Go back to Part 1 for event summary!

Brides and grooms often ask me what the secret is to beautiful wedding photographs. Just look at Robyn and Scott’s pictures! Yes, Deb Lindsey is an amazing photographer but look at how into each other they! Look at how into the moment they were in every shot. So there are no tricks – just really enjoy yourselves and take it all in!To see more pro photos, go to Deb Lindsey’s blog (November 6 entry).

Sorry for my blurry photos below!

Setting up for the ceremony

My favorite escort card table this year! The green apples and other items inside the lucite boxes really set off the black and white tablecloth.The different height boxes keep the eye moving.

The ballroom space is transformed after the ceremony for dinner service. Love the raspberry colored tablecloths

While we used the same tablecloth as the rest of the dinner tables, we added a sheer overlay to make it stand out. The linen had an iridescent purple sheen, so the purple napkins worked really well together.

The escort card table turned into the cookies buffet, supplied by the bride's mom, after dinner.

The best chocolate chip cookies and milk!

Color makes me happy! Vicky

Posted in Real Wedding Tagged: black and white, Clarendon Ballroom, DC Rental, DC wedding planner, Deb Lindsey Photography, DJ Mike Valenti, Event Accomplished, Gracenotes Chamber Music, green, Growing Wild Floral Company, Megan Farris, Perry Warren, purple, red, Vicky Choy, Westin Arlington Gateway ]]> http://eventaccomplished.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/real-wedding-vibrant-and-chic-in-arlington-part-2/feed/ 0 eventaccomplished clarendon_ballroom_jewish_wedding_ceremony escort_card_table clarendon_ballroom_wedding_reception sweetheart_table cookies_buffet clarendon_ballroom_milk_cookies http://eventaccomplished.wordpress.com/2009/11/12/real-wedding-vibrant-and-chic-in-arlington-part-2/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/EventAccomplished/~3/-8kyGWwuodU/ http://eventaccomplished.wordpress.com/2009/11/10/real-wedding-vibrant-and-chic-in-arlington-part-1/#comments Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:30:34 +0000 eventaccomplished http://eventaccomplished.wordpress.com/?p=1251 ]]>

We have just been having no luck with Mother Nature.  Although this was another rain-filled wedding, it did not dampen the bride and groom’s spirits at all! Megan and I loved working with Robyn and Scott on this wedding, their style and personalities were right up our alley.

Venue: Clarendon Ballroom (Amanda Smith)

Photography: Deb Lindsey. I meet Deb for the first time a few months ago at an industry party. Deb is a photo editor for the Washington Post. The thing that I like about Deb is that she took the time to scout out different outdoor locations that would be perfect for their formal photos. The resulting photographs just speak for themselves.

Ceremony Music: Gracenotes Chamber Music (Jeremy). They happened to be friend of the bride and groom.

DJ: Mike Valenti (booked through Bialeks Music). Still my personal favorite after 5 years in business.

Floral Designer & Chuppah: Growing Wild Floral Company (Barbara von Elm) Loved the vibrant colors and interesting textures in all the arrangements.

Hair & Makeup: Perry Warren. Perry does hair and makeup so it’s wonderful to have one stylist that can do both. He’s just fun to be around, a plus for first thing in the morning on the big day! Contact us for his contact info.

Linen Rentals: DC Rental.

Guest Hotel: Westin Arlington Gateway. I happen to love Westin properties and this one is extremely convenient to any venue along the Wilson/Clarendon Blvds corridor.

Come back for Part 2 for all the photos! — Vicky

Go back to Part 1. For more professional photos from Mark Bettinger of Rodney Bailey Photography, click here. These are the ones I took.

Love the gerbera daisies popping out of a bed of wheatgrass by Petals Edge! A nice change of pace for the escort card table.

The Linden Grove all set for cocktail hour.

Ceremony in the garden

All set for dinner. Really loved the navy blue tablecloths in the library, accented with more orange gerbera daisy centerpieces.

