What It Takes to Plan a Luxury Tent Wedding from the Ground Up
May 9, 2026 | Brook + Brooks | Vian, Oklahoma
Some wedding venues come with tables, bathrooms, electricity, running water, a catering kitchen, parking, and a very clear answer to the question, “Where does this go?”
And then there are private-property tent weddings.
For Brook and Brooks Combs’ May wedding, their venue was a beautiful piece of family property overlooking Lake Tenkiller in Vian, Oklahoma. The view was unreal, the setting was incredibly personal, and by the time guests arrived, everything felt like it had always belonged there.
But that’s the magic of a really well-planned tent wedding.
Because in reality? We built a wedding venue from the ground up.
When the View Is the Venue
It would have been nearly impossible to choose a prettier backdrop for this day.
The ceremony was set off to the side of the reception tent, giving guests an incredible view of Lake Tenkiller while Brook and Brooks said “I do.” Just steps away, the tent was positioned so that the lake remained part of the experience throughout the reception.
And honestly, when you have a view like this, you let it do its thing.
Rather than competing with the setting, every piece of the wedding felt like it belonged there. Beautiful florals, sweet signage, family-made details, and an open-air celebration came together in a way that felt elevated without losing the personality of the couple or the property.
A Private Property Wedding Is Basically a Venue From Scratch
Here’s the part you don't necessarily see in the pretty photos.
When you choose to have a wedding somewhere that isn't traditionally an event venue, you aren't just bringing in a tent and calling it a day.
You're bringing in everything.
Power. Water. Restrooms. Catering infrastructure. Tables. Chairs. Linens. Bars. Lighting. A dance floor. A stage and everything needed for a live band. Staffing. Trash removal. Enough electricity to make sure all of those vendors can actually do their jobs.
And every single one of those things has to work together.
Where will catering get water? What is pulling power and from where? Can everything run simultaneously? Where do the portable restrooms go so they're convenient without becoming part of the scenery? How will vendors access the property? Where does everything get delivered? What happens if the weather changes?
Tent weddings are beautiful because you can create almost anything you want.
They're complicated for the exact same reason.
The Details That Made It Theirs
One of our favorite parts of this wedding was how much of it felt personal to Brook and Brooks and their families.
Their family built multiple bars for the reception along with the dance floor, creating custom pieces that weren't just rented for the weekend. Beautiful florals and signage brought everything together, while little personal touches throughout the night kept the celebration from ever feeling too formal or expected.
And then there was the groom's cake.
Brooks is a pilot, so naturally, his cake had to have a little aviation moment. It's those details that we love most. The things that make absolutely no sense at anyone else's wedding but are perfect at yours.
Florals With a Little Extra Meaning
The flowers were beautiful on their own, but the story behind them made them even sweeter.
Their florist, Heath Ubanks, has known the family personally for years and had designed flowers for multiple weddings for Brooks' siblings. Brook and Brooks' wedding was the last of the siblings' weddings, making this one an especially meaningful celebration for everyone involved.
Those are the kinds of vendor relationships that make a wedding feel different.
It's no longer just someone showing up to deliver flowers. It's someone who has been part of your family's biggest celebrations over the years getting to be there for one more.
A Reception That Felt Like Them
After the ceremony, everyone moved into the tent for a reception that was equal parts beautiful and FUN.
The Royal Dukes kept the dance floor going for most of the evening, but later in the night, there was a pretty great change behind the DJ booth.
Brook's dad is a DJ, so he took over for the last hour or so of the reception.
We love a polished, beautifully designed wedding, but we love it even more when the couple isn't afraid to make it personal. A live band, Dad ending the night as DJ, handmade bars, a handmade dance floor, and a tent full of their favorite people overlooking the lake?
That's pretty hard to beat.
The Part Guests Never See
This is what we love about weddings with a million moving pieces.
Guests arrived to a ceremony overlooking Lake Tenkiller. They grabbed drinks from the bars, ate dinner, listened to a live band, danced, and celebrated.
They didn't need to know where the catering water was coming from.
They didn't need to think about electrical loads.
They definitely didn't need to know how many conversations were happening behind the scenes to make sure every vendor had what they needed.
They just got to enjoy the wedding.
And that's exactly how it should be.
Dreaming of a Private-Property Wedding?
Private-property and tent weddings can create some of the most beautiful, personal celebrations because there are very few limits on what you can create.
But when you're starting with a piece of land instead of an established wedding venue, there are also a lot more pieces to plan.
This is one of those weddings where having an experienced planning team involved early makes all the difference. Before we're talking about napkin colors and pretty flowers, we're thinking about power, water, restrooms, tent placement, catering needs, rentals, weather plans, vendor access, guest flow, and all of the not-so-pretty things that allow the pretty things to happen.
At Malyn Made Weddings, we love a wedding with a lot of moving pieces. Give us the property, the vision, and approximately 700 logistical questions to answer.
You get to enjoy the view.
We'll figure out how to build the wedding around it.
The Vendor Team
Planning: Malyn Made Weddings
Venue: Private Property | Vian, Oklahoma
Photography: Oddlot Photography
Videography: In the Moment Productions & Porter Visions
Florals: Stem + Leaf
Catering: Pasta Grill | Van Buren, Arkansas
Bartending & Staffing: Platinum Event Services
DJ: Wolf Pro Audio
Live Band: The Royal Dukes
Hair: KShelton Beauty
Makeup: MLB Artistry
Cake: Paul’s Bakery | Van Buren, Arkansas
Rentals: Party Pro
Portable Restrooms: Oklahoma Thrones
