congratulations mr and mrs dave mcdermott

I remember when I first met Dave and Virginia (whom I fondly like to call V). It was fifteen months ago and they were determined to have their reception at V’s family home in Hanson, Kentucky (The Corpus’s). This meant a lot of work for her parents in regards to landscaping and remodeling, but they had a plan and stuck to it. Likewise, V was a bride who knew exactly what she wanted and her impeccable tastes showed through every aspect and every detail.The wedding weekend was an interesting blend of Australians (Dave’s family) and Filipino’s (V’s family) and a smattering of Americans. We began the weekend with a Welcome Dinner hosted by The Aussies but combining Kentucky home BBQ. Held on the family tennis courts, we had a Blue Grass Band entertaining the guests as they arrived. The tables were adorned in chocolate linen, with custom made placemats that defined some fun Australian Slang for the Americans. Dave also made a mixed CD for the guests of Australian music to take home. The evening was relaxed and comfortable and as the sun went down, the Chinese lanterns glowed romantically above.

The wedding day colors were a mix of purple and rich lavender and ornate orchids at every turn. Trust me, V knows her orchids. Dendrobiums and Vandaceous orchids were flown in from Hawaii and other parts of the U.S. and orchids from her mother’s garden were used in decor. The wedding was held at a small intimate church for the 160 guests and the altar was flanked with tall columns and glass vases with orchids. The clear vases had a subtle uplight to create a glowing effect.

As the guests arrived at the reception, they were greeted with servers passing champagne (and full bar), a sushi chef preparing delicates, passed mini puff pastries, smoked salmon on toast points, oysters on the half shell and additional yummy hors d’oeuvres. With the harpist playing in the background, the ladies were offered flip-flops as favors so they could be comfortable walking the grounds. Instead of hosting cards, a large creative poster was made and placed on easels for the guests to locate their seats.The cake was creatively showcased underneath a tree for the guests to view from the pre-dinner area. A “ribbon” tent flowed down from the tree and draped casually around the cake, highlighting the square cut and orchids.

The reception tables were rounds using full length crushed lavender satin table clothes, with satin napkins and matching chair ties. Each place setting had a custom menu with the guests name on it. A mixture of tall clear vases and smaller clear bubble bowl centerpieces with orchids and calla lilies were used to create a mixed effect at the reception. The bride loves squares – so we incorporated the white square china plates and rectangle plates for dessert.

For the guys – to relax later – there was a custom “cigar bar” down by the lake with four couches and a custom glowing coffee table. Although we still draped the couches with lavender color, it was still very much a ‘blokes’s area’.

This wedding was a wonderful blend of international and local guests and truly one of my most memorable weddings as a planner. The fact that later on in the evening the clear, beautiful skies turned to quarter-size hail and pouring rain didn’t deter these guests or this couple from having a great time! Impromptu sing-along at the piano and dancing from an ipod, with a fully stocked bar kept the party going. And as the forklore goes, raining on your wedding day is good luck. Which the guests all got to witness with a double rainbow! For more fabulous pics…please click here!

If anyone has planned a wedding at a personal residence, you know this event couldn’t be pulled off alone. So my deepest thanks and gratitude goes out to the best vendors anyone could work with. And of course, the hosts of the party Drs. Roberto and Primilina Corpus, for opening their home to everyone.

plan on!