Jen and Justin said their I Do’s and celebrated with family and friends at Shadow Creek Weddings, a newer Loudoun County wedding venue in the heart of Loudoun County. This sweet couple met in college six years ago and got engaged in 2015. Justin proposed to Jen while they were at the always gorgeous Bluemont Vineyards with their families. Their wedding day began with an intimate ceremony at St Peter’s Episcopal Church. The couple exchanged personal vows and rings solidifying the years to come as husband and wife.

They planned for a classic meets quaint wedding design. This paired perfectly with the more sophisticated, rustic nature of the venue. The florals from Rick’s Flowers had touches of english garden and design elements reminiscent of a southern manor home. Jen chose whitewashed cake stands, personalized seed packet favors, and floral accents that would continue the southern elegance theme throughout. Much of Jen’s family traveled from England, and other family members came from Gibraltar. In honor of their far traveled guests they offered a traditional English dessert alongside mixed desserts. They also sent off their guests with s’more favors. Thank you to Bethanne Arthur Photography for sharing a look into this elegant Shadow Creek wedding!!

Favorite Moments from the Bride: “My first favorite moment was when I got down the aisle and finally got to see Justin’s face. He was smiling from ear to ear, and I definitely saw a few tears. This was also a slightly funny moment because my dress was long and I hadn’t walked on carpet before. It kept catching on the carpet so I had to kick it forward, and my dad was really worried I was going to trip. However I made it down the aisle without tripping!

Saying our vows was also a very emotional and memorable moment. We had gone over the vows and their meanings in our pre-marital counseling classes at the church so when we finally got to say them to each other it was very special. We plan to frame our vows with some of our wedding pictures. My dad and I’s first dance was very special because he had been working very hard on it. My mom made him go to dance lessons since, even though he loves music, my dad is a terrible dancer. He was so nervous about the dance and getting everything right, and it ended up being absolutely perfect and we both had a lot of fun. “

From the Couple: “While we were planning our wedding the most important thing to us remembering that the most important thing was that we were getting married. Justin and I have been together for six years, and engaged for two of those years. It sounds cheesy, but while we were excited about celebrating our special day with our friends and family, we were really most excited about being married and spending the rest of our lives together.”

 “The biggest splurge we had was our food. Justin and I enjoy spending our weekends cooking different types of meals or eating at unique restaurants. We are BIG foodies, so we wanted to make sure the quality of the food was going to be amazing. A la Carte Catering had an amazing quality of food and was very open to all of our requests. “

About the Cake: “So I am well known among my friends and families for my cake baking and decorating. However, I did not want the stress of making my wedding cake, so I was more than happy to hand that responsibility over to our caterer. They made us a delicious lemon raspberry cake that was simply decorated with fresh flowers and our custom Mr and Mrs Weiser topper. They also made us a Baileys chocolate cake as a grooms cake, which is a southern tradition. The topper on the grooms cake was Justin’s parents wedding cake topper. I did end up making one cake, which was our fruit cake. It is traditional in England to have fruitcakes at weddings so my mom and I made one for our wedding and I decorated it shortly before the wedding day with simply white fondant flowers. “

Advice from the Couple: “First of all, always remember that your wedding is about more than just a day, it’s about a marriage. This sounds simple, but it’s important when you are getting bogged down in details and start getting stressed out. Also, when you are planning on a budget decide what is the most important to you. We wanted a good caterer and photographer. Our food was amazing and Bethanne captured the day perfectly so we will always remember it. Also be open to accepting help from people. My mom and sister helped out a lot with the decor, I had a family friend address all of our invitations for us, and one of my bridesmaid’s husband videotaped the wedding for us. They all did an amazing job, and it felt so special coming from people who care about us so much. ”

Photography: Bethanne Arthur Photography | Ceremony Venue: St. Peter’s Episcopal Church | Reception Venue: Shadow Creek | Catering and Rentals: A La Carte Caterers | Floral: Rick’s Flowers | Stationery: Wedding Paper Divas | Wedding Cake: A La Carte Caterers | DJ: Luxor DJ | Favors: Megmichelle | Makeup: Marta Bermudez-Perez | Hair: Donna Clark Stanford | Wedding Dress: Maggie Sottero | Groom’s Attire: Jos. A. Bank Bridesmaid Dresses: DaVinci Bridals | Bridal Salon: Posh Bridal

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