Bridesmaid Dress Shopping

The meet & greet is tomorrow and the girls are off to a running start!!! Tonight 4 girls hit the Baltimore streets and found Bella Bridesmaid! A specialty store just for bridesmaids and they had a blast and got a wonderful deal! It finally pays to have 8 girls by your side! 

The Meet & Greet Part II is Coming Up - Saturday, August 23rd

Hey party people,

We hope you're exited for the next meet & greet! 

We have TONS of info to share with you this time around and lots of updates!

Please join us at Alvin's crib in Falls Church next Saturday, August 23rd for Part II 

Join us for 

Fun Games

Signature Drink Taste Testing

A Beer Tasting of locally brewed beers from micro-breweries in VA

(we need your help selecting the best brews for our wedding)

Find out what your wedding day attire consists of 

and who you'll be paired with

If you missed the last meet and greet here are some short clips for you to enjoy:

 Anthony Does the Big O

Becky dancing to "started from the bottom" (get it! LOL)

More of "Started from the Bottom" 

We can't wait to see you all!Luv Ray & Jenn

Cover Stories: Photographer on the Cover of Washingtonian Bride & Groom Mag

I'm super excited and proud to share that a wedding photographed by our talented wedding photographer {a}strid photography made the cover of this summer's Washingtonian Bride & Groom magazine

Be sure to pick up a copy!

Visit her blog post here: http://www.myastrid.com/blog/the-cover-of-washingtonian-bride-groom-magazine/

Love you guys
until next time...

Purple Kisses, Lavender Love, & Gray

Ok, so for lack of a better alliteration for gray, this is what I came up with to give you a sneak peek of the #JRWedding color scheme.

I'm in LOVE with LAVENDER (haha, I did it again) 

And gray....is great??? No, gray is GRAND :)

So, for lack of a cuter way to say it, the wedding colors will be gray & lavender with other soft & complimentary accent hues in the purple color family like blush pink, periwinkle, vintage violet, wisteria, lilac etc. (but not all at once).

The guys will be decked in gray and girls will be in a complimentary shade within the lilac-lavender-soft purple family that compliments gray.

Here are some of my favorite pictures that showcase the color scheme

Fellas, please don't be alarmed. Even though you will have to incorporate purple in your ensemble you can still be dapper....

Some of you have already expressed your enthusiasm for gray (thanks Phili lol) and we hope the rest of you are confident that you'll look grand in gray! Ok that's the last play on alliterations, I promise ;)

Whether a Bridesmaid of Groomsmen, think about how you want to express your individual sense of style. Perhaps it's your choice of tie, or bow-tie, or your shirt & socks, suspenders & shoes. Don't be afraid to jazz it up and have fun (pending my approval if course ;) ) I just ask that we all coordinate and look GOOD!

Girls, think about your accessories, what kind of necklace and hair do you want to wear? Spoiler alert: dress shopping will commence later this summer...NYC anyone?

Well, that about wraps up this post. We hope you have a perfectly purple day! :-) - that one was for the road...

Jenn & Ray

12 months and 2 week until the big day and counting...

#WilliamsPartyofTwo

#RayandJennTilTheEnd

#WeNeedHashtagHelp

#PutOnYourThinkingCaps

The Bride's Top 10 Must-Haves for The Big Day

I've been pinning wedding ideas on Pinterest for about a year now and I thought it was time that I focus in on what things I really really want at our wedding. Here's my list of top 10 "must haves" on our big day..

 

 

No. 10: Beautiful Photos 

Photos are the memories that last well after the big day has passed. People always say that the day goes by so fast that all you have to look back and remember of the day is your photos. That's why I am so happy that Ray and I were able to book Astrid Photography to capture the precious moments of our big day! Her style of photography and editing tell a story, which I love.  We had so much fun with her during our engagement shoot all three of us are super excited to work together again for the wedding. Here are just a few of my favorite wedding shots from Pinterest...

To view our wedding photographer's site visit www.myastrid.com

Next on my list of must-haves...

No. 9 - An Incredible Send-Off:

An incredible send off! I love love LOVE the sparkler send off, glitter/confetti & and an old fashioned decorated getaway car . The send-off is one of the most important moments of the night. It marks the transition in to a new life as husband and wife surrounded by the love and support of your family and friends, all wishing you well on your journey. Here are a few pics of my send-off inspiration from Pinterest:

Next up on the list...

No. 8: A [FUN] Fabulous & Fashionable Wedding Party,

Now this one is a no-brainer but still earned a spot on our list of top 10 must haves. I must say, that we have a BEAUTIFUL wedding party (inside & out) so that part is taken care of :-). We also have some fashion killas {guys} and several fashionistas {girls} in our bridal party and I want you all to express your style in your wedding day fashions. I'm over the matchy-matchy identical dress & identical black tux wedding party. Mis-match bridesmaid dresses have been a trend for a while now, so why not allow the guys to put a little spin on their wedding day threads as well? Now, I'm not suggesting everyone wear whatever they want but as long as everyone stays within the color scheme and dress code, I think this new trend makes for a uniquely styled & well fashioned bridal party :-) Everyone is different and what looks good on some may not look good on everyone. On our day we want you to be you and wear what you like (within certain boundaries of course! Lol) Here's some pics of bridal party fashion inspirations...

 

(Now these colors are a bit too far apart on the color wheel for my taste but you get the gist)

Next up...

No. 7: ~CUTE COCKTAILS~

Cute cocktails! Everyone loves a good signature drink :-) For our wedding we are going to have a bride's drink & a groom's drink in addition to champagne, beer on the tap & wine. This means we'll need your help picking our cocktails. Don't worry, we'll let you do a taste test as we get closer to the big day (make sure you eat first! Lol). I love signature drinks because they allow us to add another unique feature to our wedding that reflects who we are as a couple. 

Here's some cocktail drink inspiration pics from Pinterest:

Next up on my list...

No 6. Not-Your-Average-Photobooth

I love the idea of a Photobooth at parties but I'm not a big fan of them at weddings. Although I appreciate the memories and entertainment they provide, it is not aesthetically pleasing (to me) admist a cute and classy wedding. It just throws the mood off for me (not to mention they can be expensive!) So, I've been looking at other ways to have a non-conventional "photobooth" function at our wedding in a way that flows. Here are some photos that serve as inspiration for pulling off this idea...

This one above is my personal favorite especially for an outdoor wedding like ours.

No. 5: A little sparkle,

This one is pretty self-explanatory, and a little touch of sparkle never hurt anybody :-)

No 4. Cocktail Hour Decor,

This is one of the most important items on my list of must-haves that I really want to achieve. The cocktail hour is one of the most memorable portions of the entire wedding for guests and it gives us an opportunity to showcase our style and vision for our big day. My decor style was coined by Kim as  "Gatsby Garden Romance" and I love it! I love all things romantic, with touches of that gatsby-esque style of old glamour, and I love all things garden because it is inherently romantic which is why I've always been in love with outdoor weddings. Something about the presence of the outdoors and flowers in fresh bloom has always captured my heart. Hence our outdoor wedding :-) 

Below are some of my inspiration photos for cocktail hour from Pinterest

Next up...

No. 3: The Perfect Dress

Self-explanatory!!!! Let the searching begin😁

Next...

No. 2: ~Friends & Family ~ 

More than anything else on this list, we love having our close friends & family with us on our big day as we take this leap of faith and enter into holy matrimony! Family means a lot to us and we really wish we could invite everyone!

Last, but not least....

No. 1: The Man of My Dreams 

My groom😍 had to save the best for last!

Ok, I'm done for now. Until next time...