We’re so happy today to celebrate the wedding of Jill and Brian, who recently tied the knot near their home at the beautiful St. Raymond of Penafort Catholic Church. It was almost as if we had known them for long before, as Jill was close childhood friends with one of our other awesome clients Ashleigh, who grew up on the same street as Jill when they were younger. They discovered through Facebook that we were another common thread. Small world! We started out the day at Jill’s childhood home with her and her bridesmaids for their getting ready. After Jill donned her beautiful gown, her dad stepped in to the room and immediately choked up when he saw her; it was so touching to witness. We were lucky enough to be able to briefly head into their spacious back yard for a few portraits before it began sprinkling, a precursor to rain throughout the day. The laid-back and fun lovin’ couple and their families were completely unfazed by the weather, however, and had a great time regardless.
They had chosen the church for its beauty and we overheard several guests remark how lovely and bright it was inside. The officiating priest offered up a wonderful and salient homily on married life and raising a family as well. We really enjoy the fact that we get to listen to often insightful and touching homilies several times a year, and they often serve as reminders of our own wedding and marriage, and Jill and Brian’s was no exception. Once the ceremony ended, their two hundred guests drove en masse to the Westin in Old Town Alexandria for some relaxed time before the cocktail hour and reception began. As a beacon of what was to come, a custom-made gobo with Jill and Brian’s names and wedding date welcomed guests as they walked from the lobby upstairs to the grand hallway for cocktails.
While everyone enjoyed drinks and the art installations found throughout the Westin and we took the opportunity to get a few portraits of Jill & Brian, easy-going and talented Vicki Grafton, of My Simple Details, worked with wonderful florist Barbara von Elm of Growing Wild to put the finishing touches on the ballroom’s decor, setting the stage for lots of oohs and aahs as their guests entered for dinner. Jill’s mom Carol was instrumental in working with Vicki to design the decor and one aspect everyone agreed upon was a farm-style head table. This approach has become a more popular way of seating wedding party and family members as desired rather than a more traditional head table with seating only on one side and is something we’ve enjoyed seeing. After a long and leisurely dinner, Jill and her dad enjoyed an emotional dance together as did Brian and his mom, before humorous toasts by their best man and maid-of-honor. Another wedding reception in a nearby space was starting up so we could hear their announcements during toasts, but as soon as the dancing started with the music pumping by none other than the fantastic Sound Connection there was no question whose sound was going to carry the night. These guys really cranked it and had nearly everyone on the dance floor throughout the night. We worked through the rest of the night to capture the frentic dancing energy alongside the relaxed and friendly Beth, a videographer, of Sprack Media.
There was a short break to cut and distribute a wide variety of flavored cupcakes by the local Happy Eatery (Yum! We may be “old fashioned” but we still love it when we see cupcakes at weddings 
). They also decided to do an anniversary dance, with Brian’s grandparents handily beating out all comers with their 64 years of marriage–a duration we haven’t seen in quite a long time–if ever, culminating in Jill presenting her bouquet to Brian’s grandmother who was delighted with the gift. Such a wonderful and sweet way way to honor them. The night certainly ended too soon for many, as when the band was singing the last bars of the last dance, chants of, “One more song!” began and continued until they relented and played on to everyone’s delight. We had a great time partying with everyone that night–so much fun–Jill and Brian, and we hope you enjoyed your fantastic honeymoon in the Bahamas! Thank you for having us be a part of your wedding celebration and congratulations!
(Scroll down for the link to see all the great images from their wedding…)
Ready for more? You can see the complete gallery from Jill and Brian’s wedding here. The password is Jill’s maiden name. You’ll also enjoy free shipping on all prints now through Sunday, October 25.
