Hawkily Ever After: A recap before the recaps

I recently received this lovely little package from my photographer.


Gifts!

 It also, of course, contained the flash drive with all of my wedding day images!

Horray!

But before I jump straight into wedding day recaps, I figured I'd do a short review of our planning journey for those of you who might not have been around. Here is the Hawk engagement: Cliffs Notes version.

Mr. Hawk and I met through mutual friends. A few years later we became an official couple. We moved in together, went ring shopping, and I got a little impatient before Mr. H asked me to marry him in March of 2011.


 We decided to have our wedding ceremony at my alma mater in picturesque Williamsburg, Virginia, but faced some sticker shock when picking our reception venue. We settled on Legacy Hall, which was both beautiful and affordable. Since we saved on our venue,  I found myself drooling over upgrades like chiavari chairs and professional lighting.


The Wren Building. Photo by Holland Photo Arts

We found a fantastic DJ, and I was thrilled when we decided to rent a photobooth, which would also serve as our guestbook. Mr. H was pretty laid back when it came to planning, but let me know that pulled pork HAD to be a part of the reception menu. Not being big fans of cake, we also decided to serve cupcakes as dessert.

When it came to color scheme, I originally thought I wanted to incorporate gray, but eventually decided on a more spring-y palette. Yellow bridesmaids dresses and bow ties definitely fit the bill.


Top row, from left to right: Bouquet via Kelly’s Wedding Flowers Gallery; Love Birds Topper via Vintage Green Modern on Etsy; Cupcakes via Wedding Magazine / Cupcakes by Cakes by Robin; Monogram via Charming Little Nest / Monogram by Southern Proper Monogram; Shoes via Hayden Olivia / Photo by Critsey Rowe; Sign via Family Attic on Etsy; Arrangement via White on Rice Couple
Bottom Row: Table setting via Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Edyta Szyszlo Photography; Bouquet and bow ties via Southern Weddings / Photo via 1313 Photography; Lemonade stand via Brenda’s Wedding Blog / Photo by Bello Photography / Styling by Desiree Spinner Events

For our paper elements we incorporated our engagement photos in our save-the-dates. Our invitations featured a hand drawn image of our ceremony spot. I obsessed over monograms, and it became a theme featured on hand-painted glassware, matchbook covers, tote bags, seating chart, OOT bags, and OOT information packets.

My lovely ladies threw me a fun bridal shower and bachelorette weekend in DC to celebrate my last single days. Our impending marriage started to feel more real when we bought our wedding rings and finally obtained our marriage license.


When our wedding day arrived, we followed the timeline to a "t", but it was still over in the blink of an eye.


Photo by Valerie Demo Photography


I can't wait to relive every moment of our special day with y'all. Now, on to the recaps!

First up: The day before we wed!