Remember how rainy it was in June?  CRAZY rainy, right?!  Well, Veronica just KNEW it was going to be gorgeous on her wedding day, so she went ahead and planned dinner for outside, under the stars, no tent.  And you know what?  It was PERFECT!

The day started with the ladies getting their hair and makeup done at Jon’Ric Alexandria, who did a great job getting them dolled up!  Everyone then trekked over to the new National Harbor, where the girls finished getting ready at the Westin.  What great light they had in their room, and great places were found all around at the National Harbor by their photographer, Mark Sypher, of Bella Pictures.

I love this picture of Veronica’s shoes — look how great their view is!

Mark got some GREAT shots of the guys at National Harbor too!

From National Harbor, it is literally about a 2 minute drive up the hill to the gorgeous Oxon Hill Manor.  Everything in this place is beautiful, but one of my favorites is the spiral staircase up to the amazing bride’s room!

I love this shot of Veronica and two of her bridesmaids in the bridal room, one of whom, if you couldn’t tell, is her twin sister!

The room has such gorgeous light — it’s great for a “first look” with the groom, or for dad to see his little girl in her dress for the first time.

Veronica is checking out her dad’s bout — the AMAZING flowers were actually done by Poya’s sister!  This girl basically turned her parents basement into a floral studio for the week before the wedding, and boy was it worth it.  The flowers were GORGEOUS!!!

Actually, the programs were designed by a friend as well.  It’s nice to have talented friends!

As everyone got ready for the wedding, I wrangled the adorable flower girl and ring bearer, who were doing a perfect job…right up until they saw the fountain at the start of the aisle:

I was able to get them on their way…

And then I think someone spotted her mom…

For me, it’s moments like those that make weddings so great — completely adorable and spontaneous.  Luckily, no one actually fell in the fountain!

Mark got some gorgeous shots of the ceremony, which included both Veronica’s faith, Episcopalian, and Poya’s, Baha’i.

After the ceremony in the upper gardens, the guests moved to the house and patios for cocktail hour, while Mark used the awesome reflecting pool for some great shots!

When they finished with photos, everyone returned to the manor to get ready for introductions.  I swear, there’s a picture of me like this at almost every wedding, bustling the bride’s dress.

See that dapper looking fellow standing next to me?  That is the AMAZING Pete Medina.  When Veronica told me that their wedding was being catered by a restaurant (the OHMYGOD SO GOOD Kabob Bazaar in Clarendon), I told her she absolutely HAD to have Pete do her staffing and rentals.  I worked with Pete on Rama and Neel’s wedding, so I knew he was perfect.  He works everywhere from the Italian Embassy on down to offering to get me a few linens for a shower I was throwing.  He does rentals for everything from silverware to linens to ceremony arches, plus he provides a wonderful staff, and, perhaps most importantly, finds out what the bride and groom (and even the Maid of Honor) drink, and makes sure there’s one in their hand all night.  If you’re having a restaurant cater your wedding, or if you need catering staff or linens, post a comment and we’ll send you his information.  He is THE BEST!  He even got Veronica and Poya special linens, chargers and glassware for their sweetheart table.

When Veronica and Poya were introduced onto the patio for the first time as husband and wife, I couldn’t believe it — from every area of the patio, roses came FLYING!  I had never seen this before, but it was so sweet!  They continued to fly during their first dance…you can see some in these photos.

(Author’s Photo)

We were SO lucky to have dinner on the patio — there’s a great fountain, and a great view…plus the night was just PERFECT, temperature wise.  This was largely thanks to the awesome lighting from Frost Lighting. I like working with these guys because they actually leave a technician there on site in case something goes wrong…as it did this night when a little too much power blew a fuse!

After dinner, it was back inside for the delicious cake from Amphora Bakery.

