The Fairy Godmother of Travel: An Icy Cool Groom's "Cake"

Froyo to-go as Brandon and Allison prepare to leave for the night.
Photo by Focal Point Photographics

Anyone who knows Allison and Brandon will tell you they are truly two people who clearly were meant to be together. When Allison told us they wanted to have frozen yogurt served at their wedding in place of the traditional groom’s cake, we immediately knew of another pair meant to be together. The Fairy Godmothers went to work bringing together a few of our favorite vendors with the couple’s favorite froyo company, The Yogurt Experience, to create a memorable surprise on their wedding night. (They are Groupon today for their North Austin Trailer Yard location!)

It was almost a year ago that Sean Leahy, owner and sculptor at Full Spectrum Ice, told us about his vision to create a functional ice bar that could be used for serving a frozen treat such as gelato or ice cream from behind the bar but was waiting for the right bride to come around so he could create it. Fast forward to New Years Eve when Brandon proposed to Allison with the words “Marry Me?” lit up with 5 foot tall letters formed from over 1200 Christmas lights stranded together atop a hillside near the 360 bridge. We sent design ideas to Sean and told him about the couple's engagement story. What he came up with and sketched out turned into an amazing sculpture perfectly fit for the elegant affair, personalized with the meaningful “Marry Me” phrase lit up and a string of Christmas lights buried deep inside the ice.

Menu by Scratch Paper Studio
Photo by Focal Point Photographics

We truly enjoyed working with each of the vendors in the collaboration of this design. Jennifer Broschofsky, owner and manager of Yogurt Experience, was so thorough in the planning process always going above and beyond to make sure each detail of their element was carefully thought out and planned. She arranged for a tasting with the couple to guide them in the best decisions for toppings and froyo flavor (no surprise, but the cake batter flavor was a huge hit!). They brought their machines onsite to ensure the quality and flavor of the product Allison and Brandon already knew and loved would be duplicated for their wedding night. She even made sure to bring out the bride's signature yellow by using the brightly colored yellow spoons all night. Sean suggested adding small details to the ice bar such as creating fitted holes molded to hold the syrups and whipped cream to rest inside as well as a beveled tray cut out for the toppings set inside and displayed to face the guests. He also added risers flanking the toppings to display the choice of froyo flavors and toppings. Intelligent Lighting Design came up with a cool icy blue hue that was the "icing on the cake" to light up the bar from below.

Guests raved about the frozen yogurt, but having it built into an interactive and fun display that captured the attention of everyone in the room made the whole combination a memorable element of the night. With these hot summer days, this was a perfect treat, and we can’t wait to incorporate this entire concept again!