Happy DIY Wednesday Capitol Romancers! Today we are announcing our giveaway contest for your chance to win a pair (2 tickets!) to the Borrowed Event!!!

Haven’t heard about the amazingness that is – Borrowed yet?! Well let me tell you …

On a mission to meet innovators face-to-face, borrowed was started as an effort to not only provide brides and grooms-to-be with better, unconventional resources for their wedding day but as an effort to connect creative minds on the East Coast.

Borrowed is determined to be a wedding show for people who think outside of the box. Yeah, we’re talking to you, the wallflower who stays at home on a Friday night with It’s Always Sunny and a bottle of wine, and you, the genius designer covered in tattoos, and yep, you the bride who is terrified by the idea of a traditional, stale wedding with a poofy dress to boot.

We just want to let you know – there are vendors out there just like you. Your wedding day should be a personal celebration and personal connection is what borrowed is all about.

Still not convinced? Well .. let me SHOW you:

Promo #1:

Promo #2:

Promo #3:

Promo #4:

Oh…well…did I mention that Jillian McGrath & Natalie Fava – Birdhouse Productions are hosting a wedding photography & videography giveaway for attendees!?

STILL not convinced? … ok … well then check out the vendors attending (including YOURS TRULY!).

OK … I knew that would sway you :) SO here is the deal! As an attendee/sponsor of the show, I get to giveaway TWO TICKETS to Borrowed!

Entering is simple:

Leave a comment on this post explaining why you want to attend Borrowed. The best reason will win.

Giveaway ends Friday, 16 March.

For those that don’t want to wait, or don’t win the giveaway – head on over here to purchase tickets to the show.

You seriously won’t want to miss this. Can’t wait to see (and meet!) you all in person, on 1 April at Borrowed Event!

]]> http://www.capitolromance.com/2012/02/22/giveaway-alert-2-tickets-to-the-borrowed-event/feed/ 0 http://www.capitolromance.com/2012/02/21/capitol-wedding-megan-pritpals-traditional-sikh-indian-wedding-in-washington-dc/ http://www.capitolromance.com/2012/02/21/capitol-wedding-megan-pritpals-traditional-sikh-indian-wedding-in-washington-dc/#comments Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:56:49 +0000 capitolromance http://www.capitolromance.com/?p=11512 This. This is the Washington, DC wedding feature that always gets me giddy & restores my faith that DC isn’t just a one-note wedding city. Washington, DC is jam-packed with all different kinds of people [races, beliefs, shapes & sizes] and I always imagined my blog to reflect that. However, for whatever reason, I seem to get a significant amount of Caucasian/Christian wedding submissions [not that there's anything wrong with that] only.

I want Capitol Romance to be varied with it’s features – I am striving to be creative, different from the norm, eclectic & offbeat; however, it isn’t completely in my control as it frankly comes down to what gets submitted to me…

*Stepping off my soapbox* So that is why I am giddy – giddy to share a beautiful, multi-cultural couple, that had a beautiful multi-cultural wedding. A Christian one and a traditional Sikh Indian wedding too, all right here in Washington, DC. Thanks to Amber Wilkie Photography [submitted via Two Bright Lights] for this amazing, multi-cultural Washington, DC wedding feature.

 Megan & Pritpal’s Multicultural Indian – Christian Wedding in Washington, DC

From wedding photographer, Amber Wilkie:

Megan and Pritpal were married beneath the Netherlands Carillon in Rosslyn in a traditional Sikh Indian wedding ceremony. As per custom, all their friends and family sat on the ground, while musicians played and a cantor read from the holy book. They circled the holy book four times, and then they were married! After we all headed to the Bombay Club for a rockin’ dance party.

And now the rest of the amazing details will come from the stunningly beautiful bride, Megan. Doesn’t Megan look like Rachel McAdams? I think so! Take it away Megan ….

