This wedding dress business is a kind of family tradition.

My grandfather was a farmer, which sounds very ordinary for a man of his generation, but he wasn’t very ordinary. He loved to make things beautiful. He loved flowers. He loved building and working with his hands. In his old age after the farm was long gone, a local property owner hired him to make what was basically a dusty stretch of desert on a creak bed into a local Shangrila. He did more than his boss could ever have imagined. Ponds. Water falls. Gazebos. Rock work. Rose gardens. Swans. You should have seen what he started with. You should see it now.

You can. Now its Shangrila Event Center, and these photos offer just a peek at it.

I wonder how much of my grandfather’s creative spirit I inherited sometimes. I know my mother got plenty. Earth was a building material to my grandfather a lot like fabric is for my mother. Now in her old age, she’s begun building this bridal line no one ever expected from her. She’s making really beautiful dresses like you can’t find anywhere else.

Our is wearing one of our Bell Tower Bridal dresses. It’s very on trend in a crepe fit and flair. Come visit us.

Venue: @shangrilaeventcenter
Event Coordination: @eventfully.jacqueline
Photographers: @ashleyandjustin_photography
Florals: @jocelynsfloral 
Caterer: @maglebys_st.george
Cake: @cupcakejulie
Dress: @belltowerbridal
Jewelry: @foreveryoungfinejewelers
Rentals: Couch @swoonvintagerentalco
Rentals: Chairs @taylor.made.events
Stationary: Leesa at @shangrilaeventcenter
Macaroons: @emmabmacarons
Cars: @shangrilaeventcenter
Models: @brittanyence @bwence6