A Romantic Military Wedding {Elisabeth and Seth}

The wedding of Elisabeth and Seth was a personal favorite of mine for many reasons. First, I loved, loved, loved the couple. Second, I loved, loved, loved the bride's family (with whom I worked closely  on the wedding). And last, but by no means least, the bride and almost her entire family and bridal party were fellow Duke alums! This was a good year for Duke (ahem, basketball national champs) so we had a fabulous time planning the wedding amid all the excitement.

But no amount of college basketball excitement matched the excitement of the day during the planning when the groom came home from Iraq after his second tour of duty. I met Seth right after his arrival at our menu tasting at Design Cuisine.  You've never seen anyone appreciate excellent food as much as he did! It was so nice to finally meet the groom after hearing so many wonderful things about him (all of which were true).

The planning was a dream, the wedding day was a (slightly warm) dream and everyone involved was a dream to work with!  We started the wedding day at the bride's home with the amazing Kim from Beauty Mark and the lovely and talented Giselle from Elegant Hair by Giselle.  These women are all-time favorites of mine.  They make brides look amazing and stay calm!

Elisabeth's beautiful dress was an Amsale from Engaging Affairs favorite Hitched. I love the grosgrain ribbon belt and broach detail!

Meanwhile, the guys were getting ready at The Hotel Sofitel downtown. Nothing like mixing beer and sabers!

The bride and groom took a couple of hours before the ceremony to meet and take portraits at the monuments with amazing photographer Greg Gibson. We love this shot where the bride seems to have run into a Quinceanera party on the way to meet the groom!  Now that's a lot of pink!

Then it was off to Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church for the beautiful ceremony. We had plenty of men in uniform, which is always fun!

The bride chilled out with her girls in the church basement and got some final touch-ups from Kim before going down the aisle.

I loved that this group had so much fun at every point of the day.  No stress or worry.  Just lots of joy; the way a wedding day should be!

The fabulous Mother of the Bride in an equally fabulous (and sassy) dress.

This is the solution to a shy flower girl and a large pomander. I think the flowers look great with his uniform!

Love this dramatic aisle!

The groom's face as the bride comes down the aisle is always a favorite photo of mine!

Happy couple!

The sword arch was such a fun way to end the ceremony!

One hilarious group shot in front of the Lincoln before heading off to the reception at Decatur House! We have been at Decatur House lots this Summer and it has been so much fun.  What a beautiful venue and great staff!

Sugarplum (our go-to tent company) provided the lovely white tent and the talented and lovely Susie from Heavenly Hydrangeas created the gorgeous green and white floral arrangements throughout.  A jazz trio from MSE Productions welcomed guests into the reception and set the stage for the festive evening.

Family wedding photos surrounded the guest book. I adore the photo of the groom's parents getting married in furs in Alaska!

The green and white sheer leaf linens and green rimmed china from DC Rental were perfect for a summer wedding in an tented courtyard.

Kendall's Cakes provided the delicious wedding cake that the bride and groom cut with a sword. Yum!  Always love sampling Kendall's cakes for quality control purposes.  It's a tough part of the job!

DJ Aaron from Chris Laich kept the evening moving smoothly and the dance floor packed. Not only was he polished and professional (no cheesy yammering), he played a great mix of music.  Thanks, Aaron!

As the bride and groom dashed off for a final photo shoot, guests tossed eco-friendly confetti from biodegradable paper cones made from plantable seed paper. Very eco-chic!

Thanks to our amazing team who did another stellar job: Linda at Linder and Associates for being all over the seamless transportation; Christine and everyone at Design Cuisine for the fabulous food (including my personal favorite: baked Alaska brownie sticks!); MarcParc Valet for efficiently parking all the cars; and Arioth at the Decatur House for ensuring that everything at the house was perfect.

Special thanks to Greg Gibson for the stunning images (Greg is always so much fun to work with and has an amazing eye) and to my assistants Alison and Maeve for being part of the 3-woman fan relocation team (did I mention that it was a tad bit warm?). And a huge thank you to Elisabeth, Seth and their wonderful families for letting us be a part of such a special day! 
Go Duke and Go Army!
Laura