To give you a little background my fiancé, Pritpal, is British Asian (Indian). He was born and raised in and around Birmingham, England. His parents were both born and raised in the Punjab region of India and moved to England in the early 60s. Pritpal was raised in an Indian home, speaking the Punjabi language and going to the Sikh temple on the weekends, but with all the outside influence of English schooling and cultural life. Pritpal’s job in accounting brought him to America, originally on a one year assignment, which turned into indefinitely.

I was born and raised in the mid-west and south. I grew up on a small ranch, riding horses, showing cows in 4-H, and building forts and tree houses with my brother. My family is Christian and I grew up going to church on Sundays. My mom was a flight attendant, so we had the opportunity to travel domestically quite a bit. In high school I realized I loved the beach and weather in California so I left my small town of only 18K people to go to college at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. After college I stayed in California and got a job at an accounting firm.

Our relationship started in 2008 and we dated for a couple of years before getting too serious. We had a lot to work through coming from very different backgrounds, religions, cultures… and I already had a son, Jack, who lived me. Pritpal and I loved each other for who we were and got engaged in January of 2011. When we got engaged we still hadn’t decided on the logistics of our living situation going forward; Pritpal had moved to Washington, DC with a new job and Jack and I had gone back to Kentucky to spend some time with my parents.

In August Jack and I moved out to D.C. to be with Pritpal. Before Jack started Kindergarten, Pritpal and I decided to take a trip back to his home country to visit his mother and check out some Indian wedding attire. At this point it was mid-August and we had decided to have a very small ceremony, Indian (Sikh) and/or American (Christian) we were still not sure, and a nice celebratory dinner with the guests afterwards, nothing too elaborate and definitely no dancing.

While in England we needed to convene with Pritpal’s mother to get names and addresses of family and friends in India, England, Australia, and Canada that we had to give notice to about our wedding. Apparently in Indian culture, it is customary to invite everyone to weddings and considered almost offensive if you don’t invite someone you are related to. They may be half-way across the world and not able to come, but they must be invited. I was under the impression that people would understand we were planning a small affair and could only accommodate close family and friends.

With Pritpal’s mother’s list of “must-invites” we had grown quite a list and we had no idea who from that list would actually make it all the way to Washington, D.C. At this point we felt that our small wedding affair wasn’t looking very plausible, but we still wanted to try to stick with the ideals we had set out with – an intimate ceremony and dinner at a restaurant.

Our stay in England was 11 days and during that time, some 3,500+ miles from the city where we were planning to have our wedding, we had an engagement party arranged by Pritpal’s mother, decided we were both comfortable with having the Indian ceremony as the bigger affair and something smaller for the American ceremony, decided on and ordered invitations, researched and booked a wedding location, finalized the reception at our favorite Indian restaurant in D.C., bought two Indian bridal dresses (lenghas) complete with elaborate bridal jewelry, ordered two made-to-measure achkans (formal wedding attire for Pritpal and Jack), created a website complete with a timeline of pictures of both Pritpal and myself, information for the guests on a Sikh wedding ceremony, and logistics of where guests should fly in, find lodging, etc.

Click inside to see the rest of Megan & Pritpal’s gorgeous Traditional Sikh Wedding in Washington, DC!

Pritpal and I had found our wedding location, the Netherlands Carillon Memorial Park in Rosslyn, VA, because Pritpal would run through that park on his morning jog to his office in downtown D.C. We often took the same run together as running is something we’ve always enjoyed doing together. Once we booked the Netherlands Carillon as our wedding location, we checked the weather religiously as there are no tents allowed in the park and we decided not to have a backup plan. The reason for no backup plan was because it was very difficult to find a place to hold a Sikh ceremony. There are certain religious restrictions; not having alcohol on the premises being the main restriction, such as is the case with restaurants and hotels.

Most people hold Sikh ceremonies in temples, but there also weren’t any of those in the area that met our location and décor needs. So we decided it would be best to have it outside and that was that. The weekend after our wedding it snowed that Saturday, all day long. We felt so lucky that we had narrowly missed that weather.

