Chic Virginia Wedding
:: Chic Virginia Wedding ::
Danielle and Bryan
Danielle and Bryan’s Chic Virginia wedding – WOW!! This wedding was so detailed and put together I don’t even know what to talk about first! Danielle’s wedding gown was a Lea-Ann Belter gown from Exquisite bride in Princeton. She made a custom 12 foot long cathedral *BLUSH* pink veil and Ahh! It was amazing. Of course, no outfit for a bride is complete without fabulous shoes (Jessica Simpson) and lots of little details that sparkle.
Bryan and his groomsmen (and lady!) wore tuxedos from — Dara the groom’s best lady wore a lovely dress that complimented the groomsmen’s gray attire. Danielle gifted Bryan a vintage compass which was awesome! After everyone was ready, Danielle and Bryan shared a first look together. Bryan was stunned when he turned around to see his beautiful bride. I’m pretty sure everyone was so impressed with Danielle’s whole outfit for the day. She looked amazing and her vision really came to life. After some awesome portraits with the bride and groom we did their bridal party photos. What a FUN bunch! Danielle of course, popped a bottle of champagne and proceeded to shake it everywhere! I think her bridal party was more afraid of getting champagne on them than she was!
After our first look, guests gathered for an intimate ceremony in the front yard of Bryan’s uncles house. The farm benches were handmade by Danielle and Bryan and everything was set up perfectly. Danielle walked down the aisle to the song H.O.L.Y. By Florida Georgia Line – so sweet! The two lovebirds exchanged their vows and said “I do!”
Danielle and Bryan chose to do their cocktail hour a little differently; they chose to pair junk food with certain beers and wines. It was such a hit! (You can tell because much of the cocktail hour photos lack a full plate of food -ha!)
After cocktail hour, the party began – and it couldn’t have been better thanks to the band – Lloyd Dobbler Effect!
Read below to learn more about Danielle and Bryan’s Virginia wedding inspiration.
How did you two meet and fall in love?
We met and noticed each other senior year of high school in peer leadership. It’s very possible though we knew each other prior to that class since we grew up in the same town and so did our families. After becoming friends from class we started a weekly tradition of going to lunch after school. Our friends bailed on us but we decided to go anyway. It soon turned into lunch every day before we had practices. He even cooked for me sometimes. I use the term cooked lightly being that back then his diet was primarily nachos, mac and cheese, or pasta. I guess it was good enough because I kept coming back. Haha! We went to senior prom together and afterward Bryan found enough courage to ask me to be his girlfriend. The rest is history I suppose.
What was most important to you when planning your wedding?
We wanted our wedding to be very personalized to us and a great time for all of our guests. Throughout the planning process when I visualized our wedding I imagined two things – walking down the aisle and a full dance floor during the reception – and we planned everything around those moments, customizing my dress, our ceremony, and tons of fun details throughout our reception. Everyone including us had an amazing time that we now get to relive every day through our amazing photos. So it lead us to the Chic Virginia Wedding experience.
What was the inspiration behind your wedding theme or colors?
We took a lot of inspiration from the environment. Our wedding took place at a family home so most of the inspiration came from the beautiful natural elements that surrounded it. The fall season also played a big part in inspiring our design. Overall our color story was very neutral and natural with subtle pops of fall colors. Every detail also paid tribute to things we love. My girls wore allover beaded dresses because everyone knows I LOVE sparkle. The guys wore boat shoes because Bryan practically lives in them. From there everything evolved pretty organically into a mismatched juxtaposition of fancy decor in a casual atmosphere which sums us up perfectly.
What is your favorite memory from your wedding?
I remember a lot of our wedding but what always sticks out the most to me is the absolutely overwhelming love, support, and excitement from all of our guests. It seemed like our families and friends who came from near and far were all even more excited for us than we were. We had the best celebration! Even though the weather didn’t cooperate and many things we planned were changed last minute being surrounded by such intense approval was the most amazing feeling. It made everything worth it.
What piece of advice would you give to future couples planning their big day?
For me being an event planner and designer made the entire planning process itself very easy. I made decisions about vendors and decor very quickly and confidently. What I struggled with most was the emotion that followed every decision. I was offered so many opinions from everyone, even people I hadn’t talked to at length in years, that it was overwhelming. Navigating those conversations without disappointing anyone was definitely the hardest thing I had to do.
I’d tell every bride to take everything in stride, from where it is coming from, and breathe deep before jumping into any decisions or conversations that might not align with your vision for your day. I do realize your wedding is not ever truly all about you but you should stick to your guns when something really matters. I might have stood my ground better on a few things if I realized how much those things really did matter me later on.
It’s so important to soak up the planning process and have fun with it. Just like it is super important to soak up moments throughout your wedding. At the end of it all we had the best day and everything truly was imperfectly perfect. We wouldn’t have changed it, except for maybe the stress. Everything does always work out as it should.
Chic virginia wedding
What was one thing about your venue that made you know it was the one?
Virginia has been our happy place since my aunt and uncle moved there over 15 years ago. We belong to several wineries and love visiting every chance we get. So we always imagined we would plan our wedding in the mountains of northern Virginia somewhere. When our family purchased their piece of property in our favorite town we didn’t think any other venue would ever compare. Partly because their property and view are gorgeous but mostly because they are so special to both of us. It always feels like we are home when we are there and we wanted to share that intimate experience with all of our guests. No venue would have ever meant as much to us as having our wedding at their home. We’re blessed and so happy they agreed to let us host our wedding at their home. We are so grateful we were able to put together the dream wedding we wanted – a Chic Virginia wedding!
Which 3 details from your wedding were your favorites?
I loved my dress and veil. After long hours of customizing and brainstorming it all came together so perfectly. A family member of ours even helped with the overall design and created my veil custom for me very graciously which made it that much more special and meaningful.
I loved our ceremony decor that made our wedding a real Chic Virginia wedding. We made it all ourselves from nothing and it was amazing to see it all come together rather symbolically as we began our lives together. Even how we tied in our hand washing and wine ceremonies were super meaningful and we spent a great deal of time picking out each item we would use.
I also loved that I had a piece of each of my grandparents and great grandparents with me that day. For each of my grandfathers I attached a military pin to my bouquet. I also had one of my great grandmothers rings remade to have with me always and borrowed another from my other great grandmother who passed.
Wedding Gown Designer // Gown Store: Lee Ann Belter from Exquisite bride – customized by the bride ::
Wedding Shoe Designer: Jessica Simpson :: Bridesmaid Dress Designer: Adrianna Papell, Bari Jay, and Amsale ::
Floral Designer: Magnolia West Events and Urban Design Studio (bouquets and decor consulting) ::
Hair and Make Up Artist: Modern Bridal studio :: Men’s Attire: Vera Wang :: Cake Designer: Dee Mastrolonardo ::
Entertainment company: Lloyd Dobbler Effect – Phil kominski :: Stationary/Invitation Designer: Magnolia West ::
Cinematographer: Simon Cook Films :: Wedding Planner: Magnolia west :: Additional: Perfect Party Rentals
Chic Virginia Wedding by NJ and Destination wedding photographer, Jaye Kogut Photography
Top NJ Wedding Photographers, Jaye Kogut
Rustic wedding photographers, Rustic Wedding Chic
Related
May 22nd, 2017 at 2:53 am
Love this color palette and those details are gorg! Beautiful work, Jaye!