For years, Shelby Stephens dreamt of all things wedding after falling in love with planning her own in just under six weeks. “After planning my own wedding, I was so sad when it was over. I knew I wanted to do something with weddings and events. After a friend suggested I open a wedding venue of my own, I just knew I had to do it,” said Shelby. Her mother, deepened her daughter’s love for weddings, when she purchased what is now Gracyn Elizabeth Bride in Texarkana, where Shelby worked for a year. “One day, I finally looked at my husband and told him that we could afford to open a wedding venue,” says Shelby, and her husband Caleb agreed. A few months later they purchased 50 acres in New Boston. In July of 2020 the Stephens broke ground on Four Fifteen Estates.
Shelby and her husband hit the ground running to give COVID brides a new place to have their special day, when so many venues continue to cancel or close. During the process of building, many decisions were made including the special design of each building. Originally, the Reception Hall was going to be white, but Shelby had other plans. Four Fifteen Estates now has a beautiful black Reception Hall, and a Chapel with blue stained glass windows on the door following the traditions of Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue which Shelby loves. Each building, from the Chapel to the Reception Hall, into the Bridal Suite, are donned with touches of modern chic, with exposed wood, and beautiful land surrounding the venue. The venues focal point and prime photography location is the outdoor fireplace, which was salvaged from one of the remaining houses on the property when the Stephens first purchased.
“We were really nervous because of how modern everything turned out,” says Shelby, “but we wanted it to be different, and it’s definitely become a selling point to our clients and to the community,” says Shelby. Thus far, Four Fifteen Estates has booked 24 weddings, and hopes to book more weddings and events in the future. “What we have built isn’t just for the next modern bride, we’ve built an event center for the whole community to come out and enjoy,” says Shelby.
Four Fifteen Estates offers clients a full kitchen for catering, a Bridal Suite (to get dressed and ready), and a Grooms Loft, for the wedding party to dress. They also offer tables and chairs to accommodate large parties, as well as a wedding day coordinator. In addition to the regular one day package for events, Four Fifteen Estates offers a weekend package to ensure a relaxing experience for their clients. This package allows clients the option for one day of preparation, one day to party, and one day to clean up. “We wanted to offer everyone who comes here a go, get ready and party kind of atmosphere,” said Shelby.
Four Fifteen Estates will host their Grand Opening this Thursday, April 15th at 6 p.m., and their first wedding is set to take place this Saturday, April 17th.
Four Fifteen Estates is located at 415 Co Rd 2101, New Boston, TX 75570.
https://www.fourfifteenestates.com/
