3250 Peace Valley Lane, Falls Church, VA 22044 703.734.1137 by appointment only
When I imagined my wedding, I thought about something that would be different than all of my friends’ and parents’ weddings. By the time I got married, we had attended 30+ weddings and knew that a “traditional” wedding was not going to be for us. We envisioned something sleeker - something that would feel modern, yet refined - certainly something that had a little bit of an edge yet was still, somehow, bridal.
We thought about our favorite flowers and decided to go with all white, offset by green stems. We chose calla lilies and orchids as the starting point. We wanted something that might feel somehow architectural and would feel appropriate in the Halcyon House, which ultimately feels like an artist’s loft.
When it came to bouquets, I wanted something simple – the bridesmaids with white bouquets with a touch of green and my bouquet was to be very simple but almost the inverse of my bridesmaids – we went with eggplant calla lilies in a small, tight arrangement – it was a spectacular contrast to my wedding gown and was exactly what I had envisioned.
As for the ceremony, we again wanted everything to be white, and architectural – perhaps with a little bit of glamour. Yellow Door hit the nail on the head by suggesting and designing a very sleek and tailored Chuppah with a glamorous beaded “chandelier” suspended from the center. We, again, used various hurricane candles near where the bridal party stood and illuminated the aisle with glass enclosed candles. It was perfect! And once the sun set that evening – it was truly sparkling.
For the reception, we decided on arrangements that would have architectural interest, multiple vases on each table and different shaped vases and centerpiece scenarios for each table. Some tables had tall vases; others had a combination of short and tall vases. I loved the idea of light bouncing off the water in each vase, so we used small votives to illuminate each tablescape. Many of our guests commented on how much they loved the design of our flowers – they were extremely unique, especially for a wedding.
We also set up an outside bar area, complete with cigars, during the reception that I wanted to almost feel like a lounge. Yellow Door arranged for trees, hanging lanterns, candles and more to make this area feel welcoming to guests. It provided a terrific space for guests to take a break and have a relaxing drink before heading back onto the dance floor.
One of the biggest obstacles that we needed to overcome was the weather forecast for the day of our wedding. It drizzled all morning, but I had received great advice that it was going to clear up in time for the ceremony itself – and it did! Yellow Door’s staff was incredibly flexible – setting up the outside at the very last possible second – and had it rained, I know the site would have been set up just as beautifully on the inside.
All in all, Yellow Door did a terrific job interpreting my vision and making it a reality. They were able to take my ideas and blend them with their expertise. The space certainly looked and felt like a wedding – but like “our” wedding and not like our friends or parents. I’d highly recommend Yellow Door for their creativity, communication skills, ability to execute, and - extremely fair pricing.