When I first heard emerald green was named Pantone’s “it” color of the year, I immediately began brainstorming what a wedding wrapped around this hue would look like. Rich, elegant, and of course, completely gorgeous. But it wasn’t until this wedding hit my desk that I could fully visualize how pretty it could be. I’m talking off-the-charts-pretty. And you know what? You’re gonna heart it too. Ingrid of Myrtle and Marjoram has an entire gallery to gush over waiting right here.

From the Bride…Joe and I have very demanding careers and we lead very hectic lives in New York City. For our wedding we wanted the complete opposite–an intimate serene wedding surrounded by nature–enter Annadel Estate Winery in Sonoma Valley, California. The lovely private winery features a beautiful historic barn and the old stone wall ruins of the original winery that stood there from the 1800s. The “little farm” as the owner affectionately calls it is also a flower farm. The choice was a no-brainer.

My color palette was frankly inspired by my beautiful cousin and maid of honor. She’s a natural red head and looks particularly beautiful in green. Once I decided that was the color of her gown everything else fell into place….beautiful white roses from Annadel, cafe au lait dahlias, green succulents and yellow teddy bear sunflowers.

My dad passed away in 2005 and it was very important that I honor him in little ways without making my mom too sad. I had his favorite tie made into “ring pouches” that my 18 month old nephew “carried” (at least figuratively), I placed my dad’s picture in a locket in my bouquet and up on the barrel alter, and all of my ceremony music was by the Beatles–his favorite group of all time.

The wedding day itself was gorgeous–70 degrees in early October–with the sun shining, the smell of roses,  and  grapes bursting on the vines. Surrounded by 20 of our closest family and friends– who had traveled from as far as Spain to attend-we exchanged vows and the only “honking” we heard was from a flock of geese that flew over the ruins during the ceremony. The cocktail hour was in the oak grove next to the ruins. The sunlight through the branches, the breeze, my groom’s hand in mine…swoon. My guests are still raving about the wonderful Annadel wine and the local cheese…so much so that I literally ordered it for several guests as Christmas presents!

We had the most amazing vendors who I wish could follow us through life decorating, planning, cooking, lighting and photographing everything. As one of my friends put it “the whole day was enchanting.” I think my daddy was smiling down on us that day.

Photography: Ingrid Nelson of Myrtle and Marjoram | Venue: Annadel Estate Winery | Floral Design: Atelier Joya | Event Planner: Alison Events | Catering: Jessica Lasky Fine Catering | Wedding Cake: Perfect Endings | Cheeses: Cowgirl Creamery in Sonoma | Acoustic Guitar + DJ: Spencer Sutherland Entertainment | Lighting: ReFRACtion | Linens: La Tavola | Furniture: Classic Party Rentals + Wine Country Party Rentals | Invitations: StacyHuntDesigns | Paper Goods: Beacon Lane | Block Letters for Child Guests: HudsonBlockCo | Wedding Dress: Lazaro | Groom’s suit: Calvin Klein | Bride’s shoes: Badgley Mischka | Bride’s Purse + Earrings: BHLDN | Bracelet: Left Bank Jewelry  | Bride’s Head Piece: Twigs and Honey | Maid of Honor’s Dress: Jesus de Pozo | Hair + Makeup: It’s a Date at the Powder Room, Rachel Gardea

For more information on how Little Black Book Members are chosen click here.
Badgley Mischka, BHLDN and Twigs & Honey are members of our Look Book. For more information on how members are chosen, click here.

Unfussy, wide open beauty is something that seems easy enough but takes a very special mix to get right. That mix needs to be paired down to only the most beautiful elements, nothing too overdone. Think figs decorating a simple white cake, an old barn gussied up with colorful florals and photo-ops in fields with hoofed friends. This wedding shot by Christina Szczupak Photography has that equation down to a science. Martha Clara Vineyard + bright blooms by Karen Lenahan Designs = wildly good looking nuptials. Have a look for yourself right here.

From the Bride…Lou and I really wanted to enjoy simply being engaged. We decided not to think about wedding planning until the time seemed right. We had just moved out to California together, and it took us about five months until we started to discuss planning our wedding back home, in New York. I’m really grateful that we took that time to bask in the bliss together, before turning our focus on all of the details.

When we looked at Martha Clara we knew pretty instantly that it was the right spot for us. Beautiful wide-open grounds, a charming barn and adorable animals, we couldn’t have asked for anything more. It had a very pure, free feeling to it without any unnecessary frills. The venue was completely DIY, which was awesome to us because it meant that we were able to fill it with our own personality and vibe. On the flip side of that, it was much more work and at times was difficult to organize from across the country. We couldn’t have done it without all of the help we received from our lovely family and friends, not to mention our wonderful vendors who helped pull it all together.

It was important to us to keep our day very family oriented and down to earth. One of my favorite things that we did was our photo wall. We strung up about 150 photos of our childhood memories with our families. I think it ended up being the perfect way to reflect on how blessed our lives have been. It also was a great way to honor our amazing grandparents and fathers who have passed on, and were sorely missed that day. It really made me happy to share that with our guests, and I think they felt the love, too.

The day was more than I can really put into words. There is nothing better than sharing such a special moment with the people we love, in such a enchanting environment. My best advice to those in the planning process is to simply keep in mind what’s truly important, and keep with what feels right to you. When times were stressful I would step back and think to myself, “Wow, I get to marry my best friend.” That one thought always put it all in perspective for me.

