A Night of Enchantment

Washington DC in March is one of the most beautiful places. New life abound – the cherry blossoms blooming – a first hand view of Washington DC’s most stunning monuments. With the floor to ceiling atrium windows, I cannot imagine a more beautiful wedding reception than treating your guests to a front row view of Washington DC -while cruising around the Potomac. This is exactly what this couple treated their 150 guests to – a night of enchantment.

This wonderful couple, brought together by fate, came from two entirely different backgrounds – hers Korean – and his American, but both totally in love. They combined their love to treat their guests to a multicultural affair that both they and their guests will forever remember. Adorned in a beautiful designer gown and him in a tux, they renewed their vows in high fashion-while docked in Washington DC’s SE side, known for its great harbor and even better seafood. After the ceremony, the ship “set sail” to a cruise of magnificent proportions.

After an abundant cocktail hour of heavy Hors D’oeuvres and drink, guests were able to order of menus and feasted on a 3 course meal fit for kings/queens! While eating, the Bride and Groom partook in many traditional wedding rituals; such as, the First dance and parent dances. After dinner, the 5 piece band opened the floor to all guests!

The Bride and Groom cut their simple 3 tiered cake, and quickly went to change for the traditional Korean bowing ceremony. Guests were treated to an elegant Chocolate Foutain, with a variety of fresh fruit and sweets as an accompaniment to the delicous yellow wedding cake.

Dressed in traditional Hanbok, the Bride and Groom made their way from table to table and bowed, offering thanks and respect to all of their guests. After the bowing ceremony, the Bride and Groom cut the traditional Korean Rice Cake, which we distributed with traditional Korean desserts as guests exited the vessel.

The night seemed to end as soon as it started. The simple set up lead to a magnificent evening full of light, love, Washington DC sites, but more importantly a memorable occasion for all!

Photography by Marais Studios

Home Wedding - More Pictures

It was truly a gorgeous day - picture perfect really! I would love to share more pictures with you.

The cocktail hour took place in an enormous field. Guest tables were placed on the field as well as by a private pond- giving them a quiet place to reflect and enjoy. A trio of chamber players provided a number of classical selections










































We used a mix of square and round tables and tall and short centerpieces. The colors were chocolate and celadon. After going to a whole sale florist, we learned that she love peonies, hydrangea, roses and viburnum. For the cocktail hour, light celadon linens were used. Chocolate satin with natural Chivaris draped the room.








































The large tent was placed in one of the fields. Poles draped in fabric and covered with lights provided the most elegant setting for a most terrific evening.





























Congratulations Adrienne and Brian






















Photography by Thomas Graves

3 Recent Weddings

Take a look at this short video of 3 recent weddings. These weddings represent our style.

2 weddings were in Baltimore and 1 in Kansas City.

Enjoy




Jennifer and I look forward to speaking to you about your upcoming wedding!

Credits
Music - Half Acre by Hem

Photography
A Walters Wedding - http://www.rachelsmithphoto.com
Kansas City - http://www.paulvphoto.com
A Home Wedding - http://www.thomasgraves.com

Why you need a "day of" coordinator

Is the answer to the question above obvious? How long did you spend planning your wedding? 6 months? A year? More? Odds are that you invested a lot of time, money, energy and stress into this one big day. My question for you – Why wouldn’t you want it handled and run with precision and grace?

Sadly enough, nothing is perfect. Would you rather enjoy your hair and make-up session with your Bridesmaids, Mother and Sisters, or spending the time on the phone with questions from vendors, speaking with your fiancé - who is still at the hotel because the limos are late, dealing with the florist - who delivered red, yellow and orange bouquets that are supposed to be white. Or perhaps you want to spend the morning of your wedding decorating your reception site? These are just a few of the vast number of issues that come to light on a wedding day?

I hear couples say - “but we have a coordinator that comes with the ceremony/reception site. Why would we need someone else”? Let me take a moment to list the many reasons…

1. Who is in charge of the entire day in total? Who knows your wedding, and will know what you want?

2. How many couples is your reception site coordinator dealing with on a daily basis? When calling not only caterers, but florists, reception site coordinators and photographers, they tell me that they work on weddings taking place in the next week or two. Well…if your wedding is not immediate, who is answering your questions and responding to your needs? What is the result of this on you? More stress and anxiety?

3. Who is going to be the “point” person? Who is in charge of knowing the limo drivers’ cell phone numbers, so they can be contacted when they are late or lost? How about for the hotel concierge when guests have questions on when the buses will arrive, or the address of your ceremony/reception site? Who negotiates with the florist when they delivers the personal flowers to the ceremony site instead of to the hotel? Who is going to coordinate how to get those flowers to the right place? Who is going to advocate for you when the reception site places something in the wrong place, or does not adhere to your detailed set up instructions?

4. Who is going to make sure that all the last minute details leading up to your wedding is taken care of? Who is going to make sure that you have applied for your marriage license, have prepared the place cards correctly, and makes sure that all of the people involved in the wedding knows what’s going on - prior to the day they show up at the rehearsal.

5. Who is going to speak with the vendors personally to make sure that everyone knows what’s happening on your day, hammer out any last minute details, and make last minute confirmations, while you are enjoying lunch with your Bridesmaids, making trips to the airport, or more importantly, enjoying your guests that have flown around the world to be with you?

6. Who is going to make sure that shuttle buses arrive for pick-ups and drop off’s at the right place and time?

7. Besides you, who is going to know your wedding so well, that she/he can make decisions while you enjoy your guests and reception? Who is going to make sure things run just as your envisioned they would run?

8. Who is going to know what you want for set-up and clean up while you are preparing for your day or are saying goodbye to your family and special friends?

After answering some of these questions, you will see that a day of coordinator is not a luxury, but a necessity. I present the question again - you spend a lot of time, and money, planning this important day – why wouldn’t you want it handled with professionalism? Why would you put your wedding, the largest and most important event you have ever planned, in inexperienced hands?

One more question – who knows what subtle details need to be attended to? A professional that dedicates his/her life work to weddings.