A destination wedding at one of our favorite vineyards? Major. Having the massively talented Clary Pfeiffer Photography on hand to capture every single second? Monumental. It’s details like those that make this stunning celebration all the more magical. Complete with a chic heirloom ring, Meant to Be Calligraphy, and a modern day ‘something blue’, we’ve got every detail in The Vault!
From Clary Pfeiffer Photography…. Beautiful details of family heirlooms with blue and neutrals. The bridesmaids wore simple white gowns to coordinate with the brides amazing dress. The setting for the day was unbelievable at Pippin Hill because of the amazing views and the weather was perfect. There are so many moments of the day that made this wedding special! I love all the details the couple put together!
From the Bride… Matt and I met in college at Washington University in St. Louis and started dating after some helpful encouragement from our friends. Fast forward eight years, a few different cities, and thousands of miles of traveling to see one another and we were finally married in Charlottesville, Virginia over Memorial Day Weekend.
We love to travel and had always talked about planning a destination wedding that would allow our friends and family from Omaha, New York City, and all over the country to come together, unwind, and celebrate without the normal distractions of home. We’ve traveled all over the world, but we fell in love with Charlottesville years ago during countless day trips to vineyards and weekends away to celebrate special occasions. During one of our trips to Charlottesville we visited Pippin Hill on a beautiful fall day, and from that day on – although we didn’t say it at the time – it was difficult to envision a more perfect venue for our wedding. A wedding at Pippin Hill combined so many aspects of what we aspired to achieve with our wedding weekend, with the Blue Ridge Mountains, wine country, fabulous local food, and endless activities for our guests. Several months before we got engaged, Matt fortuitously moved from DC to Charlottesville to attend business school, and everything started falling into place.
We wanted a wedding with a large outdoor component and Pippin Hill provides one of the most breathtaking, natural outdoor settings we could have imagined for our wedding. Although Pippin Hill is technically a “barn venue,” we opted to venture in the other direction with our décor and do something slightly more unexpected. Juxtaposing classic, sophisticated design elements with a touch of Ralph Lauren style against the rustic barn, we combined blue and white chinoiserie vases (from my mother’s personal collection), chandeliers, and classic silver Paul Revere bowls to give us the perfect mix of elegance in the countryside. We chose a neutral, natural palette of linen, ivory, and green, with chambray blue woven throughout.
In the planning process, one of the things that we enjoyed was incorporating unique details throughout the weekend that exemplified us as a couple and made the weekend our own. Our welcome bags included – in addition to a plethora of local goodies – wine glasses with our wedding monogram and our favorite snacks from our respective hometowns (Matt’s favorite black and white cookies from a New York City bakery and Lauren’s favorite popcorn from Omaha). On the bathroom doors hung Carter Kustera silhouettes that we’d commissioned as an anniversary gift to each other several years back. We also enjoyed incorporating family heirlooms into our special day – from using my great-grandmother’s antique lace tablecloth as our chuppah cover, to Matt wearing his grandfather’s watch, to my engagement ring, which is the same ring Matt’s grandfather gave to his grandmother over sixty years ago.
After my childhood Rabbi from Omaha married us, our guests enjoyed cocktail hour to the pop tunes of our string quartet and then everyone danced the night away to our incredible band, A-Town A-List. Another unique aspect of Pippin Hill that we didn’t fully appreciate until the wedding night is the variety of spaces – both outdoor and indoor – that it offers. When our guests wanted a break from the lively dance floor, they could head to the tasting room for a drink and the Polaroid photo booth, venture outside to the veranda to take in the view, or wander out front for s ‘mores by the fire pit and a donut from the Carpe Donut truck.
The entire wedding weekend could not have turned out more perfectly. We were beyond lucky and not only did we have a gorgeous, sunny wedding day, but our guests enjoyed near perfect weather all weekend. We truly could not have imagined a better start to our marriage, surrounded by family and friends in Charlottesville.
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Photography: Clary Pfeiffer Photography | Cinematography: Ginger Topham | Coordination: Colleen Miller Events | Cake: Maliha Creations | Bride’s Shoes: Miu Miu | Bridesmaids’ Shoes : Manolo Blahnik | Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Rebecca Taylor | Hair + Makeup : Jeannie Cusick | Calligraphy: Meant to Be Calligraphy | Lighting: Blue Ridge Lighting | Band: A-Town A-List | String Quartet : Anthem | Bride’s Clutch : Edie Parker | Brides Dress: Vera Wang | Brides Getaway Dress: Elizabeth and James | Bridesmaids’ Bouquets Tied with Scarf: Hermes | Donut Truck : Carpe Donut | Groom’s Tuxedo: Hickey Freeman | Groom’s Watch: Grandfather’s vintage Patek Philippe | Groomsmen Attire + Gifts: Hermes | Paper Goods: The Paper Route | Rentals: Festive Fare | Wedding & Reception Venue: Pippin Hill Farm And Vineyard