Pritpal’s mother came in from England about a week before the wedding with a suitcase full of chunnis (head scarves for women), which she had already cut from material and hemmed the edges back in England, and material for making ramals (head coverings for men), which she diligently cut and hemmed for an entire day once she arrived here. By this time we knew we were having around 80 guests, all of whom needed a chunni or ramal. Pritpal’s mother had also brought the achkins which we had ordered while in England, but had not yet seen as they were made in India and shipped back to England after we had left. Pritpal’s fit perfectly, but Jack’s needed much alteration, which Pritpal’s mother and I did by hand.

My best-friend and maid-of-honor, Tana, came in Thursday before the wedding and she helped Pritpal and me write the programs, which was no small task. We were having a Sikh ceremony and wanted to stay in keeping with the Sikh terminology, however Pritpal and I had changed a few things to meet our needs as a couple. For example, traditionally the bridal couple walks clockwise around the Holy Book with the man in front of the woman. We felt it was important that we walk around side-by-side. We wanted to explain everything to our guests so they could follow along and feel involved. Tana formatted and printed all the programs while Pritpal and I were getting our marriage license at the courthouse the morning before the wedding.

Prior to the traditional Sikh Indian wedding, Megan & Pritpal had an intimate, American vow & ring exchange in Clarendon, the Friday night before at the rehearsal dinner.

On Friday evening we had a great rehearsal dinner and American vow and ring exchange at Lyon Hall restaurant in Clarendon. Our officiant, whom we had only met once, two weeks prior, did a great job providing background on Pritpal’s and my relationship to the guests and incorporating my dad into the ceremony by asking him to read relevant scripture. Incorporating some sort of Christian ceremony was very important to my parents and me.

Love love love how Megan had her father incorporated into the ceremony!

We hired a lady to bring some décor items such as the backdrop, sheets for everyone to sit on the ground, a small stage for the officiates, some rose petals for the isle and for throwing at the appropriate time, and some jeweled trees at the start of the isle. We had DJs working on their own to set up microphones and speakers. We also had the ceremony officiates bringing musical instruments, the Holy Book and décor items such as decorative blankets to place around the Holy Book and a wooden canopy.

Everyone had initially coordinated with Pritpal and me, but we weren’t there to oversee the actual setup and we weren’t scheduled to show up until after the guests had arrived. Everything was not planned down to a T, but that was definitely part of the excitement.

Megan, you are much braver than I – I am WAY too much of a control freak to not have everything planned to a T :)

When I arrived at the ceremony site with my dad, I remember seeing all of the guests sitting on the ground surrounded by all of this color and saying, “Wow, it looks really Indian!” My own wedding was my, and most of my family’s, first experience attending an Indian wedding ceremony. Somehow everything managed to come together and we had a great day.

Our reception was at the Bombay Club in downtown D.C. We had an amazing spread of Indian food, an Indian dancer who was a friend of Pritpal’s mother, a DJ, and dancing too!

Things had really changed in terms of our initial thoughts only months ago. The Bombay Club did such an excellent job in terms of the quality and level of service that everything went very smoothly there. We really had the time of our lives that day!

Want more!? Hop on over to East West Productions website to check out Megan & Pritpal’s Gorgeous Washington, DC wedding video!

Congratulations Megan & Pritpal! Thank you SO much Megan for sharing all the gorgeous details of your love story and of planning a multi-cultural Sikh wedding in Washington, DC! A special thanks to Amber Wilkie Photography & Two Bright Lights for making this submission possible!

Vendors:

Courtney, the Catering Sales Director, shared this about their show:

Brides will be invited to tour our property, taste our food and drinks and meet wedding vendors that can help make their big day perfect. I don’t want this to be your typical bridal show. I want it to be more of an open house where brides can mingle and enjoy themselves.

Check out the flyer below to see all the amazing DC, MD, & VA wedding vendors that are attending ~ including our FAVORITE, Wendy of Weswen Design!

Let us know if you go to this show! We would love to hear how it went. We hope to get a virtual venue tour up from Dominion Valley sometime soon too!

