If you planned on getting married last Saturday, you either had a Washington DC snow wedding or had to cancel.  I live in a rural area between Leesburg and Frederick, and we may have received the most snowfall of all the area.  My neighbor recorded 40 inches in about 18 hours!

Friday night I prepared to beat the storm by driving to the Hotel Monaco in Alexandria.  About 8pm on Friday night, however, the wedding I was scheduled to shoot on Saturday was cancelled.  My husband used Saturday to snow blow our exit.  Which was especially useful because as the roads opened, and a small get together was prepared for Sunday– still a Washington DC snow wedding.

When planning for their big day, this couple wanted a BIG party.  With flights cancelled, roads closed, and even their venue closed, they now plan on hosting an amazing soiree in the spring.  Family from Costa Rica had already arrived, however, so the couple decided to host a small gathering.  In an effort to not upstage the spring event, I am only sharing a few images from their intimate gathering.

The couple got ready in a DREAM Old Town Alexandria apartment.  The kind with aged, pine floors, soaring ceilings, amazing light… and brick.  Brick everywhere!  Brick walls and a beautiful brick fireplace.

The original wedding details included an homage to winter, but the day of?  Well, the details were actually winter related because of the unexpected blizzard.  It was fun to be creative in capturing the winter details and letting go of the “traditional” way of capturing the details.  The bride made it very clear the gathering was fun, no stress, no mess.  She wanted to capture the casual and laid back nature of the “not-spring” event.

For the ceremony, the bride decided to wear a classy cocktail dress so as to not upstage the event rescheduled for spring. … this bow, though?!  I want this dress!!  So hot!  After dressing, they were off to the Morrison House for a small get together with family who had traveled from as far away as Costa Rica.

After the ceremony, the bride and groom returned home to dress in wedding attire, and prepare for a first look.  I won’t share those images with you, so that they can save similar images for the spring affair… but the details I will…. WOW.

After the first look, we took our time to meander the snow-covered Old Town Alexandria streets and take photos.  As we hobbled over snow banks in front of Christ Church, an old man popped out of his house.  He looked concerned, and I was sure he was going to complain our presence in the street would delay the snow plow from finally clearing his street.  I was wrong.

He called out to the bride, “Did you get married today?”

“Yes,” she called back.

Suddenly, the man’s wife appeared, and they explained Sunday was also their 40th wedding anniversary!  We took a few pictures with them, and they sent my bride and groom away with champagne saying my they (my bride and groom) and made their (the older couple’s) anniversary.

How sweet!

The couple ended the night at Jackson 20, one of the few places open as the blizzard ended.  They dined on elegant versions of home-cooked meals and enjoyed family from Pennsylvania and Costa Rica.  All in all, a magical day for a Washington DC snow wedding.