See the Cake Topper?  Veronica really wanted a Gold “S” for their new last name, but all I could find were silver ones…or ones that were INSANELY expensive!  So I did what any crafty (and cheap) girl would do — I bought a silver one and spray painted it gold!  See what your wedding planner can do for you?  We really do save you money

After cake, everyone hit the dance floor where DJ Ani kept the crowd going with Persian and American tunes.  It actually got insanely hot in the room, so the crowd just moved out to the wraparound porch and kept the dancing out there!

Congratulations, Veronica and Poya!  Thanks for a great day, and all the best in the future!

A few weeks ago we attended a party hosted by Elan Artists.  Elan is an agency that promotes wedding bands, DJs, ceremony musicians, photographers, and videographers.  This particular event was a band showcase, featuring the phenomenal entertainment that Elan can provide for weddings.

Seasons Restaurant at the Four Seasons in Georgetown was the venue.  Janet Flowers created some phenomenal floral pieces including the welcome table design you see below.  The nice-looking images were taken by Carlos Andres Varela of Cava Weddings.  The rest are mine:

I also liked these smaller color-themed centerpieces:

Gabriela New York Bridal Salon brought models to showcase their unique gowns:

Carl Ray did the great hair and makeup:

Of course there were yummy cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcake:

I wish I had videos of the bands to show you!  You can see videos and learn more about the bands on their own websites.  We were entertained by Nation, The Source, Raggs & the All Stars, and Truth Groove.

A special shout out goes to Frost Lighting, who can make any space look cool!  For more photos and a different perspective, check out the Ritzy Bee Blog.

Earlier this week I attended an industry party co-hosted by Martin Andrews at Blue Sky Films and Chris Laich, owner of a top-notch DJ/music company.  These two guys threw a fun party last year but set the bar quite a few notches higher this time around.  Check out the beautiful National Museum of Women in the Arts:

Room Service event furniture rentals provided all the fun lounge seating:

Avalon Caterers poured blue martinis and dished up some yummy munchies:

Me with wedding planner Sara Bauleke and photographer Kurstin Roe:

I especially love how the NMWA looked once the sun went down and Frost Lighting’s handiwork started to show:

The images are stolen from Rodney Bailey Photography’s slideshow of the event.  Click here to see all 174 images!  Rodney and his team of photographers never miss a beat.

A special kudos goes to Marc Park valet services.  When I pulled up to the museum there was a line of at least 7 or 8 guys standing at attention.  They were quick to get my car and brought it back in just a few minutes.  The Marc Park staff really knows their stuff.

For a great wedding DJ in the DC area, check out Chris Laich.  He and his crew are always utmost professionals and I enjoy working with them.  For phenomenal wedding video, Blue Sky Films is the one to book.  (Remember Blue Sky is the one that can do Super 8 film?)  Tell them I sent you!

When I first met with Amy and Alex, the first thing I noticed was Amy’s quiet personality and Alex’s robust sense of humor.  Amy explained that she wanted a ‘French Countryside with an English Garden’ feel for the wedding.  Alex and I joked about having a helicopter transport them from the reception James Bond-style.  While we didn’t quite end up with a helicopter, I think we certainly achieved the European aura that Amy was looking for.

The pair chose Trinity Episcopal Church mostly based on it’s European feel.  While this building was built in the 1950s, it’s style is based on 12th and 13th century churches in France.  Trinity’s campus boasts a number of other buildings including an antique greenhouse and the nation’s smallest lending library.  Here’s the main church building:

Inside the church, the touching ceremony takes place.  Unfortunately Trinity doesn’t allow photographers or videographers to get closer than the front doors but our vendors made the best of it.  I’ll be interested to see how Colin from Blue Sky Films and Mark from Rodney Bailey Photography captured the ceremony!  Here’s what I got from my angle:

As a quick note, did you know that Blue Sky Films offers Super 8 film instead of traditional video?  They can mix it in with traditional video, too, so your whole wedding isn’t shot just on film.  Amy chose to have some segments of the wedding captured on Super 8.  Check out a sample here.