A Valentine’s Day & Pink Hearts Wedding Inspiration Shoot

Vendors:

Photography: Melissa McCrotty

Event Designer: Young Designs

Dress: Formal Affairs

Equipment Rentals: TrendStyle Events

Makeup Artist: Kakki Jones Make Up

Bakery: TracyCakes

Event Venue: Loft 1023

Um could you imagine this being your wedding ceremony space ?! the loft, the chandelier, the heart over the couple?! i die …

these remind me of our Harry Potter Wedding Invitations!

Click inside to see the rest of this stunning Valentine’s Day styled shoot ~ with tons more details full pink, hearts, and romance!

Love the idea of putting candy hearts in the lotus bowl for centerpieces!

and this reminds me of our Harry Potter Wedding Guestbook!

First up is: Kalivoda (clothing and accessories designer, and sometimes textile designer!)

A local dress & accessories designer – I am LOVING what I see on her site! Some totally appropriate [not to mention affordable & re-wearable] bridesmaids dress options, and an adorable headpiece:

Next: Little by DM (graphic designer and streetwear brand)

“LITTLE by Darin Michelle is a Clothing & Art Brand. Made in Maryland and founded on Faith, Fun & Home“

And last, but not least: Kajs(a jewelry sculptor!)

Kajs has some REALLY awesome nontraditional jeweler, that could totally work for weddings bands for an offbeat couple! Check them out ~ and let us know what you think!

Thanks again to Ava for submitting these awesome local finds!

As always, a special thanks to Heather Bee Photo and Two Bright Lights, for making this amazing, offbeat Virginia wedding feature possible.

Don’t you love the over-sized balloons? Heather actually surprised Katie & Andy with these for the pictures!

How gorgeous & unique is Katie’s engagement ring !? I fan-girled over it when I met her at Sova to get all these details … and I really wasn’t all that surprised when she told me Andy got it from i.Gorman! For those that don’t remember, my e-ring is from there, as are our wedding bands. I LOVE i.Gorman.

This next sign might look familiar ~ I love when couples decide to forgo a seating chart and let guests sit wherever they want!

Want to talk ultimate DIY wedding project – Andy MADE these chalkboards! By hand!

I love the vintage suitcase card box [learn to make a DIY Vintage Suitcase Card Holder here] … but I loved Katie & Andy’s even more when she told me that this suitcase was actually her grandpa’s!

The suitcase card box was my Grandpa’s – I wanted to incorporate things from my family. Which spawned the idea for the cake (scroll on!)

I am biased on the Washington, DC neighborhood table names [because I, myself did the same thing] ~ but Andy took it a step further by actually making the flower boxes himself!

Click inside to see the rest of Katie & Andy’s amazing DIY Vintage Travel Themed Wedding in Virginia!

 Andy’s bestman is a photographer back in Michigan, so he brought his photobooth setup. Has an actual booth, with machine built in for printing out… the kicker is that him and Andy built it(!!).

 Katie/Andy got all the candy from General Stores in Michigan using jars from their church. And then Buzz Bakery provided “mini” dessert bar. At the end of the night they passed out ice cream sandwiches!

Love how their DIY Candy Bar came together!

Another story of how Katie & Andy incorporated their family into their DIY wedding:

My Grandma painted a picture of Woodlawn House [the wedding venue] and then everyone put thumbprints/names around the picture. My Grandma then finished off the prints to make them look like balloons coming from the house

Katie told me she actually didn’t want to have tents at ALL for the reception – they wanted everything to be outside.

How awesome does this reception setup look? I love it!

Congratulations Katie & Andy ~ thank you so much for sharing your amazing, DIY Travel Themed Virginia wedding with us! A Special thanks again to Heather Bee Photo & Two Bright Lights for making this feature possible.

