A Planner's Paradise Part Two {Amanda & Luke}

The wedding day!  Although I didn’t have my Robek’s smoothie to start me out (an Engaging Affairs wedding day tradition)-- I did have a large coconut to drink out of to start my day!  Shenique Higgs with Sheque Perfection got the mothers, maid and matron of honor and myself ready to walk down the aisle!  Shenique has also worked with other DC planners on destination weddings-- small world! 

 As I said before, I love color.  I knew the coral of the local bougainvillea would look amazing against the ocean!  The Alexandra Resort (thank you Anette Mullings) was the perfect backdrop!  Their rooms and service were absolutely amazing.  Oh and did I mention the views!  I’ve always loved yellow so I had my girls wear a casual yellow sundress to compliment the tropical background.  I wanted this ceremony to be personal so I asked my dear friend and mentor, Sandra Hoehne, to preside.  It was absolutely perfect!  We chose poems by Wordsworth and Whitman for our readings and gave our own vows (think “I vow to come second on Greengenes nights” and “I vow to let our kids be Ravens fans”).

 

The one difficult part about me is the photography.  As a girl who does not look her best in candid photos and constantly has her “photo smile” on but loves photojournalism wedding photos-- it was quite hard for me to imagine being obsessed with my wedding photos.  Introducing Jon Nickson of Eyespice Photography!  He was able to put my whole family and myself at ease!  He promised to yell at me if I started to get too “planner” on him as well!  I knew I wanted to come away with amazing photos and even go a little out of the box-- so I went swimming!

After a change of dress it was on to the reception at Mango Reef Restaurant.  Alexis took such great care of us and the whole party was delighted at the amazing food and service!  My favorite parts of the wedding were the toasts.  My father, who is known to be slightly sarcastic, did a wonderful job pulling out my 8^th grade creative writing booklet.  The toasts went on to include my oldest and dearest friend, my beloved sister, a memorable salute from the best man, a 90210 ode, a college throwback, and a video montage narrated and made by Luke’s mom.  Lots of talking (very fitting)!   

 We had a custom cake topper made from The Little Gift Box (you can see it here on their site http://www.etsy.com/listing/100171139/wedding-cake-topper-custom-painted-wood) which is a local shop in Alexandria, VA!

 

After the cake cutting it was time for DJ William John put on some amazing dance tunes and the rest of the night was a dancing blur! 

Thank you again to all of these amazing vendors for making my dreams come true and letting us all celebrate in paradise!

Xoxo,

Amanda

A Planner's Paradise {Amanda & Luke}

When I sat down to write this blog, I couldn’t decide what angle to take-- it is my own wedding, after all!  The more I thought about it, I realized I should do what I always do-- thank the vendors!!

I got engaged last July (first thank you is to Peter Boone at Boone & Sons in Chevy Chase for my most fabulous engagement ring) and was then stuck with the task-- plan my own wedding?!  Sounds harder than you think for a planner!  After toying with a bayside Annapolis wedding, an elegant DC affair, or the many other local choices, I finally decided to head 1,214 miles away to Grace Bay Beach in Turks & Caicos.  Although we did lose some guests due to the distance-- what a blast we had!  A little secret though-- we were already married!

Luke and I got married about a month before our T&C celebration at St. Charles Chapel in Arlington, Va.  It was a simple ceremony with just some close family and a gorgeous bouquet!  The talented duo of Rick and Christopher of Amaryllis provided me with a gorgeous display of peonies, sweet peas, and ranunculus in shades of pink-- I still dream about that bouquet!

If you know Luke and I-- we LOVE color!!  Our first stop was to work with the wonderful Jen Liljegren of Lilypad Weddings!  She created gorgeous invitations for us in our color scheme of sea green and coral.   Jen also created amazing coasters, menu cards, escort cards, and programs for the big day!

I hired Teresa Brunner, a local wedding planner with Tropical Destination Management, to help me with logistics!  She was absolutely wonderful and I was so thankful to have a contact on the Island!  One of the wonderful things about having all of your guests with you on vacation-- you can plan fun activities!  Luke took some boys bonefishing and I got to go snorkeling with a boat full of my friends!  We had an awesome beach BBQ bonfire party to kick off the celebrations!  Thank you Kissing Fish for doing such an amazing job!

