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 weekend we had the honor of coordinating Lauren & Jake’s big day.  Their wedding ceremony and reception were both held at the Fairmont hotel in the west end of Georgetown.  What a beautiful hotel!  They chose the lower ballroom to accommodate all of their guests.  Using one half of the ballroom for the ceremony, we ‘flipped’ the room during cocktail hour and used the whole space for the reception.

Special thanks to Bob, Chack, and Lonnie at the Fairmont.  Their amazing staff took care of nearly every detail and really provided 5-star service.  I highly recommend this hotel to any bride looking for an elegant, easy, and top-notch wedding venue.

Lauren’s dress hanging in a window of the bridal suite, ready to go:

Petal’s Edge Floral Design did a fantastic job on all the floral decor.  Everything was fresh, fragrant, and most importantly delivered on time!  Here’s the bouquets:

Our couple decided to see each other beforehand.  Like many Jewish couples, they planned to meet before the ceremony to sign the Ketubah (marriage contract) anyway.  That meant we had plenty of time for formal photographs before the ceremony.  Here’s our bride and groom in the Fairmont’s beautiful garden:

A photo of the Ketubah after the signing ceremony:

A closeup:

The wedding programs from The Dandelion Patch:

The ceremony was just stunning.  Chairs were provided by Party Rental, Ltd.  Lighting was in-house at the Fairmont by SWANK.  Check out the beautiful chuppah by Petal’s Edge:

The escort card table, ready to go for cocktail hour:

The escort cards up close.  All the paper goods were provided by our family at The Dandelion Patch:

Lauren & Jake chose to have an Asian food station during cocktail hour.  They served all types of Asian-style hors d’oeuvres.  YUM!  I love how the Fairmont decorated the table with props:

The HUGE ovular bar in the center of the cocktail space.  This was taken before the event began.  I swear they moved those racks before guests showed up:

Here’s the ‘ballroom-in-waiting.’  This is how all the tables were lined up while the ceremony was taking place:

The wedding cake provided by the Fairmont:

At this point my camera’s battery promptly died.  Here’s what I captured from my Blackberry of the reception:

Escapade provided awesome entertainment all night long.  This wedding band was the BEST band I’ve seen in four years of planning weddings:

The candy bar was a SMASH hit!  I love how the centerpiece has Hershey’s Kisses below the flowers:

I hope to have photos from photographer Robert Isacson soon.  Hopefully I’ll be able to share those with you when I have them.
Congratulations again, Lauren & Jake!