Enjoy! Vicky

After several rain outs, Brian and Jill got married on Labor Day weekend to a beautifully sunny day. The best part of this wedding was that we had a Rabbi (for Jill), a priest (for Brian) and a minister (Brian’s long time friend) officiating the ceremony

Venue: Meridian International Center “Meridian House” (Jessica Blinn). The Linden Grove, the gardens and the mansion house are all so picturesque that no wonder it is always a top venue for DC weddings.

Catering: R&R Catering (Anne Portell)

Photography: Mark Bettinger for Rodney Bailey Photography. This is the second time we’ve worked with Mark and just love how easy going he is but yet, he still gets excited when he gets a great shot.

Floral Design: Petals Edge Floral Design. Love the arrangement they created with gerbera daisies popping out of a bed of wheat grass. What a cheerful look!

Ceremony & Cocktail Hour Music: Bellini Ensemble (Kathy Birch)

Band: Amaretto (booked through Bialek’s Music). Loved the energy of these guys! The brass section is just awesome. Best of all, after working with several high maintenance bands recently, these guys are generally really nice people and happy to be there, not to mention fantastic musicians.

Cake: Pastries by Randolph.

eaTip: The couple provided transportation from Marriott Wardman Park and Meridian House. Not realizing that there was a separate bus entrance to the hotel, the guests all waited at the main entrance. Luckily, my smart associate Megan was there and corralled everyone to the right location. Lessons learned for those with room blocks at Marriott Wardman Park.

Stay tuned for Part 2 for photos from the day!

– Vicky

Our second Expert Tips article on Surviving Wedding Season is up! This time, we wrote a mini tutorial on Hindu Wedding Rituals so that you know what to expect.

We wrote our first article, “To Bring A Date Or Not To Bring A Date That Is The Question That Is Not Up To You Wedding Guest,” addressing how to handle single wedding guests, back in June.

What other topics would you like us to tackle? Email us with your ideas!

– Vicky

It’s not secret that I’ve been on a search for modern or industrial spaces for wedding receptions in the DC area [see previous blog post here and here]. It’s tough to find a raw, industry, loft-like spaces for events here in DC. I think my wish finally came true!

A sketch of what Long View Gallery will look like

I visited Long View Gallery a few weeks back. Party art gallery and party event space, this is a welcome addition in the Shaw/Convention Center area. It is the space DC has been waiting for, a great contrasting alternative to the plethora of historical buildings!

Suzi Molak, Special Events Director, walked me through the then-unfinished space but my mind was on over-drive dreaming of all the possibilities. She brings a wealth of special events experience. Here are some of the specs:

• 5,000 Square Feet of Divisible Historic Warehouse Space
• 400 Person Cocktail. The rear gallery can easily hold 200 people for a sit-down dinner with dance floor.
• 20 Foot Ceilings with LED/Track Lighting system
• Handicap Accessible
• Finished Concrete Floors
• Front and back 14′ and 11′ aluminum alloy glass doors
• Flooded with Natural Light
• Opens to historic Blagden Alley, which may be tented for outdoor use
• Wall Space for Projections (walls are white & will have artwork)
• Catering Staging Area
• Sound System
• Wireless Internet Access
• Metro Station: Mt. Vernon Square & Yellow and Green Lines

Long View Gallery front glass roll-up/garage style doors

Images from Long View Gallery.

I cannot wait to work here!

– Vicky

The fall season provides many sources of inspiration for weddings. In this case, our clients used some of the fall’s cues for their wedding.

• Fall is apple season. The couple used apples in green and red in their floral arrangements. They also served apple cider.
• Using nature as an inspiration. The colors of dark reds, browns, greens. The bride was fond of squirrels and they appeared in the favors and the invitations.

Just love this fall colors inspired arrangement with apples.

Brown chivari chairs. Cream pintuck tablecloth with brown napkins.

Centerpiece #1 has a cluster of 3 arrangements. In the foreground, you can see the table number written in Serbian and the squirrel design on the wrap around the Hershey bar.

