Lauren & Dan: a cheerleading love story

 Lauren and Dan met as Ravens cheerleaders.  Too cute.  

Dan, a Notre Dame alum, bleeds the fighting Irish while Lauren, a Maryland alum, loves her terps.

Despite their love for different colleges, they are a wonderful match...and I cannot wait to share these beautiful pictures with you.  Thank you Artful Weddings for sharing the images with us!

Before heading to the church, Dan and the guys (groomsmen and male family members) met up at the Quintessential Gentleman, a unique, upscale barbershop in Baltimore.  It is a really cool place for the guys to hang out while the girls are getting their hair and nails done either on the wedding day or the day before.  Definitely check it out.
 

Lauren, who had her hair and make-up team come to her, got dressed and ready with all of the important ladies on her wedding day.  

The DIY broach bouquet, which Lauren DIY'd, was beautifully done with small elements from Baltimore -- like a little crab -- and contained feathers to maintain the art deco theme.

Friday, November 11 ended up as a beautiful day.  

The sights at Corpus Christi Church didn't hurt, either!

Stunning church.

And, a stunning bride.

The trolley drove the bridal party around town for pictures and then to the American Visionary Art Museum for such a fun reception.  

When Lauren and I sat down to create her wedding day itinerary, she expressed the desire to show value to her grandparents' marriage.  See, they have been married for 68 years.  Yes, you read that right:  68! And, of course, they were just the cutest people I've ever seen.  We came up with this --

So, in true cheerleading style, we introduced the bridal party.  Since they were also all cheerleaders, the guys lifted the girls up on their shoulders and then formed a "tunnel".  From the opposite direction and from behind a curtain, both sets of parents, followed by the grandparents, dance through the tunnel as the band leader announced the number of years they had been married.  

Then, upon the announcement of the bride and groom, they danced their way through the tunnel, which was surrounded by all the guests, as they began their choreographed first dance.  

It was really cute!  And, such a great way to honor years of marriage!

The night was such a success!  Lauren & Dan, thank you for sharing it with jpb designs.

Vendors:
Ceremony location:  Corpus Christi Church
Reception location: American Visionary Art Museum
Caterer: The Classic Catering People
Florist:  Crimson & Clover
Photographer: Anne Sachs, Artful Weddings
Band: The Don Eaton Band
Productions: Mike Blondell, Accents on Events
Trolley:  American Limosines
Hair: Jenn Reem
Make-up: Jami Funk
Day of Event Coordinator:  jpb designs

Casey & Bryce's AVAM video clip

Check out Casey & Bryce's wedding day at the American Visionary Art Museum... this is a great clip that includes all the great details from their day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhuPRB-xcys

Casey & Bryce: a modern love story

One week prior to the day he was to be married, Bryce could be found in Afghanistan fighting for his country.  What a story!  The first time I met Casey and Bryce was shortly after Valentine's Day, when he returned to the United States for a brief stint and surprised Casey for the romantic weekend.  That was when I was told that he would be overseas until right before the wedding.  

Casey said, either way, we'd have a party.

Party is what we had -- fortunately, celebrating the marriage of Casey & Bryce. 

To any bride-to-be, the rest of these pictures will be some wonderful eye candy.  Thanks so much to the creative eye of Erin Farrell of Erin Farrell Photography and her assistant Erin.  Although they are from DE, do give them a call.  It is worth having them travel down to Baltimore for pictures like these!  Thanks, ladies!

Casey and her mom love antique shopping -- and were in awe of the broach bouquet.  For months, they shopped ebay for 100s of broaches for Casey's bouquet and special ones as gifts for the bridesmaids. 

 

Casey even added one to her pearl necklace to tie all the details together.  

Perfectly matching the couple's vibrant personality, the colors and flowers really stood out!

As a special surprise, the mother of the bride found an old suitcase while antiquing and posted a map of the honeymoon spot with special "scrapbooking" details.  It made a great card holder!

 Dress change!

The night ended with a table of colorful Izze pop and a man dancing while popping popcorn.  

Needless to say, absolutely everyone enjoyed the party.

Oh, and I almost forgot -- the groom's twin brother just had a baby a few days before the wedding.  

So, because he couldn't attend, 

we arranged for him to do his best man speech and toast from a computer over Skype.  

Thanks to all of the great vendors for helping make such a great night for Casey & Bryce:

ceremony & reception:  American Visionary Art Museum

 officiant:  Matt Hoh, friend of the couple

caterer:  Absolutely Perfect Catering

baker:  Sugarbakers

florist:  Willow Oak Flowers

photographer:  Erin Farrell Photography

photobooth:  party picturebooth

cocktail music:  Bobby Stevens

dj:  Premier DJ Services

lighting:  event dynamics

transportation:  All Stretched Out

beauty:  Up Dos for I Dos 

Pink & Gray Inspiration

After meeting the lovely Amanda & Jimmy today, I was inspired to put together a pink and gray inspiration wedding board.  They are all set to marry in July of next year at the American Visionary Art Museum.  Congrats, Amanda & Jimmy!  

 

(All picture references can be found on www.pinterest.com:  jpbdeisgns - Follow us!)

With a ceremony in the sculpture barn, I think they can make the brick and atmosphere feel very inviting, warm, and romantic with adding drapery to the entrance and lighting candles along the center aisle.  

I'd love to see the cocktail hour, dinner, and an after party in three separate locations.  The venue has plenty of room for this, so it is do-able.  A cocktail hour is a great place for a photobooth.  I love the dangling picture frames.  How cute!  

Then, I'd love to see the loft space upstairs invite guests to a dinner with long, rectangle tables.  I can envision these adorned with beautiful pink centerpieces as pictured above.  

After dinner, I see the drapes opening to a lounge, well-equipped with a fully-staffed bar, dance floor, and a band.  To end the evening, each guest would get a milkshake and fries to take for the ride back to the hotel.  

But -- the bride and groom would first whisk away in a vintage, pink car.  

I'd love to see the elements here combined to create a romantic and fun evening for this young, fun, lively couple and their guests!  

What other ideas do you have for a classy, fun pink and gray themed wedding?

Great wedding video shot by Love Life Images

Check out this amazing video by Alicia Kunz and David Morley of Love Life Images. It is amazing and shows you just how beautiful and truly neat Erica & Tommy's wedding was!

Erica & Tommy's Wedding

Remember I told you about how cool of a couple Erica & Tommy are? Stephen Bobb from Love Life Images took some amazing pictures of the couple on their wedding day. You have to check out the pictures, which are posted on his blog. Don't only look at their coolness but also at all of the detail that went into their big day. Enjoy! Great job, Stephen!

http://stephen.lovelifeimages.com/erica-tommy-an-american-visionary-art-museum-wedding/