crowd absolutely delivered!” the couple says.

“There was fringe, sequins, glitter, wigs, go-go boots, color, and more! It was a dream come true.”


“I bought the red pants I wore to the party from a clothing sale put on by Broadway costume designers in New York,” Nick remembers. “They were raising money in support of Ukraine a few months after Russia invaded. I had never seen pants quite like that and I wanted to support the cause, and so I bought them, never imagining I would wear them on my wedding day. They are also made in Malta, and I had never heard of anything made in Malta, so that was kind of cool.”

“My coat is made by an Indian company, Addicted Bespoken,” Nick adds. “I really liked the pattern of flowers and leaves stretching across the coat. I lived in India for years, and so this was a tiny shoutout to that chapter of my life.”

Throughout the night, The Motts, Big Bill, and DJ, Wahabi Lobby took the stage at Stubb’s. Plus, there was an epic Family Jam Sesh that utilized all of the musical talent there for Brantly + Nick’s big day.

“About 30 minutes into being at Stubb’s, my mother-in-law’s Girls Group approached me with an incredible silver ensemble that matched theirs,” Brantly says of how her reception look changed throught the night. “Without hesitation, I swapped out my fabulous cape for a matching silver fringe jacket and boots, and then I made the permanent decision to throw on the even more amazing silver steampunk hat over my professionally styled hair. That hat stayed with me the rest of the night.”

“It’s so funny because when you’re planning your wedding, you plan it for a year—or sometimes even longer. You accumulate so many versions of your wedding attire—buying things, returning them, even trying to sell them on Poshmark (lol)—and in the end, it was being approached by the amazing women in Girls Group that truly inspired everything for me!”

“I think that kind of sums up our wedding as a whole—it was all about community and being in the moment—ditching my plans, fancy cape, and what I thought a wedding was supposed to be, to instead wear something that made me feel fun and connected to the people that showed up to our silly-themed party, dressed to the nines and ready to have fun!”

Our Advice
Brantly: Oh, man! Get off social media. Don’t ask anyone else what you should do. Sit down with your partner and dream up your perfect day, start to finish. If money were no object, what would be the most epic party you’ve ever attended? Who would be there? What would you want to spend your time doing? What would you want to wear? If you had to pick a song to define the evening, what song would it be? Then, build your priorities from there. This is a party! Look at your budget and figure out where you can save and what, based on your priorities, is going to cost more. It’s an investment—the most you’ll likely spend on an event in your life—so make it worth it! Don’t fall into the trap of ticking things off a checklist just because that’s what’s “supposed” to happen at a wedding. Enjoy the day. Invest in fun!

Before my wedding, a lot of brides warned me that it goes by fast, or even that it’s hard to remember everything. I think that’s very real, and I see how it easily happens. I’m so grateful to my girlfriends who warned me because it allowed me to plan with the MAIN intention to Be Present. If you focus on planning something really authentic and fun, it’s easy to be in the moment and enjoy it. Why have a wedding you don’t truly enjoy? It just isn’t worth it. Know the plan, understand the main goals, communicate your team’s roles and responsibilities, and then let go of everything else other than the objective to have fun. Oh, and hire Stacy Sodolak as your photographer! She was our rock and the best there is. Stacy truly epitomizes surrounding yourself with people who share your values—someone who gets what you want and makes it all happen for you. Having someone like her on our team made all the difference between stress and fun.
Nick: Get excited and stay excited! This is a huge moment, and it is your moment (and your partner's, which makes it even more fun). Don't let the banalities of life and work get in the way of that excitement (and kids, don't let school get in the way of your education). At the same time, don't stress. Just because it's your wedding does NOT mean it has to be perfect. Nothing is perfect, so a perfect wedding might feel kind of weird. What did help make our wedding feel a little closer to perfect are the things our family and friends did to support us. My dear friend Horacio made hundreds of papel picado paper flags and paper flowers to decorate the venue. They were absolutely gorgeous. My mom, Mary, and Horacio worked overtime to decorate the rehearsal dinner venue and Stubb's for the after party. My mom is an aspiring piñatera, and made two piñatas that looked exactly like Brantly and me, and even included Brantly's dress and veil. Horacio and my mom are both absolute legends. Their work meshed well with that of another dear friend, local Austin artist and piñatero Bayless Parsley, who made a collage for our Save the Dates in the same style as his legendary house party collages. All of our siblings and parents worked hard to support our wedding weekend, and we are incredibly grateful to everyone for their support and love.

Just look at the way that lighting from ILIOS made the whole celebration glow!

“Brantly is also a great musician, as are her brothers and her dad,” Nick shares.

“Her dad has been in a band for over 55 years! The whole family grew up learning about music, especially rock and roll, and so it made sense for us to build our wedding around music.”

Yellow Bird Cakery – aka the bride’s aunt! – made the perfect heart-shaped wedding cake which guests enjoyed with coffee from Doxa Coffee Roasters.

You have to push play on the wedding video below to get a sense for this wedding’s one-of-a-kind joyful energy. Crescent Films did such a beautiful job of capturing it!

Congratulations, Brantly + Nick!! Your iconic Austin concert-wedding was music to our ears. Totally unforgettable! GWS wishes you both all the best!