2nd centerpiece design had a bowl of apples

Venue: Washington International School/Tregaron

Caterer: 3Citron

Photographer: Tracy Timmester. Check out her blog for more images.

Floral Design: Petals Edge Floral Design

Wedding Coordinators: Vicky and Juanice, Event Accomplished

You know I love my girls over at Haute Papier. They just recently launched their Personal Stationery line of 20 designs, which can be found in retailers across the country including Hitched in DC. Great idea for a gift for any occasion.

– Vicky

Photo by Three Lights Photography

I am very excited to introduce our new associate event consultant, Megan Farris. This is a huge step for Event Accomplished as we strategically grow and this is one of several announcements we will be making in the near term.

Megan adds several valuable dimensions to the Event Accomplished team. A Northern Virginia native, Megan’s extensive knowledge of the area will be an asset. She knows more about the people and places of Alexandria and its surrounding areas than anybody I know. Second, the ability to analyze an event and see where the risks are is an important skill for an event planner. Megan’s experience in risk management allows her to think about the “what if” of your event and to always think of workable Plan “B”. I was really impressed with her attention to detail, creativity, proactive attitude, and ability to read people – all traits that will ensure that your event is a success! Megan holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from George Mason University and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from James Madison University.

Here’s the real scoop. I like Megan’s personal style, a little bit classic and a little bit edgy. She loves beer, wine and food – and that’s why we’ll get along famously!

Welcome to the team, Megan!

- Vicky

Go back to Part 1 (the intro) and Part 2 (the pictures).

Here’s the vendor reviews. On days like it was, where it was raining buckets and we had to implement the Rain Plan and everything was just wet and messy, you really value having an exceptional vendor team to make sure everything still goes smoothly.

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Oxon Hill Manor. OHM is a beautiful mansion with lush gardens. It’s really a hidden gem. The challenges with this facility are that a) they have 2 events on Saturday; and b) if there is inclement weather and you need to hold a ceremony inside, the largest room holds only about 100 people. The staff is OK. They were flexible in allowing us in a bit earlier. Even though they have several event staffers, they don’t assign you one. So when you call, you never know who you will get and they are likely to not know much about your event.

Catering: R&R Catering (Natalie Seng, event designer). Good job as usual.

Photography: Laura Kay Photography. Love, love, love Laura’s approach to photography – so fresh, whimsical and fun and just a little edgy. The photos speak for themselves. Plus, she’s just a fun person to be around. Go back to Part 2  for the pictures.

Floral design & lounge furniture rental: Davinci’s Florist. At a location like OHM where you have a tight load-in time, Davinci’s was the logical choice to supply the lounge furniture, as opposed to getting a separate rental company. They were already going to be there to set up the flowers so it’s fantastic that they could offer both! The bridesmaids’ bouquets are some of my favorites all year because they were so cheerful!

DJ: Bob Artman, Artman DJs. Bob is so easy to work with and I was so relieved to have him there because I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about him at all. Great music as usual.

Salsa Lesson: Instructor from Dance Factory. Fun for all guests!

Lighting: Blue Ridge Light Forms. I worked with Larry Lustberg during the planning phase and he was fantastic. Always responsive. Our original plan was to have lanterns over the back patio. But because of the rain, the BRLF team went the extra mile to try to make the inside as nice as possible. They did uplighting in the dining room, a soft spot light for the ceremony and then changed it to a cool, rose color wash for the dance floor (in the same room). They were also able to light the outside columns. They also attempted to string some of the lanterns inside but the mansion staff wouldn’t let them. Their team is just awesome!

Hair & Makeup: Chaos Salon.

Bridal Gown: Distinctive Designs Bridal . A Pronovias design. I love Pronovias.

Alterations: Estee Livioco. Ina bought a sample which was many times larger than her dress size so I sent her to the one and only Estee, who also altered my dress. Of course she worked miracles and did a great job basically remaking Ina’s complicated dress. [Ina's yelp review of Estee]