Up next: Day Two of the Destination Wedding Weekend!

Ceremony Readings {Practical Matters}

As you may imagine, we hear a lot of ceremony readings. A. Lot. Most of them are similar. Lots of Corinthians (although it's a good one). One of my favorites was a reading from "The Velveteen Rabbit" about real love. That book gets me every time!

If you're looking for some more off-the-beaten path readings for your ceremony, try one of these.

“The Passionate Shepherd To His Love”  by Christopher Marlowe

“How Do I Love Thee?” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“On Marriage” by Kahlil Gibran

“Sonnet CXVI” by William Shakespeare

(Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments . . .)

“My True Love Hath My Heart”  by Sir John Philip Sidney

“The Owl and the Pussy-Cat” by Edward Lear

“Love’s Philosophy” by Percy Bysshe Shelley

“Address of Ruth to Naomi”  from The Bible, the book of Ruth

“Give All to Love” by Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Love’s Growth” by John Donne

Psalm 103 (A Psalm of David) from The Bible, the book of Psalms

From The Holy Koran: Chapter 49 Al-Hujraat Verse 13

  

Excerpts from “Gifts from the Sea” by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

“Apache Song” by Unknown

“Love” by Roy Croft

“Songs of the Open Road” by Walt Whitman

“This Marriage Be Wine” by Persian Poet Rumi

Impecable Style

If I had a quarter for every time I heard, "I want my wedding to be simple and elegant", I would have a lot of quarters!  The truth is, those two words are used some much as descriptors in the early stages of planning the end result rarely ends up that way by virtue of the options brides sift through over the months.  It's interesting only when those words are not uttered, the the result truly is, in my opinion anyway, simple and elegant.  And I'll throw classic in there for good measure.  It is one of my biggest goals to make sure my couple's won't regret what they did for their weddings 5, 10+ years down the road.

On a clear day in May, Elise and Mike had just the wedding I described above.  Elegance started with the venue, the National Museum of Women in the Arts.  Simple was the stunning dress that fit the bride so perfectly.  Classic was the white flowers and decor that made a modern look so timeless.  So no more words, I'll let the pictures from the talented K. Thompson do the talking.

I love a happy bride~

Their precious pups!

A favorite, first dance to Prince's "Kiss"

Special thanks to

K Thomspson Photography

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Frost Lighting

Susan Gage Caterers

Edge Floral

Blue Sky Films

Pattie Martin  make up

Sara

Feels like Florida {Jesica and Todd}

So, somewhere back in March I must have called off the "blog about your current weddings" wagon.  It's now the end of June and I am excited to say I have hopped back on.  What a crazy three months it has been with phenomenal weddings and wonderful couples.  So, let's start where I left off!

Late in March I flew down the Sarasota, FL so the wedding of Jessica and Todd.  The wedding took place her parent's club, a spectacular Spanish style  building on the water complete with a charming courtyard in the middle of the space.

Jessica and her girls got ready at her parents home- something I love to see.  It just has such a feeling of comfort and ease.  Pictures before are  little more personal taken there.

The ceremony was  held on the water with a view overlooking the downtown area of Sarasota.  The trees that framed the couple were perfect.

Two favorite details- the escort cards were held in wine corks saved by the bride and groom from every bottle they had shared together and instead of the traditional menu on each place setting, guests were welcomed by a special note of thanks for traveling to the wedding.

The weather gave us a slight run for our money, as Florida weather can do.  Two quick storms blew threw- one right after the outside ceremony and cocktail set up had finished- no guests effected in this one- and one about halfway though cocktails.  But the thing about Florida rain is that once it blows through, you are left with the most beautiful sky and we took full advantage of that!

It must be the sweet, fresh smell after the rain, but every once in a while I can walk outside in DC and it just smells like a Florida day, in early Spring of course!

Guests danced the night away to TUB- Texas Unlimited Band- and picked up politically charged treats- note the bride and groom are not personally running this year- on the way out.  Thank you Jessica and Todd for including me in your amazing day.

Special thanks as well to


The Field Club- George
Abby Liga Photography
Cabana Pictures
TUB

Sara