Brooke DeHaven and Jackson Forner
Join us for an exclusive Q&A with Brooke as we dive into the details of their special day!
the couple. Brooke DeHaven & Jackson Forner
the venue. Clark Gardens
the photos. Rebekah Claborn
The Love Story
Jackson and I met through mutual friends in the summer of 2021. Our friends thought that we would be good together so they set us up on a date but didn’t tell us that they were setting us up. They invited us over for dinner but didn’t invite anyone else. Jackson and I hit it off and shortly after he asked me on a date and the rest his history.
The Proposal
Jackson planned an all-day date one Saturday in November. I was very excited and nervous all day because I was pretty suspicious he was going to propose. He took me to a park at the end of the day and asked me to marry him. Afterwards he planned a surprise party so that we could celebrate with friends and family.
The Wedding Venue
We chose Clark Gardens for our wedding venue. It is a family owned garden and I fell in love with the beautiful garden areas on the property when we visited. It was a perfect venue for an elegant “garden party” wedding and a great place for getting married outside in God’s beautiful creation.
The Vibe
I wanted the style of my wedding to be classic and elegant and for our guests to feel as if they were at a garden party. We had the ceremony in a beautiful garden area lined with flowers and cypress trees. Our cocktail hour was held in a lawn adjacent to one of the venue’s rose gardens and the reception was held in a tent with a view overlooking a stunning fountain pool.
The Photography
I wanted a photographer that would capture all of our special moments in a beautiful and timeless way on our wedding day. Rebekah was the photographer for my best friend’s wedding and we loved the photos she captured for their wedding day. She and her husband are also super personable and fun to work with so we knew we wanted them to be a part of our day.
The Dress
I went into dress shopping thinking I was going to select a ball gown style dress but ended up falling in love with a completely different style. The dress I ended up choosing was very classic in the front with a modern twist of a low cut back and side slits under the arms. I customized the dress to include buttons going up the back and this was a feature that I loved.
The Accessories
I chose a cathedral length veil that was finished with pearls on the end. I chose simple gold earrings and I also wore a hair piece decorated with tiny ceramic flowers. Overall my accessories were very simple but this is typically my style.
The Bridesmaids
I wanted the wedding party to be in timeless attires so I chose black, classic dresses for my bridesmaids. My favorite color is blue so the bridesmaid bouquets consisted of white flowers with small pops of blue flowers.
The Groomsmen
The groomsmen were dressed in black with light blue bow ties. I chose blue bow ties because I love the color blue and thought it would add a nice pop of color to the all black attire of the wedding party.
The Wedding Rings
My engagement ring is a simple solitaire diamond paired with a wedding band made up of small diamonds all the way around. Jackson’s ring is a solid gold band selected to be similar to his father’s.
The Hair and Makeup
I wanted a very classic and elegant look so I chose to wear my hair in a low updo. I also wore a natural makeup look with a little bit of pop to elevate the look.
The Stationery
My mom is very talented and made our wedding stationary. It consisted of a hand painted watercolor scene of Clark gardens with light blue backdrop paper and a classic wedding invitation sealed with a gold wax stamp.
The Florals
I left the creativity to my florist for our wedding day florals. My one desires was that the bouquets be all white with little pops of blues. My bouquet was completely white with a light blue ribbon tied around the stems.
The Morning Of
The morning of was a very special morning. I was feeling very excited and incredibly thankful that I was going to be marrying Jackson and that afterwards we would get to start our married life together. I had a very calm and peaceful morning with my family before arriving at the venue. Before the ceremony Jackson and I did a first touch and prayed together over the day and our marriage.
The Ceremony
Our main desire for the ceremony was that the emphasis of marriage being a covenant with God was reflected. Our pastor was our pre-marital counselor so it was very special that he was able to marry us. We also had communion during our ceremony which was a special time for Jackson and I to be alone together and pray over our marriage during the ceremony.
The Reception
Our reception was held in a huge outdoor tent which added to the garden party ambience and made for a great time on the dance floor. Jackson loves to dance at weddings and it was so fun watching him go all out on the dance floor.
The Planning
Our wedding planning process was very smooth. We hired a day of coordinator associated with the venue and her experience and knowledge of the venue helped make planning the day go very smoothly. Rebekah, our photographer, was also a huge help in creating a wedding timeline.
The Cake
The cake was incredibly special because it was made by my mom. She has a wedding cake business and makes the most amazing cakes. We had a fun wedding cake testing day with my mom and selected white chocolate raspberry. The cake was multiple layers and decorated with handmade sugar flowers.
The Food
We served Italian food from Pastafina, a local restaurant recommended by a family friend who grew up in the area of our venue.
The Favorite Moment
My favorite moment of our wedding day was standing at the alter with Jackson and saying our wedding vows. We did not do a first look so it was really sweet to see him for the first time when walking down the aisle and also very special getting to hold his hands throughout the entire ceremony knowing that we would be officially husband and wife when we walked back down the aisle.
The Unexpected
My wedding veil blew off during the ceremony however I was somewhat relieved that it did because it was difficult to walk while wearing it! My bridesmaids were a huge help in retrieving the veil and helping the ceremony continue on smoothly.
The Honeymoon
We went to Costa Rica for our honeymoon based on the recommendation from some of our good friends who were recently married. We stayed in a private villa at our resort, Nantipa, and had our own pool and beach access. We spent time on the beach, hiking waterfalls, zip-lining and lots of relaxing. One of our favorite parts about the resort was the amazing restaurant. We ate almost every meal at the resort restaurant because the food was incredible.
The Advice
Don’t get too caught up in the details of your wedding day or trying to make sure everything is perfect. Your wedding day will be such a special day regardless of all of the small details and it is worthwhile to pour your time into your future marriage during wedding planning as it will long outlive your wedding day.
The Vendors
Wedding Vendors
PHOTOGRAPHER PHOTOGRAPHY BY R.A CLABORN
VENUE CLARK GARDENS
FLORAL DEANA PUEBLO WEDDINGS & EVENTS
RENTALS + COORDINATOR + STAFFING FINESSE PARTIES AND RENTALS
CAKE SUGAR BEE PASTRIES OF DFW
HAIR + MAKEUP TEASE TO PLEASE HAIR AND MAKEUP