Meanwhile at the reception, my assistants Julie and Felicia were busy setting up the tent at Historic Long Branch.  This venue was new to me although they’ve been doing weddings for years.  Located in Millwood, Virginia, it has a robust history and some of the most serene views of the rolling Blue Ridge Moutains I’ve seen at any wedding venue.  The house is open to docent-led tours during cocktail hour and the reception must be under a tent.  Although it was a bit hot this past weekend, the Sheila Macqueen-designed gardens were blooming beautifully and the view simply cannot be beat.

Amy chose purple and ivory as her wedding colors.  We used a lavender cotton on the cocktail and service tables and a plum pintuck on the guest tables.  Select Event Rentals provided the tent and Party Rental, Ltd. brought the chairs, linens, and china:

The escort cards even had a French flair to them.  Each card was held by a pewter fluer-de-lis holder.  Unfortunately they kept blowing over since the event was outdoors.  We ended up having to lay them down on the table but I think they still looked cute:

:::WishTip::: Color-code your place cards if you are offering your guests a meal choice.  At this wedding, purple, white, and green signaled Pork, Chicken, or Fish to the wait staff.

Unfortunately the cake table sat empty most of the night.  It was too hot to display the wedding cake inside the tent.  The buttercream icing starts melting and doesn’t keep the cake layers sturdy.  At 92 degrees, there was no chance this cake would’ve made it three hours outdoors!  While dinner got underway, the cake remained in a semi-air conditioned corner of the basement.  We moved it out right before the cake cutting ceremony but even by then the layers were starting to wobble a bit.  I decided to alter the schedule a little bit before the cake smushed into itself.  Yet one more reason why having a wedding day coordinator is a good investment.

Carolyn at Taylor Made Cakes did a beautiful job on this cake.  I’m impressed that it lasted as long as it did which means she’s had experience at building structurally sound cakes.  It’s hard to see but there is a lace detail all around the bottom of each layer.  It was gorgeous!

Back inside the tent, a closeup of one of the taller centerpieces.  Maryam at Maryam Flowers was a rockstar for this wedding.  We’ve worked with her several times and she never misses a beat.  I especially liked the old-style European stands she brought instead of the typical glass trumpet vases:

These cute lanterns served as the short centerpieces.  Maryam made three small tulip arrangements for each table.  It’s hard to see but each tulip bunch is wrapped in purple wire.  It was such a small touch but shows Maryam’s attention to detail.  This image shows the true colors of the table linen and the chivari chair cushions.  Amy printed these pretty table cards, named after chateaus in France:

Tom at Pineapple Alley Catering provided the fabulous food and attentive wait staff.  I snuck a leftover hors d’oeuvre from the kitchen and was really blown away.  I had no idea an onion tart could be so sweet and savory!  Tom even worked with Amy and Alex to get European beer and wine for the wedding.  If you’re looking for a caterer, working with Pineapple Alley was truly a pleasure all the way around.

Here’s one last shot of the wedding taking place.  I apologize for the cruddy BlackBerry camera quality.  I like this image because it shows the beautiful purple tent swagging that Eric at Frost Lighting did.  I don’t have any photos from the rest of the night but the whole tent glowed purple through the evening and really came alive once the sun went down.  You can just barely start to see the effect of the pinspots on those tall centerpieces towards the back.  It was gorgeous!

Although the weather was a bit on the toasty side (I came home with a sunburn), the ceremony was heartfelt, the scenery was gorgeous, and the newlyweds were smitten with each other.  Just how a wedding should be!

Special thanks to Jodi, Julie, and Felicia who helped me out at this gorgeous wedding.  More kudos go to Aaron from Chris Laich Music Services who kept the dance floor packed all night long and rolled with the schedule changes I threw at him!  It’s always wonderful to have an attentive and professional emcee on the microphone.  One last shout out to Dan at Reston Limousine who arranged for two limos, three shuttles, and one sedan with no hiccups or delays whatsoever.

Amy & Alex, it was truly a pleasure working with you over the better part of this past year.  I really enjoyed being a part of your wedding day and wish you both the best of luck in your lives.  I’m sure we’ll see each other soon.  Congratutulations!