Complete Vendor Listing (including music selections!!):

Venue: Woodlawn Plantation
Caterer: Star Catering
Save-the-dates: designed by Sunshine and Ravioli (found on Etsy)
Invitations: Designed and printed by the bride
Florist: Sidra Forman
Photographer: Heather Bee Photography
Décor: all designed and made by bride and groom (with a little help from friends
& family)
Programs: designed and printed by bride
Website: Wedding JoJo
Hotel: Kimpton (Hotel Monaco and Lorien Hotel & Spa of Old Town Alexandria)
Reception Escort: DASH bus of Alexandria
Cake: Buzz Bakery
Ceremony Music: provided by band members from DC Metro
Reception Music: DJ Paul Parrinello (Entertainment Exchange)

BRIDE
Bridal Gown: Marciles Fashion in Richmond, Michigan
Shoes: discount online store
Veil & hairpiece: Brendas Bridal Veils (from Etsy)
Jewelry: Lou Lous in Old Town Alexandria
Engagement Ring: designed by Gebruder Schafrath, from iGorman
Wedding band: designed by bride from iGorman
Hair: The London Bob in Old Town Alexandria, VA (bride’s stylist, Kim Deshong)
Nails: Sugar House Spa in Old Town Alexandria
Bouquet: Sidra Forman

BRIDESMAIDS:
Dresses: Marciles Fashion in Rihmond, Michigan
Jewelry: New York & Company & Lou Lous of Alexandria
Shoes: Macys
Bouquets: Sidra Forman

GROOM:
Suit: Macys
Shoes: Sperrys boat shoe
Wedding Band: iGorman
Boutonnière: Sidra Forman

WEDDING SONGS:
Processional: Healer by Kari Jobe (the band played this)
Recessional: Just the Way You Are by Bruno Marz (the band played this)
1st Dance: It Don’t Matter by Donavon Frankenreiter
Daddy/daughter: Sweet Pea by Amos Lee
Bridal party dance: All You Need is Love by Playing for Change

And with that, I have an AWESOME offbeat wedding to share with you today, courtesy of Jan C Photography [submitted via Two Bright Lights].

This wedding has everything that a Capitol Romance, offbeat Washington DC wedding feature should have – mismatched bridesmaids, casual, outdoor setting, intimate details ~ with a focus on the couple & their love, not all the flashy add-ons.

Not the mention that I got all the amazing details from the groom(!). I LOVE when Grooms get involved in the wedding :)

So here goes, Kimberly & Judd’s Intimate, Offbeat Washington, DC wedding:

From the Groom:

Once we started planning our wedding, we knew we wanted a few key things. We wanted it to be outdoors, weather permitting. We wanted it to feel intimate, regardless of size, and we wanted it to be as much about our friends and family as it was about us. Lastly, we wanted delicious, casual food and drink that would accentuate the summer season of our wedding.

 We ended up choosing a former Civil War fort outside of Washington, DC that is now a beautiful park that includes a wild flower meadow.

When the big day finally arrived, we woke up to a dreary, wet, rainy day—something we had been mentally prepared for. Luckily the forecasts proved correct, and two hours before the start of our ceremony, the sky cleared up, the sun came out and dried everything out for the remainder of the evening. The temperature was also uncharacteristically cool and breezy for July in DC, thanks to the recent storm.

Click inside for the rest of Kimberly & Judd’s intimate, offbeat Washington, DC wedding ~ including details on their amazing, unique ceremony!

For the program, we went with a Quaker-inspired format in which we invited guests to stand up and speak, if inspired, on themes of love, marriage and a happy life. We loved having the input during the ceremony from so many people that we love and admire, and leaving room for some spontaneity in the day really made each comment feel like an extra special gift.

 ^How much do I love this unique wedding ceremony idea? … I’ll tell you… A LOT!

Love the laid-back, mismatched groomsmen look as well.

AND the mismatched bridesmaids [of course] … all 14 of them in shades of blue & green!

 For the caterer, we chose the first and only place we tried—a place called Basik Neads that not only catered to our budget and palette, but displayed exceptional warmth and flexibility early on.

