A Blue-and-White Garden-Party Wedding at DAR With Monument Views

Halie, from Atlanta, and Mark, from Burke, Virginia, met as students at the University of South Carolina. Four years after their first date, Mark proposed on the couple’s annual staycation in the city. For this particular occasion, Mark planned the night at the St. Regis, and after dinner the two took a walk along the mall before Mark proposed at the Lincoln Memorial. Afterwards, they celebrated with their families at the Hamilton, and with friends the next morning over brunch at the Salt Line.

For the wedding, the two envisioned a “blue-and-white garden party under the monuments.” Decor included Halie’s mother’s blue-and-white chinoiserie vase collection, and atop each table sat personalized notes to guests on DC-themed postcards, framed and used as table designations. Rattan chairs made the dinner space feel more residential, and floral centerpieces were anchored by moss instead of traditional vases. Halie and Mark chose DAR for the ceremony and reception and kept things streamlined for guests by booking room blocks at the nearby Dupont Hotel, where the Doyle Bar served as the venue for the welcome drinks and rehearsal dinner. For the after party, the booked their downstairs bar of Astro Beer Hall, which meant they got to lead guests right past the White House following the reception. “We loved how this optimized time with our guests and made navigating events in the city for them really easy,” they say.

After the wedding, the newlyweds traveled to Paris, Tuscany, and the Amalfi Coast for their honeymoon.

The Details

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.