I have known this bride for a LONG time.  I began my career years ago at Wolf Trap and one summer, had a WONDERFUL intern named Julia.  Fast forward over 10 years later, and I see on Facebook Julia’s getting married!  I email her to congratulate her, and she says “oh, and by the way, I need a planner…”  Of course I signed right up!

Julia planned every last detail but Chris, a graphic designer, designed all of the paper pieces, including the menus, invitations, and programs!

I absolutely LOVE this photo of the couple, just after they were married, at the church’s entrance.  How gorgeous is that vintage fur stole, compliments of the bride’s grandmother?

After the ceremony, everyone headed to the Fairfax Marriott at Fair Oaks to start the party.  This Marriott has a GORGEOUS cocktail area, made even more beautiful by the lighting from Swank Audio Visuals:

Throughout the planning, Julia kept talking about the “wow” factor in the ballroom.  Well, she definitely got it!  With a combination of the already beautiful ballroom:

Linens from DC Rental:

More lighting from Swank:

…and my favorite part, the centerpieces!  Chris and Julia had three different centerpieces.  Two of them were provided by a Wish favorite, Barbara Von Elm at Growing Wild:

And the third was designed by Julia and put together by my beautiful assistants and me! (and which you’ve seen before, as they’re for sale!)

(The small bride’s cake was based on Chris’ design from the invitations!)

As if that wasn’t enough sugar, Julia’s mom baked mini breads for guests to take home, sealed with the couple’s custom monogram (again, created by the groom) and gave them the recipe for the bread to bake at home!

A few more gorgeous pictures of the day:

This weekend I had the pleasure of working at Cara & Dave’s wedding!  These two exchanged vows and celebrated at the Galleria at Lafayette Centre in downtown Washington, DC.  We had an all-star team of vendors who pulled of a beautiful event.  Check it out for yourself!

Guests arrive for the wedding ceremony, set in the main space at the Galleria.  I thought DaVinci’s Florist did a great job decorating the perimeter of the room with drape and uplighting it.  They also provided the chuppah and altar pillars:

This is a view of the aisle from the ground floor on the opposite side of the room.  Cara & Dave are getting married!

I really love the tall ceilings and glass atrium feel at the Galleria.  It’s so airy and spacious there!  In this photo you can see photographer Genevieve Leiper, doing her thing.  I can’t wait to see her images!

Since the ceremony and reception took place in the same spot, R&R Catering got creative and staged the tables behind the draped area.  Here’s the dinner tables off in the wings, waiting for their moment to shine:

I couldn’t believe how quickly the room was flipped!  Within 20 minutes, R&R Catering had brought out 18 tables, the DJ moved to a new spot, and DaVinci’s set all the centerpieces and adjusted the drape:

There was a mix of tall and short centerpieces to create some interest in the room and also fit the spacious feel of the room.  Here’s one of the tall ones:

Here’s the other tall arrangement.  It’s decidedly different and very modern, but still fits in with the decor of the party.  Granny Smith apples are stacked and submerged then one sprig of deep purple orchids crown the top:

I especially loved the low centerpieces.  Look at the vibrant colors!  There was a lush mix of hot pink, tangerine, lime green, and deep plum all in one arrangement:

The cocktail table arrangements complimented the dinner table pieces:

The Galleria is such a pretty place for a wedding!  Here’s the whole space as seen from the second floor balcony (where we hosted cocktails):

Did you see that?  The cupcake tree?  YES!  Cara & Dave ordered an acrylic stand which imitated a wedding cake design and displayed the cupcakes perfectly.  I really loved the big momma cupcake on the top.  Tim at Baked & Wired hooked us up with the yummy cupcakes:

Cara & Dave used the topper for the cake cutting ceremony then guests took their cupcakes directly from the stand:

One little detail I liked was that the tables were named after important places in the couple’s history together.  DC locals will appreciate this one:

Check out their adorable wedding flavors!  One of their friends handmade candy apples for all the guests.  She even used green candy coloring to match the wedding colors:

Another cute detail was the guest book.  The pages were illustrated!  Each illustration told a part of Cara & Dave’s story.  Guests then signed in the blank spaces around the illustrations.  Check it out:

I also really liked how she tied the guest book pens with colorful ribbon:

Another view of the party from above.  Cara & Dave are the first couple I’ve met who danced to a Chicago song for their first dance!  DJ Derek Romanoff from Bialek’s Music kept guests on the dance floor the whole night long (literally!):

A big special thank you goes to my assistants Kenlinishia and Megan, who were wedding day rock stars.  All those candy apples weren’t going to put themselves out.  Thanks guys!

Congratulations Cara & Dave!  I really had a wonderful time at your wedding and was glad to be a part of it.  I hope you have a FABULOUS time in Thailand later this week!

Last week I mentioned that we visited The Atrium at Meadowlark for a walkthrough.  Well, our first Meadowlark bride of the year tied the knot!  Our big hearty congratulations go to Kirsten & Daniel who celebrated their nuptials among close family and friends.  I’m holding out for professional photographs from Heather Z but for now my own images will do.