A note on their wonderful vendors:

We were so busy running around talking to everyone after the ceremony that we hardly had a chance to eat. It wasn’t until afterward that we heard how much everyone not only loved the food, but in particular, how much they loved the caterers. They were warm, outgoing, generous and had amazing attention to detail. Luckily, our fantastic photographer Janice had an equally close attention to detail, and was able to catch so much of the spirit of the day for us to save and appreciate for the rest of our lives.

Congratulations Kimberly & Judd – thank you so much for sharing your beautiful, intimate offbeat Washington, DC wedding with us! A special thanks to Jan C Photo & Two Bright Lights for making this feature possible!

 Vendors:

Venue: Fort CF Smith Park & Hendry House

Dress: Nicole Miller

Jewelry: Bario-Neal

Cake: Buzz Bakery

Catering: Basik Neads 

Photo: Jan C Photo

Now, Lola & Wale are BACK – but this time with their awesome, custom-designed Magazine-style Save the Date from Hitchcock Creative! [See more of Hitchcock's awesome design skills here]

Hitchcock Creative designer, Sarah, shares:

When I first met Lola and Wale, I knew they were going to come up with an epic idea for their wedding stationery.  They are both so talented and fun (not to mention a gorgeous couple!), and they wanted a save the date that would reflect their personalities and share a story with their guests.

After lots of brainstorming and fabulous idea’s from them both, we landed on a magazine that would allow them to share photos of themselves and tell family and friends how they met, the story of the proposal and finally, the date, location and accommodation information for the wedding.

Lola & Wale’s Magazine Save the Date by Hitchcock Creative

Interested in the design – or maybe interested in having this magazine style save the date for yourself? Well you are in luck because Hitchcock Creative has an Etsy store!

The 8-page 8.5″x5.5″ invitation is printed on gloss 100# text weight paper to give it that true magazine look and feel.  The colors and design are completely customizable and prices start at $3.50/each.  The online listing can be found here:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/90210837/wedding-invitation-magazine-save-the

Thanks so much again to Hitchcock Creative and Lola & Wale for sharing their awesome, unique save the date with us!

I love it. But, this isn’t the only photo to love in this set from Darling Photography, submitted via Two Bright Lights. Lyllian & Matthew had a gorgeous love shoot a few weeks before their November wedding, and they hopped around a bunch of places in Maryland – including a baseball field!

Darling Photography shares:

This session is of the beautiful Lyllian and Matthew. They got married 11/11/11 (November 11th 2011) – when I asked them why? they answered: We have known each other since we were very young, lived in the same neighborhood, and friended the same friends. We started dating November 11th – 11 years ago; and of course we wanted to make it special and waited for this date to say I do.

It had rained for weeks in the D.C. area this past summer and fall – we must have changed Lyllian and Matthew’s engagement session several times due to the weather. The day we shot their engagement session was the only date we had for the session before their wedding on Nov 11th; for which they needed the images so they would be displayed during their reception. The images turned out amazing. We started their session at their high school Magruder H.S. with Matthew’s favorite sport – baseball. Matthew was not only a team player at his High School, but still loves the game, and coaches on weekends. After going to their old high school we headed to the beautiful Brookside Gardens and ended the day in downtown Bethesda.

Enjoy!

Click inside for the rest of Lyllian & Matt’s beautiful Maryland love shoot from Darling Photography!

Thanks to Darling Photography & Two Bright Lights for sharing Lyllian & Matt’s beautiful Maryland engagement session!

This one is for the punk rockers out there. The Loved Ones are an awesome punk rock band out of Phildelphia, and they write some seriously awesome music. While this song selection probably might not work for everyone’s wedding, I do like to keep things different here and try and share songs from all over the music spectrum

Lyrics

I’ll love you ’til the end
What I live and what I learn
What we build and what we burn
I’ll love you ’til the end

Maybe acceptable for your wedding video, or if you are a punk-rock loving couple, then I think this would be perfect for a first dance song or maybe even a part of your non-traditional wedding ceremony!

Remember, we love sharing YOUR songs! If you used a modern, non-sucky song for your wedding reception or ceremony, please share it with us!