One thing that never, ever goes out of style is elegance. Pure and Simple. And Ritzy Bee Events knows how to craft that understated beauty and make it shine throughout an affair. It’s the type of wedding that would get the Jackie O style stamp of approval with layers of florals by Holly Heider Chapple Flowers so gorgeous they belong in a royal wedding and a real life, way too pretty to eat Maggie Austin Cake. Now add friends and family that know how to enjoy the heck out of a cocktail hour and this elegant Baltimore wedding has been skyrocketed to a whole new level of cool. Kate Headley Photography snapped everything from those beautiful lace runners right on through to the clinking of glasses. It’s a cheersy bunch and we whole heartedly adore it. See it all here.
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From the Bride… We met in Washington, DC through mutual friends. We started dating in January 2007 and got engaged in July 2009 after Rob’s first year of law school, but we wanted to wait until he graduated for the wedding. The long engagement worked out well because our life was pretty hectic. I moved out to Iowa with Rob for his second and third years of law school. After his graduation, during the four-month period before our wedding, we moved back to DC, Rob studied for and took the Virginia Bar Exam, we both applied for and were thankfully offered jobs and finalized the details of the wedding. But we survived! A big thanks goes to our wedding planners, Maria and Kelly of Ritzy Bee Events for keeping a handle on everything!
Since we were living in the Midwest during our wedding planning time, we would take periodic trips back to the east coast for marathon wedding planning appointments. I got my gown about a year prior to our wedding date during one of those wild trips. I have to preface this by saying that I absolutely loved my gown and the shop where I got it (Hitched in DC) was wonderful. But to me, the dress was just something I was going to wear; it was just an article of clothing. I felt weird that I wasn’t one of those girls who cry or have this huge moment, but I really just cared about marrying my best friend. To me, that was the most important thing. The only jewelry I wore (besides my engagement ring) were my earrings, which were my “something borrowed” from my mom. When my mom and dad got married, they didn’t have much money and my mom couldn’t afford to purchase a wedding gown, so she borrowed one. She did however buy her veil, and she kept it preserved for thirty years. That veil had one of those early ’80s-inspired hats, so I removed that, had it fastened to a comb and wore it on my wedding day as my “something old.” My veil was my favorite part of my ensemble. Also, in lieu of doing a bouquet toss, I surprised my mom by giving her my bouquet in honor of my parents’ wedding anniversary (which was the day after ours).
Our venue really fits our taste — classic, elegant, and simple. Our wedding programs were calligraphed with each guest’s name and doubled as an escort card. (A little card with the table assignment was inside a small envelope on the inside of the program.) We hoped these could be saved as a little keepsake. Rob enjoys cigars occasionally, so cigars were passed out during cocktail hour. In terms of décor, we tried to stay with things that were classic and avoid anything that was too trendy.
Wedding Photography: Kate Headley Photography / Wedding Venue: Evergreen Museum & Library in Baltimore, Maryland / Event Design + Planning: Ritzy Bee Events / Floral Design: Holly Heider Chapple Flowers / Wedding Super8 Cinematography: Kate Headley Photography / Paper Goods: SIMPLESONG Design / Calligraphy: Meant to Be Calligraphy / Catering: Chef’s Expression / Wedding Cake: Maggie Austin Cake / Entertainment: Nation / Lighting: Frost DC / Wedding Dress: Modern Trousseau via Hitched Salon / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Jenny Yoo via Hitched Maids / Makeup: Amie Decker Beauty