There Were More Than 600 Roses on This Wedding Cake

Sheeza, a Realtor from Alexandria, and Umer, a senior account manager from Woodbridge, matched on an app and then shared a first date at the Yard House. Two years later, at a 30th-­birthday party he organized for Sheeza, Umer proposed in the company of friends and family.

Get more Washingtonian Weddings inspo

Newsletter | Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

The double wedding celebrations were also family-and-friends affairs. First: an intimate “garden oasis” ceremony with 20 guests at Sheeza’s parents’ home in Old Town. Four months later: a grand 200-person fete at the Willard hotel that Umer says still felt warm and personal. For the DC reception—decorated in white, blush, pink, and burgundy­—the couple prioritized transforming the space to distinguish it from other events that had come before it. “The drapery definitely did the trick!” Sheeza says, as did installations of roses and greenery. Guests found their table numbers at a dramatic tree-inspired escort wall, and the couple made their first dance extra-sentimental by selecting Sheeza’s grandparents’ favorite song. After dinner—a duet of crabcake and short rib—the newlyweds cut a marble-and-white-chocolate cake decorated in a cascade of more than 600 red roses.

The Details

This wedding originally appeared in the January 2023 issue of Washingtonian.

Amy Moeller

Fashion & Weddings Editor

Amy leads Washingtonian Weddings and writes Style Setters for Washingtonian. Prior to joining Washingtonian in March 2016, she was the editor of Capitol File magazine in DC and before that, editor of What’s Up? Weddings in Annapolis.