This shoot, dubbed Goth Glam by everyone involved, was created out of a need to shake things up. The team wanted to bring together Kansas City’s weirdest, boldest, and most unapologetic creatives and make something that proves “high-end” doesn’t have to mean beige. They called it a love letter to the alt-lux side of weddings: velvet and smoke, drama and decadence, edge and elegance. The goal was to show that goth, glam, and alternative can sit right alongside luxury, without losing the grit.

Shot inside a nightclub, black lace met black cakes, and pink and red florals dripped from tabletops. “We wanted to prove that weird can be couture, and that the Midwest can throw down with the best of them,” photographer Courtney of Stag & Bird told us.

Much of the creative team identify as queer, and the models were chosen not just for their professionalism but because they defy traditional beauty standards. The intention was representation and to let clients see themselves reflected back. “Our potential clients are diverse, bold, and real,” she explained. “We wanted them to see that they belong here too.”

Goth Glam is a visual manifesto for individuality as luxury, proof that alternative doesn’t have to mean “budget” or “DIY.” It can be lush, sensual, and cinematic while still feeling raw and real. “You can lean into your weird, your bold, your dramatic – and still have a wedding that feels wildly romantic,” she continued. “It’s about owning your vibe so hard that the whole room feels it.”

“The industry here in the US can feel like a loop of the same beige aesthetic over and over again. We’ve been trained to believe that ‘pretty’ means pastel and that weddings should be conservative, neutral and rooted in tradition. Couples who don’t fit that mould are often made to feel like their vision is somehow less than. Alternative or goth aesthetics are too often dismissed as low-budget, DIY, or not ‘real weddings’. But that’s just not true. You can have a luxurious, high-end, fully curated event that still screams you. You can mix punk and pearls, lace and leather, romance and rebellion – and it can be just as elegant and meaningful as any ballroom affair.”