Matt and Maura held their reception in one of the lesser showcased DC wedding venues, The National Press Club. This venue is quite the gem in the cities architectural landscape. The two were first married in a church wedding ceremony at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, which we have always loved for its grand backdrops and worldly motifs. Maura wore a lace over piece to her Sarah Janks gown from Lovely Bride DC to adhere to Catholic ceremony requirements. Quite frankly we are smitten with the whole look! Thank you to Erin Tetterton Photography for sharing their DC National Press Club wedding with us via Matchology today and scroll through to hear more from the couple on a look into their special day.

How did he propose? “Matt & I were at my parent’s beach place for a long weekend, Matt asked me to go watch the sunset from the dock on the first night and he got down on one knee and popped the question on the water, just as the sun was setting. We spent the rest of the weekend celebrating with friends and family! “

Tell us about your attire choices: “Maura wanted a simple but elegant cream dress and fell in love with the silk crepe de chine Sarah Janks Bella dress as soon as she tried it on. In order to dress the simplicity up for the ceremony, she wore a lace, off-the-shoulder bolero and then took it off when she was ready to party at the reception! Matt wanted to continue that simplicity by picking a light grey suit with a bow tie. He found a great independent American made clothing company called Collared Greens that provided bow ties to complete the look. “

One special moment: “Maura’s close family friend is a deacon and was our officiant for the wedding. He has a tradition where prior to the wedding the groom and bride write a letter to each other expressing their thoughts on the big day and their relationship. Hearing those letters to each other that were read out loud at the ceremony was a special moment not only for Matt and Maura but also to all the guests in attendance. “

What did you splurge or save on? “The most important thing to us was being surrounded by family and friends– truly being able to celebrate with them and enjoy their company. Because we envisioned our wedding as being one giant celebration, we splurged a bit on the bar and food. We picked the premium bar package that included some of Matt’s favorite whiskey’s and a nice surf and turf dinner menu that allowed the out of town guests to have a Maryland Crab Cake option.The guests were very appreciative and partied late into the evening.”

Family Heirlooms incorporated into the wedding? “Maura’s green emerald earrings were borrowed from her maid of honor– she had worn them at her own wedding that Maura was the maid of honor in as well. Maura’s parent’s 36th wedding anniversary was the same week as their wedding so Maura & Matt dedicated a few words to them during speeches and surprised them with a dance to their first song, My Love, by Paul McCartney. Maura and Matt had a bag piper greeting guests as they entered and exited the church and as they entered the reception as well. This is a tradition for Maura’s large Irish family, it has become very important during “gatherings of the clan” (happy and sad) as family and friends come together for blessings, reminiscing and celebrating courage moving into the future. “

“Matt and I love sweets and we couldn’t settle on just one cake flavor so we wanted to do a variety of sweet options; we had 12 different Smith Island Cakes and cookies.” Smith Island cakes are the official dessert of Maryland, where Maura grew up, so it was a special detail for the day. Maura’s sister-in-law made the gold “Happily Ever After” cake topper as well.

The following DC wedding professionals contributed to this DC National Press Club wedding:

Photography: Erin Tetterton Photography | Ceremony Venue: Immaculate Conception Church, Shaw DC | Reception Venue: National Press Club | Event Planning: Sincerely Pete Events | Floral: Love is Floral | Stationery: Wedding Paper Divas | Rentals & Linens: Davinci | Beauty: Allison Harper and Co. | Getting Ready Hotel: The Willard Intercontinental | Band: The bachelor boys | Wedding Dress: Sarah Janks | Groom’s Attire: The Combatant Gentleman | Bride’s Shoes: Kate Spade | Bridesmaid Dresses: johanna august | Bridal Salon: Lovely Bride | Groom’s Bow Tie: Collared Greens

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