If your allergies haven’t smacked you upside the head yet like me, then maybe all you need to do is take a look around you to notice that spring has FINALLY sprung in DC! I am not sure I am digging this heat wave [I love me some 50s & 60-degree April weather … but 90? Come on now….] but at least everything is blooming and looking seriously gorgeous.
Enter a beautiful, romantic wedding from Megan Beth Photography. Pale pinks, ivory & gold, soft florals, lots of champagne, and a beautiful Historic Mansion venue in Columbia Maryland. I couldn’t think of a better spring inspired wedding to share! Megan & Gabe also had a tight budget to work in – so they share lots of good advice for our other budget-conscious readers!
Megan & Gabe’s Pale Pink, Spring Time Wedding at Historic Oakland Mansion in Maryland
Vendors:
From the photographer, Megan Beth Photography:
This beautifully elegant day they envisioned, involved Megan and Gabe surrounded by all their friends and families. Of course with champagne, cake, lots of cake, laughter and an overwhelming amount of love. And with nine tornadoes touching down in Maryland not only twenty four hours prior, the sun rose that morning, the sky was clear and out came the absolutely most beautiful day for Gabe and Megan’s wedding.
On their beautiful, romantic color scheme of pale pink, ivory & gold:
I chose the colors (pale, blush pink with ivory and gold accents) because I wanted the “feel” of the wedding to be romantic. We knew that no matter what we chose for colors, venue, details, etc. that the wedding would be fun because we have such a fantastic group of friends and family.
So while I knew the reception would get wild and crazy, I wanted the beginning of the evening to feel calm and classic. For a late spring/summer wedding, I felt I was dealing with the perfect time of year to pull “romantic” off. One of bridesmaids and best friends described my wedding vision as being like the bubbles in champagne. As a champagne-lover, I totally agreed – classic, but fun and bubbly.
Since my grandmother had passed and would not be able to see me get married, I really appreciated being able to hold onto one of her family’s traditions. Also, as my “something old” and “something borrowed,” I wrapped a handkerchief around my bouquet that was brought by my grandmother’s aunt when she came to America from Europe in 1916.
Love this details & incorporation of family heritage in their wedding:
One of my favorite things about our wedding was when I got to walk with my parents and bridesmaids from my house to the church. It was a tradition in my grandmother’s village in Germany for the bride’s family to walk her from her house to the church.
I love the Megan got ready in her childhood home and even more that the couple’s first look was in the backyard she grew up in. Beautiful.
Click inside for the rest of Megan & Gabe’s beautifully romantic Maryland wedding from Megan Beth Photography.
The couple was on a tight budget so they had to prioritize!
We had to prioritize the details that we wanted to spend our budget on. Flowers, we knew, could significantly contribute to our romantic theme so we worked closely with the florist to optimize between the perfect flowers and something that fit our budget. White carnation pomander balls and bouquets with pops of bold pinks that doubled as centerpieces were perfect.
The other area that we knew would be a big contributor to the theme was the bridesmaids and groomsmen outfits. In addition to the fabulous bouquets and boutonnieres, we went with soft pink, chiffon dresses for the girls and gray tuxes for the guys. Each girl also wore different styles of pearl jewelry and chose their own hairstyle. We wanted some individualization since our bridal party was so large without getting chaotic.
On selecting their wedding vendors and doing some things DIY:
As for vendors, we tried to utilize as many friends and family as possible. First, we chose to get married in the church I grew up in, a block from my parents’ house. My maid-of-honor’s sister did my makeup. My mom’s best friend’s neighbor became our florist. Gabe’s restaurant was the caterer and one of his coworkers who does her own appetizer/dessert catering did just for our wedding as well. And last but not least, we used one of our mutual friends, Megan Beth, for the photography.
On their family’s involvement:
My mom was a HUGE contributor. Being a busy tax accountant, I really didn’t have the time to make all of the necessary calls and schedule all of the appointments. She really was the driving force for nailing down all of the coordination, payments and scheduling.
On selecting their Maryland wedding venue on a budget, Historic Oakland Mansion:
The venue was tough because we needed something large enough to fit the 150 guests we were planning to invite in addition to something that would allow us to use our own caterer.
As a couple on a budget, we knew the biggest area of expense would be the catering and were lucky enough that the restaurant Gabe worked for at the time not only offered amazing food, but was also just starting to get into the catering business. Historic Oakland Mansion was the perfect choice.
The indoor ballroom with chandeliers that opened onto a veranda and tented patio was perfect to pull off our theme, big enough to accommodate the guest list and flexible enough to allow the use of our own caterer.
LOVE the pops of gold on the tablescapes!
Congratulations Megan & Gabe! Thank you so much for sharing your romantic Oakland Mansion wedding with us! A special thanks to Megan Beth Photography & Two Bright Lights for making this Maryland wedding feature possible.
1 comment
Feeling so honored to have Megan & Gabe’s stunning wedding featured! A beautiful way to showcase a gorgeous wedding, and an amazing couple! Thank you Bree, and Capitol Romance! :)