A Real Treat: Mount Airy Styled Shoot, Pt. I

The collaboration between us girls at Catherine G. Damewood and Daisy Saulls Photography came about one afternoon as we chatted over coffee.  What started as a simple idea, quickly turned into an unforgettable experience for all involved.  The concept was to stage a wedding inspired by the duck hunting episode in Downton Abbey's Season 3.  We were inspired by the beautiful clothing worn, and noticed that even with an air of masculinity, Mary looks incredibly feminine and chic.  After weeks of planning, the day had finally arrived where a team of us traveled to Warsaw, Virginia to one of the Nation's oldest and most spectacular places--Mount Airy.  

Although the home has been the site of many family weddings in the past, Mount Airy is now opening its doors up to others as a wedding venue.  The land that this 1750s home was built on has been in the same family since the 1600s!  With so much beauty and history to offer, we knew we wanted to capture as much of the vast surroundings as possible.  With the help of the owners, we decided to style several places around the property for Daisy to shoot.  Locations included the library, stables, a field out in front of the home, and even near by wetlands where the owners host several duck shoots every year. 

With such a beautiful setting, the styling was easy.  Meggie and I brought several pieces of period furniture, china, silver and even a ladder to help set the stage.  The wardrobe was planned by Daisy and worn by our two incredible models...Laura and Luke, owners of LLB Design, LLC, took time away from the office to play newlyweds for a day.  Styling for Laura's hair and makeup was provided by Michelle Viscal of Emeralds Salon.

Our flower inspiration was drawn from two things--the stationary artwork graciously provided by my friend Inslee at Inslee By Design, and what was currently blooming and available to cut from the gorgeous gardens at Mt. Airy.  The pink roses and peonies came straight out of the garden the morning of our shoot...lovely! 

The calligraphy on the invitations was artfully done by White House calligrapher, Pat Blair.  Another contributor was Carolyn Taylor of Taylor Made Cakes, who's beautiful cake we embellished with some flora!  A big thanks to all who helped us make this styled shoot possible.  Everything turned out beautifully, and would not have done so without the help of many. 

Photograph: Daisy Saulls Photography

Photograph: Daisy Saulls Photography

Photograph: Daisy Saulls Photography

Photograph: Daisy Saulls Photography

Contributors

Catherine G. Damewood 
Daisy Saulls Photography
Mount Airy
Inslee By Design
Pat Blair Calligraphy                                                                                                                        Taylor Made Cakes                                                                                                                              Laura and Luke Bartee                                                                                                                    Michelle Viscal of Emeralds Salon

Fall Fairs

Over the past month we have participated as vendors in our first fall fairs.  The first was the Lovettsville Oktoberfest and the second was the Aldie Harvest Festival.  For both days we set up our tent in similar fashion.  We used an old Loudoun County chalkboard with flower garland as our backdrop and then had a farm table and chair from our vintage rental collection set up for display.  Since a requirement for both fairs was to sell in order to participate, we came prepared with baskets full of flower crowns.  They weren't made of real flowers, as we would normally do, but they were made of the silk flower variety.  We did however show off our floral designs with a real flowers used in the garland, a table arrangement and some sweet baby's-breath crowns Catherine made as a demonstration.

Published! Founding Fathers Gone Wild Event

This summer we were asked to help stage a dinner hosted by Potomac Point Winery in Stafford, Virginia.  The event was Founding Fathers Gone Wild.  The concept was to pair a wild game menu with a patriotic theme to honor our founding fathers on Father's Day weekend.  We used a WWI era American flag that belonged to our great-grandfather as a backdrop for found objects what reflected the night's theme...some deer antlers, a set of cow horns, lots of pheasant feathers all sat on top of some of our vintage rental furniture along with old books and some Revolutionary War soldier prints.  The setting was perfectly rustic in the wine cellar, so we kept the table flowers simple...garland made of magnolia leaves and feathers placed on top of burlap was used as the table runner, with pops of color in julep cup arrangements.   This event was picked up by a Washington area wedding blog, United With Love.  Check out the link below! 

http://www.unitedwithlove.com

Photograph: Catherine G. Damewood, Purveyors of Fine Florals & Design

Some of the props used on site at the photoshoot.

Venue: Potomac Point Winery
Event Planner: Voilà! Event Studio
Photography: {a}strid photography
Floral Design + Décor: Catherine G. Damewood
Stationery + Calligraphy: Ribbons & Bluebirds
Catering: Le Grand Cru Catering
Napkins and Runners: Gala Cloths