Images: Sam Hurd Photography
Yesterday I rolled right from the day job, to a final coordination consult and I couldn’t bring myself to fire up the laptop at 9:30pm when I got home. I had all intentions of getting this out this morning too and then an accident on 395 caused me to get in late to work, and was followed by 3 hours of non-stop meetings. YAY LIFE! But, I promise it’s worth the wait. Milkshakes, confetti canons, PIZZA, and more – all from the wonderfully talented Sam Hurd. You don’t want to miss this DC wedding guys!
Adam & Sara broke all confines – foregoing traditional elements like a wedding cake in place of milkshakes as a nod to their first date. Adam’s own wedding is a true testament to his beliefs that each couple’s wedding should be a true reflection of their personality so that when you look back on the photos, they represent so well.
From the groom:
Our wedding was a DIY, budget-friendly wedding with a bold and unique to DC initiative. We had our Thursday wedding at St. Francis Hall, a Franciscan Monastery in Northeast Washington, D.C. Unlike other weddings I had photographed at this venue, I instructed our amazing wedding planner, Sarah Pete Rizzi of Sincerely Pete Events, to rotate the ceremony 90 degrees to only show the castle-esque feel of the space.
After the heartfelt, tear-filled ceremony, in which I recited journal entries from the two years of Sara and I dating, we had board games and a photo booth for everyone to enjoy. Since Sara and I’s first date was at Goodstuff for milkshakes, we had a milkshake toast instead of cutting cake! Lastly, for our day-time exit, we had 20 confetti cannons launch confetti into the air! It was so fun and magical!!! [Learn to make your own DIY Confetti Cannons here!] Also, we had PIZZA for our main meal! And we got married on our 2 year anniversary of us dating too! :D
We chose St.Francis Hall really out of a desire to have a unique look and lots of natural light even with an indoor ceremony. The hall connects to a Franciscan Monastery which because of the great weather, provided lots of amazing views and photo opportunities. We often rest on classic style so Adam and his groomsmen went on classic black suits from The Black Tux while Sara’s bridesmaids were a muted teal that was relaxing and wasn’t too showy but not too boring either.
Before Sara and I got engaged, we had pre-marital counseling (but for us it was pre-engagement counseling) with an amazing couple from our church. Eric, a retired Air Force Colonel officiated the ceremony of our wedding while his wife Beth lead scripture readings. We also had Joel Buckner our friend and an amazing musician sing “No Longer Slaves” while we took communion. We also had a friend Paul who prayed for us during the ceremony.
We got married on a Thursday! Our bridesmaids, instead of having bouquets had lanterns that had florals from Sincerely Pete and twinkly lights inside. It matched our winter wedding vibe so well! Instead of a cake, we honored our first date which was milkshakes at Goodstuff Eatery, so every guest had a mini-milkshake and we did a milkshake toast instead of cake cutting. Also, because of our early ending (our wedding ended around 7PM) for our formal exit we did confetti cannons! It was amazing!
Because a lot of our time together when we first started dating was spent playing board games and Adam is a photographer, we had board games at each of our tables during our reception for guests to play and make friends in addition to disposable film cameras on every table to add perspective to our day!
Vendors:
Photographer: Sam Hurd Photography | Planning, Design & Florals: Sincerely Pete Events | Photo Booth: Jon Fleming Photography | Venue: St. Francis Hall | HMUA: DIY | Bridesmaids Dresses: Alfred Angelo | Suit: The Black Tux | Cake & Sweets: Good Stuff Eatery | Pizza: Timber Pizza | Invitations: Postable