Since guests had to walk past the reception area on their way to the ceremony, we tied a ribbon across the bridge.  This prevented guests from leaving their jackets, purses, and other personal belongings at the tables before the photographer took room photos:

The ceremony from a sneaky ‘inside the atrium’ viewpoint:

After the ceremony, Heather Z was tasked with taking a lot of family portraits.  This is typical at a lot of weddings but you never see the ‘behind the scenes’!  Here’s Heather hard at work, making sure everyone’s face gets in the image:

Here’s Kirsten and her bridesmaids taking in the reception.  This is also a great shot of their bouquets from Maryam Flowers.  Can you guess which one is her sister?

Kirsten and me:

Here’s the Atrium, all set up!  Isn’t it gorgeous?

Kirsten’s friend Stephanie owns Soiree Papier, a stationery company.   Look at these adorable escort cards she made for the wedding:

Kirsten & Daniel also chose to donate to a handful of charities instead of giving favors to their guests.  Here’s a terrible photo of the cute cards that explain the charities:

Stephanie also made these great table numbers and the Mr. & Mrs. card for the sweetheart table:

Maryam did a great job on the centerpieces and bouquets!  Gorgeous!

Danielle at Windows Catering went above and beyond.  It’s the little things that make big differences.  Have you ever seen a buffet at a wedding?  Most have those unsightly chafing dishes that look like they’d be more suited for a school cafeteria.  These two small chafing dishes were decorative and unassuming.  The other foods were presented on gorgeous platters in smaller portions so everyone’s meal was hot and fresh from the kitchen:

Windows provided the cake too.  Yummy!

A shot of the party at night with all the twinkly lights in the trees:

Congratulations again, Kirsten & Daniel!  I really enjoyed working with you both and will miss our regular meetings at La Madeleine.  Say hello to your kitties for me!

Recently we had the honor of coordinating Kinley & Drew’s big day!  We enjoyed our walkthrough at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club back in August and were excited for the real deal.  This Annapolis couple chose to get married on the eastern shore of Maryland, a beautiful part of the state.  While the talented Amy Raab will have some professional photos to drool over in a couple weeks, my photos will have to do for now.

A special shout-out goes to my associate Rebecca, who has served as a rockstar assistant at a few of our most recent weddings.  If you’re planning a wedding in Annapolis or the Eastern Shore (okay, or DC or Leesburg for that matter!), Rebecca really knows her stuff.

Kinley & Drew chose to see each other before the ceremony and get some of their bridal party photos out of the way.  Here’s the groomsmen hanging out by the shuttle bus from Chariots for Hire:

A bridesmaid shows of her bouquet, provided by DaVinci’s Florist:

Here’s the bride’s bouquet!  All white tulips, this gorgeous arrangement stayed surprisingly perky all day:

Getting a chance at some outdoor photos in front of the church with Amy Raab:

Historic Christ Church in downtown Stevensville, Maryland provided the perfect venue for their intimate ceremony.  This gorgeous building was built in 1880 and holds a large significance to the town and their local parish.  Here are the church doors sporting some hydrangea wreaths:

Inside, the church’s altar:

The pews sported these adorable galvanized pails brimming with white hydrangea and accented with a nautical-inspired navy ribbon:

The altar flowers were simple calla lilies set atop a cylindrical vase.  Gorgeous!

A quick look at the program cover, complete with nautical motif:

My BlackBerry took this one of the ceremony in action:

Over at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club, Rebecca was setting up the reception.  Unfortunately due to the weather we weren’t able to use the rooftop deck.  The view from the deck looks out over this gorgeous marina on one side:

And this amazing view of the Chesapeake Bay on the other side:

Since the pouring rain was imminent, we opted to have the bar open in the covered cocktail area.  The rooftop area was open but most guests enjoyed the climate-controlled space.  The Garden Room has this great fireplace that we decorated with hydrangea flower boxes and galvanized lanterns:

Here’s a better view of the Garden Room.  Check out that nautical detail with the rope around the cocktail table:

The beautiful wedding cake was provided by Annapolis’ own Main Ingredient.  Check out the nautical rope accent coiled on the table:

Check out the detail on the top!  Can you believe the pastry chef did this freestyle on-site?

During cocktail hour, the Polaroid Guestbook was a hit!  If you plan to do this, don’t forget that Polaroid cameras will soon be extinct:

Seriously — people loved this thing:

I love these adorable escort cards!  Each name comes with a flag which guests match to the appropriate table.  The galvanized tray holds a sheet of foam which we covered with white rocks:

Here’s how Kinley displayed the table flags for guests to match up:

The reception room, all ready to go:

Centerpieces with simple hydrangea were provided by DaVinci’s Florist:

An awful photo of a beautiful moment.  Kinley and Drew enjoy their first dance:

Congraulations again, you two!  It was a pleasure working with you through the planning process and also spending time with you on your wedding day.  Our first experience at the Beach Club was a phenomenal one.  I hope you had a great honeymoon in the Outer Banks!