Beth and James exchanged vows in a beautiful room with floor to ceiling windows nestled in the heart of downtown Richmond, VA.
The Story
Like most people these days, we connected through a dating app in 2018. We exchanged messages for an evening and hit it off, so we decided to meet up at the Carytown Watermelon Festival the following day. We had a great time while walking around and enjoying good food, watermelon beers and each other’s company. We quickly realized that they had a lot in common like being born in NE Ohio, enjoying checking out new restaurants, a love for the outdoors, live music, traveling to visit friends, family and new places.
The Proposal
James is in the Army National Guard and was deployed for most of 2021 and the beginning of 2022. To celebrate his deployment being over, we went out to dinner at Edo’s Squid because it is owned by the same folks who owned Mama Zu’s, where we went on our 2nd date but is sadly no longer open. After an amazing dinner, we walked from the Fan all the way to Scott’s Addition to work off our pasta dinners and enjoy the perfectly warm April night. We ended up at an arcade bar and played a few games and had a few drinks, then requested a Lyft home. We had a great driver who we joyfully chatted with and when we got dropped off, I was making a bee-line for the front door because I saw that some shoes I ordered from Amazon had been delivered, and I was excited. As I was getting ready to pick up the box, James said “forget the shoes for a second, I have to ask you something”, and I turned around and he was down on one knee, holding a gorgeous ring! It was very sweet and I was so surprised! I couldn’t stop laughing and crying tears of joy so I was so glad he popped the question at home! Afterwards, he told me how he had been carrying the ring around in his pocket for weeks, waiting for the right time to ask. I couldn’t believe he was able to keep that secret for so long!
The Dress
My dress is from the designer Rebecca Ingram at Blue Sage Bridal. My sister and my best friend came with me to try on dresses. My consultant Leanna was a dream! I had a loose idea of what I was looking for and she was able to pick out lots of options for me to try out and made the whole experience so fun! I loved it because it was romantic, classically pretty and would look so good with James’ Army dress uniform.
First Look
We did a first look, and I loved it! It was so special to me to have that moment of calm in the midst of all the plans coming into place. We shared our own vows and it was really sweet. I’m so glad we did that because it took so much pressure off the start of the ceremony and I felt like we could enjoy the rest of the day so much more.
Favorite Moment
My favorite moment was right at the beginning of the ceremony. I looked around at everyone’s faces, especially James, and saw that everyone was feeling so excited and so happy. I was feeling the exact same way and it made me even more excited and happy!
Advice for future couples planning their wedding
Decide early on what is most important to you, and put the most resources towards that!
VENDOR CREDITS
Photography | Awesomesauce Photography
Venue | The Renaissance
Dress Store | Blue Sage Bridal
Hair and Makeup | Ave 42 Salon
Bridesmaid Attire | Azazie
Groomsmen Attire | Studio Suits
Event Planner | Richmond Bridal Consulting
Dessert | Morsels
Awesomesauce Photography offers colorful, fun, and emotional storytelling wedding photography. Based in Richmond, VA available for travel worldwide.
