Weddingbee Blog

Liz, aka Miss OldTownVA, and her husband Patrick had a fun and funky wedding in the charming town of… you guessed it, Old Town Alexandria. From the DIY flowers to their pub reception, Liz and Patrick stayed true to their fun and lighthearted roots and threw a colorful bash their friends and family would always remember.

1. Bride’s Name: Liz
2. Groom’s Name: Patrick
3. Venue(s): Courtyard of the Historic Old Town Alexandria Courthouse/Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub
4. Wedding Date: May 2, 2010.
5. Bridal Gown Designer: David’s Bridal
6. Florist: Juliet’s Flowers for the bridal bouquet, and then I made the centerpieces and reception décor myself.
7. Photographer: Laura Barndt Photography
8. Cake: Jackie’s Sweet Creations
9. Wedding Coordinator: Danielle Horan
10. Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Various
11. Honeymoon: Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia

The Story

Patrick and I surprised everyone with our relationship. As soon as we met, I pulled the friend that introduced us aside and said, “Oh my gosh, I’m going to marry him. I just know it.” I had never been a believer in that kind of thing, but fate had stepped in and showed me otherwise. Apparently Patrick agreed. We moved in after two months and were engaged after four months. It was most definitely a whirlwind romance.

It wasn’t until two years later that we tied the knot the historic waterfront community of Old Town Alexandria in Virginia, right outside of Washington DC. It was well worth the wait.

We spent the morning getting ready in our respective rooms at the Hotel Monaco with our closest friends.

We had a small private ceremony for our wedding party and family in the courtyard of the local courthouse in town. It was a beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon. (And so hot! I couldn’t believe I had been worrying about rain!) My brother met me at my hotel room to escort me to the ceremony, which was a short walk from the hotel.

When my brother, Derek, gave me away, he chest-bumped with Patrick, a sign that he had been accepted into our family.

Our wedding was a civil ceremony that explored themes that are very important to both of us: friends, family, and building a life together based on respect, love, trust. We stood there holding hands, listening to the words, surrounded by those nearest and dearest. Before we knew it, we were being pronounced “husband and wife” for the first time.

One of my favorite things about Patrick and me as a couple? How we can be silly and make each other laugh all the time.

…our friends, too…

But most of all, it meant so much to have our friends with us to share in that special moment.

What made our wedding special was how it was a communal effort. Patrick and I paid for the wedding ourselves and were lucky enough to have talented friends who wanted to contribute. For instance, our photographer was a friend I have known for years who traveled from Pennsylvania. And our wedding planner is a firecracker of a New Yorker that I am lucky enough to call my friend, as well.

And aside from my dress, we were able to give back to our community by supporting independent businesses and local entrepreneurs with my bridal bouquet and our cupcakes.

When we were planning we had a hard time nailing down a venue. After about a year of date conflicts, miscommunications, and other mishaps, we turned our attentions to a place we had never thought of: Murphy’s Irish Pub, a local landmark in Old Town. To our surprise, they were the most accommodating, generous, and incredible venue to work with. It was perfect. Murphy’s was “our place”; a place we celebrated everything from personal and professional triumphs to holidays. Not only that, we were about to become the Murphys.

I think of the craziest memories I have from that weekend was when 200 green Spider Mums were delivered at our apartment two days before the wedding. Thankfully my DIY centerpieces turned out nicely. It was exactly what we wanted: simple, but striking.

One of my favorite details were our “campaign” buttons I had designed for the occasion. We thought them fitting as Washington DC is our home. They were very popular.

We also opted for a personalized poster instead of a traditional guestbook that we are going to have framed, so we can remember our day always.

One of my friends told me during the reception that what made the day so amazing was that every single person there knew that their inclusion in the event was special; that each and every person was important to both of us.

The best part of our reception is how much fun everyone seemed to be having. While it was a momentous occasion, everyone cut loose and had an amazing time. Even in his speech, while my brother was singing my praises, he jokingly threatened harm against Patrick if he ever hurt me.

The rest of the night was a big party. Every one danced and sang into the night. My face was hurting from smiling so much.

Is there anything I would change? Absolutely not. I will admit that we began this process with a small budget, and we thought it would be restrictive. In the end, however, everything was as it should have been. From our beer and pizza party for our rehearsal dinner that we hosted at our apartment, to spending the evening with all of friends and family at our favorite hang out, it was perfection.

It was laid back. It was fun. It was full of love. It typified who we are as individuals and as a couple.

If I had a piece of advice for brides to be out there it would be the tried and true saying, “Don’t sweat the small stuff.” I know, I know, I sound like every other bride out there, but it is so incredibly true. Things will go wrong, but you’ll be amazed at how those mistakes and misfortunes will transform themselves into incredible memories.

For example, our last song of the evening was “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond. I was so excited for it; it had been one of the first songs we had planned for. So there we were, at the end of the night. A big group of us were in a circle, arms thrown around each other, singing along with gusto… and the music just cut off. The MP3 was defective. For a split second I panicked. But then I realized that we were all still singing. It didn’t matter that there was no music. We held onto each other, laughing and smiling our way through the rest of the song. The music may have cut out, yes, but I can’t think of a better way to have ended our wedding.

Also, one last piece of advice: be in the moment, because before you know it, it’ll all be over.

After we said our goodbyes, Patrick and I walked hand in hand together down the brick sidewalks of King Street toward our hotel. I don’t even like holding hands, but I did that night. It was a quiet Sunday night. No one was out. It was cool and breezy. The trees lining the street were lit up with twinkle lights. We were basking in the afterglow of love, music, friendship, and champagne. I was barefoot, with my shoes dangling in one hand, and Patrick had his suit jacket slung over his shoulder. We strolled along together, husband and wife, as if it had always been that way.

As we walked along, Patrick said, “Man, what a great party.”

~~~

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