The location for this reception was absolutely gorgeous – The Clubhouse at Aliana in Richmond. It was unlike any community clubhouse we’ve ever seen! Soaring ceilings, parquet floor, large fireplaces inside and out, Tuscan-style architecture. It’s beautiful!
The colors for this December wedding were red, black, and white, and they were perfect for the season. The tables had red pin tuck overlays and the black Chivari chairs had black seat pads. Each place setting had a gold charger and the tables had high/low red floral arrangements surrounded by red votive candles. There were beautiful Christmas decorations throughout the venue, from trees to huge nutcrackers (6 feet tall!) to boughs of evergreen with candles.
Shannon was so pretty in her white strapless gown. It was fitted to above the knees, where it widened into a skirt. The elegant dress had gathers on the bodice and a corset back. She carried a beautiful bouquet of red roses wrapped in black ribbon. Her Bridal Party wore black, strapless, satin, knee-length dresses and carried similar, but smaller, bouquets. Frank is in the Marine Corps, so he wore his dress blues. His Groomsmen wore black tuxes with red rose boutonnieres.
After a wonderful dinner, it was time to move on to the toasts and cake cutting. The Bride’s carrot cake featured three, white, stacked layers. Each was accented with a few red roses. And of course, since Frank is in the Marines, they cut the cake with a sword. Then they moved on to the Groom’s ‘cake’. I say ‘cake’ because it wasn’t one at all. It was beautiful glass bowls filled with layers of pudding and crushed Oreo cookies. I think it’s called “Dirt”.
The First Dance and Father/Daughter Dance were followed by the Mother/Son Dance. It was so funny because it was obvious that Frank’s mom didn’t know what we were going to play. I set it up as a beautiful and meaningful song, and then we played The Devil Went Down to Georgia (chosen by Frank and Shannon, of course). It was so funny!
After a bit of dancing, and the reading of a funny poem written by the Groom’s cousin, we did the Newlywed Game. That’s where we ask the Bride and Groom a series of questions and we see if their answers match. It got a lot of laughs and was fun for everyone. Then we were back to more dancing.
Following the Bouquet and Garter (the Garter toss was funny – the guy who caught it was drinking a beer the whole time and never even spilled it!) and a lot more dancing, the night came to a close. Frank and Shannon ran through their guests, jumped in their car, and headed off to their new life together. Congratulations to the Newlyweds!
Venue: The Clubhouse at Aliana
Catering and Cake: Carriage Caterers
Photography: Christine Meeker
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