Love, At Home

LOVE

AT HOME

BY JESSICA GREENSMITH

When the coronavirus pandemic spoiled their wedding plans, these Maryland couples shifted their ceremonies to home, sweet home.

Bridget Brady and Sam Meyers were supposed to get married on May 16, with a 200-person wedding at Chartwell Country Club. Then COVID hit, and they postponed their wedding to September. But when their videographer told Bridget about her own backyard nuptials, the couple decided to scale their day down to a 15-person ceremony, too. “We didn’t want to keep playing the will it or won’t it game with the pandemic,” Bridget says. “So after advice from Carla, we made the change!”

FOR THEIR FIRST DATE, SAM BROUGHT BRIDGET HER FAVORITE CANDY. He’d heard from his cousin Jess, who is Bridget’s best friend, that Bridget didn’t like flowers, so he offered her Sour Patch Kids. Ironically, Bridget brought her own sweet stash along to the date. Jess gave her insider information that Sam was really nervous and Bridget thought a Reese’s Fast Break might help him relax!

With just a month to reconfigure plans, Bridget turned to her capable army of mom, MIL, three bridesmaids, and two grandmas to communicate with vendors and iron out the details. “My mom created a thorough spreadsheet with tasks, who was responsible for completing them, and when they needed to be done,” Bridget says. “Her project manager background came in handy!”

THEIR GRANDMAS THREW ROSES.

Bridget and Sam packed their wedding with meaningful touches, from inviting their grandmothers to be their flower girls to incorporating heirloom accessories. Sam wore his grandfather’s watch, which had been passed down to him for his 25th birthday, as well as a tie clip from the other side of the family. Both grandmothers also lent Bridget a piece of their own jewelry; a pearl necklace from one and earrings from the other.

While Bridget was getting ready, Sam and a few male family members set up the reception tables. “Sure, the moms went behind a few minutes later to tidy it up a bit, but I was blown away with their styling,” Bridget says. “It was really an all-hands-on-deck situation.”

One of Bridget’s favorite details was the photos the couple used for their centerpieces, featuring various family member’s wedding portraits. After Bridget saw a picture of a pet napkin on Instagram, she decided her cat Gizmo deserved a

THEIR CAT MADE HIS NAPKIN DEBUT.

cameo of his own.

HER ADVICE.

“Having your wedding at home gives you the ability to make everything your own. Everything was exactly how Sam and I wanted. It was intimate, everyone was involved and you really do get to stop and enjoy every small detail. We also added an amazing new memory at a home that already carried so many special moments for Sam growing up.”

Pre-COVID, Bridget and Sam had custom cups made as party favors, which they were able to repurpose for their micro ceremony. “Our hands are actually covering up the original date the bottom for the photos!” Bridget reveals. She hopes to pass the cups out in the future to would-be guests as a memento from the celebration.

VENDORS:

Alterations: Dalinda’s Alterations Bride’s dress: Hayley Paige (designer), Garnish Boutique (shop) Bridesmaid dresses: Azazie Cake: Baked by Mary Kate Cat napkins: The Emerald Hound Catering: Chartwell Country Club Flowers: Bay Blossoms Hair & makeup: Behind the Veil Beauty Men’s attire: Capital Custom Clothiers Lemonade cups: Sycamore Studios Officiant: Fr. Matthew Himes Photography: Holly Croft Photography Rings: Marc Todd Jewelers Tent and rentals: Absolute Party Rental Videography: Carla Elizabeth Studios

They met at age 5, dated in high school, and nine years later, got engaged and started planning their July 4th wedding at the

Tidewater Inn. But when the stay-at-home order was instituted in

Maryland at the end of March, their venue temporarily shuttered and Colleen and Patrick were left wondering what to do. “Disbelief, uncertainty, and even a bit of despair clouded our thoughts as Plan B quickly turned into C, which turned into D, and so on,” Colleen says.

COLLEEN AND PATRICK ARE KINDERGARTEN SWEETHEARTS.

Two months before their date, the couple decided to forge ahead with a reception at Colleen’s parents’ home in St. Michaels. “The logistics of the ceremony, the reception venue, the caterer and menu options, and even the officiant had to change,” Colleen says. “However, the most difficult adjustment was narrowing down our 250-person guest list to 50.” Colleen and Patrick made those who were uninvited still feel included by live streaming their ceremony and sending Maryland gift boxes to all of their original guests.

NEIGHBORS CHEERED FROM THEIR KAYAKS.

When Colleen and Patrick disembarked from their ceremony transport, they noticed a few unexpected onlookers: the whole neighborhood had shown up on paddle boards and kayaks to congratulate the couple from a distance, thanks to stealthy orchestration by Colleen’s parents.

THE FATHER OF THE BRIDE WORE HIS GRANDFATHER’S TUX.

Other special details were the ring pillow - sewn from the wedding gown of Patrick’s grandmother - and the couple’s French bulldog, who was able to join in for pictures because of the private setting.

