I love connecting with my clients, and when Jean placed her order for the Marinha white shirt dresses for her bridal party, I knew i had to get in touch and find out about her details of the big day! Here is what our gorgeous Jean had to say:
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love, what is unique about you and your relationship?
We are never in one place for long! Tommy and I both love to travel — that's one of the things that attracted me to him most. Thankfully (pre pandemic) we both traveled almost every week for work so that meant we had all the travel points we ever needed for personal travel on the weekends. Tommy is a consultant and I am a graphic designer who doubles as a consultant. In the seven years we've been together, and over the many trips we've taken, Tommy has accumulated quite a few hobbies that have really shaped our lives. We recently moved to Colorado to be closer to the mountains (we're big skiers, thanks to one ski trip Tommy went on haha) and we are building our dream house which I am designing — a real dream of mine!
Care to tell us a little bit about your proposal?
When we moved to Chicago we started a tradition of celebrating Christmas with just the two of us before we went back to the East Coast to see our families. We went out to Christmas dinner and then had plans to come home and exchange gifts. The last gift of the night was the ring! Tommy got down on one knee in our living room and completely surprised me! After we had a moment to ourselves we headed upstairs for more surprises. All of our friends from Chicago were there to celebrate and Tommy flew in my brother and sister!
Tell us about your special day, was there a specific theme or style? Tell us a little about the setting, the styling and some of your favourite details
Two and a half years and three wedding dates later, we finally had our big D.C. wedding! The theme of the day was modern meets classic Washington D.C. We were married in the church my parents were married at in Georgetown and then we headed down to the National Mall to the Mellon Auditorium for all the fun! Being a designer, the look of the day was very important to me. The clean classic aesthetic of the church fit my vision perfectly and we transformed the Mellon in a mix of moody modern meets historical glamour. Guests sat at long rectangular tables that lined the dance floor. And guests absolutely loved the lounge set up with a neon backdrop as the perfect photo spot.
How did you spend the morning of your wedding? How did you deal with the nerves leading up to the wedding?
The ladies got up bright and early for hair and makeup. Everyone was in my suite relaxing, listening to music. Our planner, Ashly, timed everything perfectly so we really could just enjoy the time! After waiting so long, and having everything planned for over a year I really wasn't nervous at all! I had so much trust in Ashly and just wanted to enjoy the day we had envisioned for years so I just had fun!
Tell us about your main outfits of the wedding day
I wore two outfits for our wedding day. For the ceremony and reception I wore a modern Sarah Seven crepe gown with short sleeves and open back. The slit down the front of the gown was the perfect way to showcase my black and pearl shoes — I wanted a bit of bridal edge! I accessorized with drop pearl earrings, a cathedral length veil and the Cult Gaia Eos pearl clutch.
For the end of the reception and after party I changed into a Rime Arodaky jumpsuit that I actually bought long before my dress! I loved it so much and it was such a hit on the dance floor!
Advice for a future bride?
Get a planner and have fun! I do not know how we would have pulled off the big day without the help of our wedding planner. Since we lived in a different city and had to deal with everything the pandemic threw at the wedding industry it was crucial to have someone on the ground communicating and keeping our 10+ vendors organized. If you don't want a full planner then at least hire a day/week-of coordinator. I didn't know a single thing was out of place on our wedding day because our planner took care of everything like the pro that she was! And best of all, she made our two year planning process fun! We are now friends for life and we cannot thank her enough!
Bridesmaid shirt dresses, Meeka
Photography, Shannon Moffit Photography
Videography, Bowen Films
Ceremony Venue, Holy Trinity Catholic Church
Reception Venue, The Andrew Mellon Auditorium
Wedding Planning and Event Design, Ashly Townsend B.Mingled Weddings & Events
Flowers, Wild Green Yonder
Invitations and Paper Products, Isidore & Augustine
Bride's Gown, Sarah Seven
Bride's Veil, Alice in Ivory Bridal
Bride's Jumpsuit, Rime Arodaky
Bride's Jewelry, A. B. Ellie
Bride's Shoes, Jimmy Choo
Bride's Hair, Georgetown Bride
Bride's Makeup, Makeup by Shirin
Bridesmaids' Dresses, BHLDN
Groom's Attire, The Black Tux
Groomsmen's Attire, The Black Tux
Music, Sound Connection; Olivera Music Entertainment
Catering and Cake, Occasions Caterers
Custom Decor, Social Supply
Rentals, Perfect Settings; Table Manners DC
Transportation, Bayside Limousines
Lighting, Summit Event & Lighting Production
Sound, All Stage & Sound
Trees, Plants Alive!
Valet, MJ Valet
Neon Sign, YellowPop