Photography: Christina Szczupak Photography | Venue: Martha Clara Vineyard | Floral Design + Lighting: Karen Lenahan Designs | Cake, Pies, Cookies: Junda’s Bakery | Caterer: Christopher Michael | Printed Goods: Designed & Hand Stamped by bride | Stamps: Antiquaria | Paper: Paper Source | Wedding Dress: Lillen Collection | Shoes: Butter | Earrings: Yifat Bareket | Bracelet: Dragon’s Wire | Rings: Bride’s Grandmother’s | Pin on Bouquet: Dad’s High School Pin | Groom’s Suit: Joseph & Feiss | Shoes: Joseph Abboud | Bridesmaid Dresses: Jim Hjelm

When talking about frame-worthy, this wedding photographed by Leslee Mitchell will forever come to mind. One look at the image of the Bride and Groom kissing outside of this D.C. church and I promise you, you’ll want to slap that pretty picture on your wall. Because it captures the true spirit of this wedding: timeless elegance loaded with the kind of details we go crazy for. Whether those details are the layers of white blooms by Holly Chapple Flowers or the Groom literally sweeping his gorgeous Bride off her feet, this wedding is filled to the brim with them and you can see it all unfold right here.

From Leslee Mitchell: The opportunity to photograph a wedding in our nation’s capital was an unforgettable experience. Truthfully. Everything about Kristina and Andrew’s wedding was magical. I will always love and always remember standing above the confetti as it was fell to the dance floor during their last dance. The confetti images will forever remain special pieces in my portfolio. Kristina and Andrew are very special clients to me. I consider them friends.

From the Bride…Everyone has those prefect moments when time stops and a memory is made. We will always remember fondly our romantic weekends in Washington DC that culminated with brunch at the Army Navy Club. With such affection we chose to have our wedding in Washington DC. I wanted the wedding to truly capture the beauty of the city in the midst of the holiday season. The early winter also brought to mind the wonderful black-tie grace of the inauguration and all balls that accompanying it. With the vision in mind, the Army Navy Club was a prefect fit for the reception. No place in Washington DC (except maybe the White House) captures the illustrious rich history of the city with a dash of holiday charm. Greeted by portraits of familiar faces in American history and paintings that belong in the National Gallery, the club instantly turns any reception into a special affair filled with the tradition and elegance of past times. Still, the giant Christmas tree in the center of the lobby surrounded with neatly wrapped presents adorned with bows reminds you that everyones favorite time of year is just around the corner. As I visoned my traditional romantic winter wedding in the beautiful Capital I knew I wanted to capture a winter white wonderland so with that in mind I kept with the simple, clean, crisp, and elegant color scheme or white, ivory, with splashes of gold accents.

To accentuate the holiday feel and satisfy my serious sweet tooth, we personally designed a charming and unique dessert buffet that captured the sweet joy of the season. Baked and Wired, a delicious local bakery, provided delicious handcrafted peppermint bark and gingerbread cookies that had every guest feeling like a kid again. The Army Navy Club specially made warm chocolate molten lava cakes for the reception. Andrew and I shared a chocolate molten lava cake on our first date together back in college thus making it our personal favorite dessert of the evening. The scrumptious dessert buffet was accompanied by a hot coco bar complete with wall your favorite additives such as candy canes to dress up your favorite holiday treat. An ode to dessert and flowers (two of my favorite things) was our wedding cake. The chocolate hazelnut truffle cake frosted in Frangelico flavored meringue butter cream made by Craylon Taylor was covered head to toe in a mix of sahara and spray roses that completely rounded the rim of the cake, she did an excellent job in designing exactly what I wanted.

Making the day even more special was being able to wear my ninety three year old grandmother’s fur stole. This stole was one of the few possessions she was able to bring from Cuba when she fled in 1959. Another family touch to my attire was my veil. The veil was made of lace from my mother’s wedding dress. I was so touched and overjoyed to wear such family heirlooms on our day. These items also added a vintage touch to the day that brought to mind the classic black-tie events of decades past.

Wedding invitations and the stationary are the guests’ first glimpse into the special day, for that reason I put great effort into adding my own touch to the paper. Abby from Flaire Design in St. Louis created a classic motif that was imprinted on all paper items. Keeping with my vision and infusing some of Southern upbringing, we created a classical cursive custom monogram of our first initials and centered in Romanesque wreath. This was the perfect combination of the tradtional and classic feel mixed with a nod to the holidays. From the invitations to the menu, to the wedding program and personalized cocktail napkins, all them were adorned with our unique design.

Looking back at the most magical day of my life I can truly say the highlight was being surprised by a sliver confetti shower during the last dance. Dancing with my new husband to Fly me to the Moon the Wellie Nelson version under this soft snowlike sliver surprise was truly the most romantic way to end our classic Washington, DC winter white wedding. I have many people to thank for making my wedding weekend unforgettable and everything I wanted. From the vendors to my family everyone was supportive and played a major role in brining my vision to life. Still, I would especially like to thank our photographer Leslee Mitchell and my make up artist Kara Gaylor. Both their passion and support for my vision were important and added to the enjoyment of the weekend. Kara’s constant assistance and diligent work was an invaluable part of the weekend. Leslee’s unbelievable eye and willingness to capture the weekend from every angle was everything I could ask for and more. Thanks to her magnificent work, we will always be able cherish and relive our wedding weekend as if we were still there.

Photography: Leslee Mitchell | Wedding Planner: The Posh Planner | Floral Design: Holly Chapple Flowers | Ceremony: Holy Rosary Italian Catholic Church | Reception: Army Navy Club of Washington DC | Stationer: Flair Designery | Car Rental: Regal Limousine | Wedding Cake: Taylor Made Cakes | Desserts: Baked and Wired | Makeup + Hair: Kara Gaylor | Bridesmaids Dresses: Bella Bridesmaids | Tuxedo Rentals: Wedding Creations

For more information on how Little Black Book Members are chosen click here.