Real Weddings: Emily Witmore and Tyler Bethea

After romance started with music by the King, the wedding came at Marie Gabrielle.

On their second date, Emily Witmore and Tyler Bethea saw an Elvis tribute concert at the Dallas Arboretum. It was one of those Thursday night shows the garden hosts each spring and summer, and the two shared a picnic supper and a few laughs on a blanket under the stars. What they couldn’t have known then was that a couple of years later, they’d be back at the Arboretum, and Tyler would propose.

On that night, they were meeting some friends for a show. Emily gave Tyler a hard time about his cargo shorts. She laughs as she remembers the night. “I didn’t like the shorts but didn’t realize he needed to wear them to hide the ring,” she says. But hide the ring he did, until among the plants and flowers he asked Emily to be his wife. Their friends and family were waiting for them to celebrate in the concert area.

The couple were married eight months later, on June 4, 2011, at Marie Gabrielle.

The main thing, Emily says, was to be married in a space of natural beauty, and the garden at Marie Gabrielle is delightful. Consider the restaurant and the Uptown address, and you have the ideal mix of urban location and indoor/outdoor accommodations. Beyond that, Emily didn’t want anything too over the top, and she wanted to bring in some Indian elements (she grew up in India). “I started with a mood board and then contacted a wedding planner down the road,” Emily says. The result was an evening of elegant simplicity, filled with sentimental touches, smiling faces, and lots of love.

“One of the things that was really special is that my dad did the ceremony,” Emily says. “The other thing is that both of Tyler’s grandmothers were battling cancer at the time, but they were both there, and they danced all night.”

Wearing a Monique Lhuillier gown, the bride carried one of her grandmother’s brooches on her bouquet, a romantic cluster of white peonies. On one finger she wore an opal and diamond ring belonging to her mother. And as a nod to her childhood home, hand-carved wooden elephants from India joined pink peonies on the tables.

After dinner, Emily and Tyler danced their first dance as husband and wife to the Eagles’ “Peaceful Easy Feeling.”

Maybe The King’s “Love Me Tender” came later that night.

RESOURCES
Ceremony Site: Marie Gabrielle
Photographer: Jennifer Yarbro
Bridal Gown Designer: Monique Lhuillier
Bridal Gown Retailer: Neiman Marcus
Hair and Makeup: Kelly Espinoza, Haute Facade
Groom’s Attire: Ralph Lauren
Groom’s and Groomsmen’s Attire Retailer: Collars 2 Cuffs
Bridesmaids Dresses Retailer: J.Crew
Flowers: The Garden Gate
Reception Site: Marie Gabrielle
Cake: Jackie Spratt Cakes
Caterer: Marie Gabrielle
Band and/or DJ: Andy Austin
Lighting: Absolute Lighting
Wedding Rentals: BBJ Linen
Wedding Planner: Lisa Yarbro, Marie Gabrielle
Wedding Designer: Sweet Pea Events