Bride’s Gown: Tara Lauren (designer), The Bridal Room (shop) Bridesmaids Gowns: Azazie Cake: Julie Bakes Catering: Chesapeake Chef Service Cookies: Clough’D 9 Cookies Florals: Monteray Farms Flowers & Gifts Groomsmen Getting Ready Suite: The Tidewater Inn Hair & makeup: Alison Harper & Co Men’s Attire: The Black Tux Month-of-coordinator: Rachel Kelly Events Photography: Karena Dixon Photography Tent & Rentals: Eastern Shore Tents & Events Videography: Film & Flourish Despite the setbacks, “the day was perfect,” Colleen says. “Just like we imagined it.” Blue and green and ivory. Classic,

AND LOVE PREVAILED.

VENDORS:

yet bohemian. Married.

JOHN WAS CLARA’S FRESHMAN BIOLOGY TA.

They met Clara’s very first night at college. John was the year above and her friend (eventual bridesmaid) Hannah introduced them.

As a doctor, John spent a lot of time in March and April in the ICU treating COVID patients. Having a small, at-home wedding became the obvious choice, Clara says. “Being that we are both in health-related fields, and with everything being so uncertain at the time that we had to make the call, we were extra sensitive to keeping our families and friends healthy.”

Clara and John served the same meal they were planning to have pre-COVID: filet and crab cake, sautéed fresh corn with basil, roasted zucchini, and sweet potato biscuits.

Clara and John pushed back their large celebration, which would have included 175+ attendees, to 2021 and pared down their wedding to nine guests, all of whom were tested for COVID the week before the wedding. They made custom hand sanitizer bottles for their gathering and required face masks, which Clara’s sister and MOH adorned with lace.

THE TABLE WAS SET FOR ELEVEN.

Clara wanted to highlight John’s Italian heritage with her background on the Shore. “We incorporated a lot of small and big details for both: my mom and sister made homemade limoncello, we had crab cakes for dinner, and then Italian cannolis and a Smith Island Cake for dessert. The escort cards were oysters that my sister and I painted gold and wrote names in calligraphy, and our signature drink was the Italian aperol spritz.”

THEY DANCED IN THE MOONLIGHT.

“It was important to me that we still did wedding day traditions, including the first dance, mother/groom and father/ bride dances,” Clara says. They hung up string lights in the trees to mark the dance floor in the grass and set up a portable speaker to play songs from Spotify. “After we did the first dances, we ended up having a spontaneous dance party, I think the song playing was the Italian love song “That’s Amore,’” Clara says.

AND TOOK A CRUISE ON THE BAY.

They rented a boat for the weekend out of Annapolis. John proposed while the pair was sailing on the Charles River in Boston, and sailing was going to be a theme for the wedding day they were planning. Initially, they considered having their micro wedding ceremony on the open water, but logistically, it was easier to have the ceremony in the backyard and go for an afternoon sail later. "Not only did we want to incorporate the sailing theme, but we wanted to have an activity for the afternoon that everyone would enjoy,” Clara says.

VENDORS:

Bride’s hair: Heathers Salon Catering: Blue Heron Catering Flowers: Black Dog Blooms Photography: Cecile Storm Pictures

SETH AND ASHLEY

INVITED FRIENDS TO

A CASUAL SUMMER

BARBECUE.

he plan was to kick off summer and - finally - celebrate their engagement. They’d locked in the venue, a friend’s home in Herald Harbor on the Severn, T back in November. And for just as long, they’d been quietly plotting the world’s greatest ruse: with the help of Seth’s father, a Methodist pastor, they were going to get married on the spot. They’d even managed to keep the secret from their kids.

The only hiccup in their plan was COVID. “For three months, we stressed over cancelling, changing our date, or coming up with a new wedding plan,” Ashley says. But the pair watched the news and decided to take a gamble, sending out invites just a few weeks before Governor Hogan reversed the executive order banning private gatherings.

AND SHOCKED EVERYONE WHEN THEY GOT MARRIED ON THE SPOT.

Some guests started crying, others immediately got on their phones, trying to coordinate rides home for kids they thought they would be picking up before they realized they were attending an impromptu wedding. “I even had friends shaking their heads no, thinking Seth was wrong [when he made the announcement] because they had been bugging me for a wedding date for months and I told them it would be in September,” Ashley recalls.

ALL OF THE DECORATIONS WERE STASHED IN THE GARAGE.

After telling guests about the forthcoming nuptials, Ashley and Seth disappeared to get ready, while their florist set up cocktail tables and prepared for the ceremony. Other vendors were in on the scheme, too. “It’s one of the reasons I chose Main & Market,” Ashley explains. “I love their cake and I knew I could trust them with the surprise.”

VENDORS:

Brides Hair: Courtney Click Cake: Main & Market Catering: Mission BBQ Flowers: Studio H Floral Design Photography: Nicole Caracia Photography Ashley found her pink high-low dress at Macy’s and ordered it in two different sizes, since she wasn’t able to try it on in person.

REAL WEDDINGS

60

JACKIE SEISMAN + PAUL CZYZIA III Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

64

ANANDI BHUSRY + ANUJ BHATNAGAR Chartwell Golf & Country Club

68

GUIENEN BEHRLE + EDWARD FEDUKE Herrington on the Bay

72

ANGELA MERCIER + BRUCE GROVE Tidewater Inn

76

AMANDA HURLBUTT + JESPER HELIN William Paca House & Gardens

80

SHANNON CARTA + HUNTER COLE Chesapeake Bay Beach Club