As a huge fan of the best wedding movie ever (Father of the Bride, as if you even need to ask) I always love a hometown wedding. When two people come home to shower their childhood haunts with hugs, kisses, bridesmaids, bouquets, and centerpieces, the butterflies are always soaring. Especially when those bouquets and centerpieces are from a team so lovely, like Romance of Flowers. David Mielcarek understands the undeniable draw of the hometown wedding, which is why he’s gone and captured ALL the details so wonderfully!
Will and I, both born and raised less than a one mile apart in Baltimore, didn’t actually meet until high school. At first we were just friends, but the summer after my freshman year at Stanford (and before his first year at Yale), we embarked on a summer romance that turned into two and a half years years of really long distance (California to Connecticut), one year of semi-long distance (New York to Connecticut) and finally three wonderful years a mere 10 city blocks apart in Manhattan.
You might be wondering, and trust me, many people asked, how did you do it?! My answer to this question was always that while dating long distance was incredibly hard, life without Will in it at all would be much much worse. After three and a half years of long distance, we were ecstatic to be both be living in Manhattan. On New Years Eve 2009, upon returning home from a friend’s party, Will made it official as he got down on one knee while our song played in the background (David Lee Murphy’s “Inspiration”). We danced our first dance together as husband and wife to that very same song almost 11 months later.
Having our wedding in our home town of Baltimore was a no brainer. Our parents live less than a mile apart from one another and we both had fond childhood memories growing up in the lovely neighborhood of Roland Park. Although I grew up playing sports and was a Division I athlete in college, I have always been a girly girly. As a child, every Halloween I had to be a princess and in kindergarden I was convinced that if I didn’t wear dresses everyday that the boys wouldn’t play with me. Therefore, it is no surprise that I wanted my wedding to be a fairytale, albeit a grown up and chic rendition of one. And what better place in Baltimore for a dream wedding than the Baltimore Country Club? The Club is elegant in an old world kind of way and many of my fondest childhood memories took place within its walls.
Of all of my wedding decisions, picking the florist was the easiest decision of them all (well after the groom I suppose). My mother has worked with Victoria Clausen of Romance of Flowers for years, so I was already very familiar with her unbelievable creativity and uncanny ability to cater her designs to the unique styles of her brides. Victoria understands the ambiance you want to create, and then takes it to a whole new level. Since I have attended countless events and dinners at BCC, I wanted to enhance the timeless beauty of the club, but at the same time transform it into something very different. In essence, I wanted to combine the best parts of my childhood home with some newer elements of my life with Will in Manhattan. For the color palette I wanted to stick mostly to white, with pops of pink and green to tie in the girl’s bridesmaids dresses and bouquets. Even though I had high expectations, the end result was beyond my wildest dreams. Victoria transformed the club into an absolute wonderland.
I would be absolutely remiss if I didn’t also thank my mom! Without her, the day would not have been as exquisite and personal as it was. Many of my favorite touches were the details she stayed up nights laboring over; the emblem on the invitation that she designed and effortlessly wove throughout the entire weekend, the scalloped bottom layer of our wedding cake, the magenta felt panels hung in the porch to echo the Tord Boontje paper used to cover the lamp shades, and the K&W logo shining down on the foyer – setting the stage for a wedding that was so obviously planned and designed with love. These little details are what made the wedding and I have her to thank for those.
David Melcarek did an absolutely amazing job with the photography; capturing both the sweet and tender moments as well as the hilarious and ridiculous ones. Debbie Federico and Dean Krapf worked wonders on my make up and hair, and Mia at Garnish boutique was a delight to work with in picking out and ordering the bridesmaids dresses.
As I wrote on the chalkboard in my parent’s kitchen that night, as we quickly changed from our wedding attire before taking off for Vietnam, it truly was “the best day ever.”
Photographer: David Mielcarek / Florals and event design: VIctoria Clausen of Romance of Flowers / Linens: Table Toppers / Venue and caterer: Baltimore Country Club / Band: Marquise from Andy Kushner / Lighting: Mike Blondell / Save the Date artwork: Designs by Robyn Love / Wedding Dress: Rivini from Betsy Robinson’s / Ceremony: St. David’s Episcopal Church / Invitation: Design by bride’s mother, engraving by First Impressions / Calligraphy: Claudia Engle / Program: Design by bride’s mother / Bridesmaid Dresses: Garnish Boutique / Makeup: Debbie Federico / Hair: Dean Krapf