Glenview Mansion Archives - Deb Lindsey Photography

Julia and Vasily are continuing a trend for me this year. Couples who get married before their ceremony! The two were married in March but planned a lovely ceremony and party with close friends and family in September. They chose the fabulous Glenview Mansion and luckily the first fall day where the air started to feel crisp and sort of like fall. Highlights of the day included the toasts by the father of the bride and father of the groom outside the Mansion, just before guests went inside for dinner. This is where I found out that in the Russian tradition after a toast the champagne is declared “bitter” and the bride and groom must kiss to add sweetness. This happened a lot during the night. The dance floor was crowded for a swing dance lesson from Dabe and Janelle who do a great job of getting everyone to try some new steps. And Vasily’s Russian family and friends serenaded the happy bride and groom with a traditional song to wish them good luck and they danced around in a circle.

Caterer: Main Event Caterers, 703.820.2028

Florist: Sara King, Park Florist, 301-270-1848

Hair and makeup: Natalie, Posche Hair, 301.674.5485

DJ: Dabe and Janelle

I was so impressed with Leslie and George when they came to my house for our initial meeting. Like my best meetings, we had a long conversation about how they met and became engaged and I could easily see how happy and content they were with each other. And when they came to me for advice on others to help them fulfill their wedding dreams, I was happy to offer my two cents and we ended up working with such a fabulous team of vendors. Our day started in Reston with Leslie and her family and then we headed to McLean for the church ceremony. Leslie and George felt very strongly about not seeing each other before the ceremony and it was worth it to see the look on George’s face as he caught a glimpse of Leslie coming down the aisle! Their reception at Glenview Mansion was lovely and Christmas-y. I’ve decided that every wedding reception needs to have twinkling lights in the background…it makes for lovely ring and cake photos! One of the evening’s highlights was the elegant waltz to “Edelweiss” that was Leslie + George’s first dance. The day was a lovely celebration of family and I need to make a special shout out to Sara Bauleke who kept the trains running on time all day long, remade the bride’s bouquet and got everyone together for all the group shots I needed to get at the reception!