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Victoria and James at Ashford Estate

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Victoria and James at Ashford Estate

Posted on April 07, 2022 by New Jersey Bride

How did you meet?
James and I met on the first day of college. My father and his mother worked at the same company at the time. They happened to be talking the week of freshman orientation about how they both were sending their kids off to school. Little did they know we were attending the same school, FDU in Madison. Our families then ran into each other on move-in day as James and I were in the same building, one floor apart. We were friends freshman year but ran within the same circles. We both joined Greek life and stayed very close. Junior year is when things turned serious for us. It was after a fraternity event and we were never apart since!

How did you get engaged?
James and I got engaged on August 24, 2019. I always dreamed of getting engaged on a beach! Little did I know he planned a weekend getaway to Ocean City, Maryland. I told him I just wanted it to be us. His plan was to propose Friday night at Sunset, but unfortunately that night it down-poured. He then woke me up at 6 am Saturday morning and proposed at sunrise. It was a perfect moment just the two of us!

Details of the day!
There is something about the fall James and I just love so we knew we needed to get married that time of year. The weather and colors are just perfect. I had the men in navy blue tuxedos with tan shoes. The girls were in “wine” colored crepe long dresses with nude shoes. My flowers were a combination of maroons/pinks and whites. Our color theme for the wedding was a mix of rose gold/gold/maroon/pink and white! The theme was very fall, elegant and classy! Our favors were two variations of cookies with either “Victoria and James” or a “D” on them. I got ready in a white lace rob from Le El New York and the girls were in blush pink pajamas from Seline Lounge on Etsy.

My headpiece/earrings and bracelet were all from Bridal Style Boutique in Brooklyn! In the Barn Chapel, we had an ivory aisle runner from the Original Runner Company lined with flower petals and lanterns. The Barn was lit with mini votives all around and 3 chandeliers above us. The fireplace was filled with candles and the mantel was lined with lanterns and flower arrangements to match my bouquet. The ballroom was filled with 3-foot tall tree-like centerpieces topped with a mix of maroons, pinks, whites, and greenery! The sweetheart table with draped with a white lace overlay where we had “The DeChristophers” sign instead of Mr. and Mrs. with a garland of our flowers. Hand-drawn signature cocktail sign at each bar and a personalized drink stirrer!

Why did you choose your venue?
I grew up driving past Mallard Island (sister location) all my life on the way down the shore and thought I dreamed of a shore wedding. I then start dating James. Years go by and we got more serious – I start doing “research” and I started of course, with Mallard. It turns out, I grew up and so did my style – I didn’t want a shore wedding anymore, and when I saw the Ashford Estate it was the country elegance vibe I grew to love. I wanted an Estate with a massive ballroom and it sold me. It was stuck in my head for years! Fast forward to 2019 when we start looking at venues after we got engaged. The Ashford was the first place I emailed but everyone told me to look at others. So James and I book about 10 different venue tours (none being the Ashford), and none of them had that feeling to us. We just weren’t crazy about them, they were missing “something”. I then re-emailed the Ashford and book a tour for James, my mother and myself. We drove through the lion-guarded gates down the pine tree-lined driveway and instantly knew. According to my mom, my face just lit up. We completed the tour and as we were driving out, all three of us just got that “feeling”. This was it for us. This is where we HAD to get married. It had everything we ever dreamed of. The next day we called Laura and arranged a meeting to book – best decision we ever made!

What was on your menu?
Our first course was a Pear and Gorgonzola Salad with red wine poached Bartlett pears and crumbled gorgonzola cheese on a bed of bitter and sweet field greens, sprinkled with candied pecans and wild berry vinaigrette. Served with breadsticks. Second course was either a choice of New York Strip Steak, Pecan & Maple Encrusted Salmon, or a Pan Roasted Chicken Fresco accompanied by Smoked Gouda Potato Souffle and Haricot Vert. The third Course was Strolling Desserts, Wedding Cake, and Coffee Express Station (coffee, and home-baked chocolate chip cookies) Our wedding cake was white buttercream on the outside and inside on 2 of the 4 layers was almond flavored and the other two were cannoli filling!

All about your gown!
My Allure Couture gown was white with lace and beading all the way through. My mother and I went to 2 different salons and ended up trying on tons of dresses before heading over to Castle Couture. I thought I knew what I wanted to wear but I let our Bridal attendant have free range. I knew in my mind the type I always wanted was either fit/flare, or a mermaid style. None of the styles at first were doing anything for me. Luckily, we finally came across the perfect dress, the one for me. It was fit and flare but it had an entirely covered lace back. I always thought I would go open back and WAY less beading. It weighed almost 10 pounds it felt like! I decided to go for it, remaining as open-minded as possible. It was too big for me so it was hard to truly picture how it fit, but something about the way it hugged my body made me feel it was the fit I was looking for. Ultimately I took it off to try on a few more dresses, but in the end, I asked the attendant to go back to the dress I tried on before. I couldn’t have envisioned myself in anything else – the 3-foot train was my favorite part of all.

What was your favorite moment?
My favorite moment (aside from the first look with my husband and our ceremony) was right after we said ‘I Do’ and walked out of the barn chapel. Our attendants took us straight to the salon where we were greeted with our signature drinks and all the food from our cocktail hour. We got to breathe and take in the magic that just happened – the two of us becoming husband and wife. No distractions, no getting pulled in every direction. We got to enjoy our moment. Our other favorite moment was after our 15 minutes alone, we went for our ballroom reveal. Our DJ had our first dance song playing, and we got to take in the beautiful flowers and tables we created. We got to see our sweetheart table and the beautiful Ashford Ballroom before the madness of our wedding party descended on it – it was truly breathtaking and peaceful to experience that just us. We were able to share a dance that I’ll always cherish.

One detail you couldn’t live without?
Our signature drink sign! Which, ironically, I do not have a professional picture of – just one people took and one I took myself. I wanted to incorporate our German Shepherd, Summer, into our wedding without her actually being there because she is a bit wild and big! I got a vendor on Etsy (JesMarried) who then created a complete freehand illustration of her from a picture I sent. We then created a cocktail after her, The Summer Spritz (Aperol Spritz), and even another variation of our dog as a gift for my husband. I also couldn’t live without my bouquet. I had this design in my head for years and MDS completely brought my vision to life.

Did anything go wrong?
Of course, but it makes the day even more special and memorable knowing nothing could have ruined it. I had a mirror seating chart with engraved names on it, and the Tuesday night before our wedding the vendor called and said the whole mirror was scratched and unreadable. Luckily, the vendor and my stationery vendor sprung into action. They created a paper seating chart using the original Mirror design, and dolled it up as best they could on such short notice. Our florist, MDS, also added a touch of flowers on top. It honestly came out beautiful, which is amazing considering how distraught I was upon hearing I wouldn’t have my mirrored seating chart. Aside from that, only the wind seemed to bring us down when trying to take photos outside late in November!

First dance song?
Forever to Go (Acoustic) – by Chase Rice

Any advice for future brides?
I know everyone says this, but the day goes by extremely fast. My advice is to take those 15 minutes with your husband or wife just to be alone. Also, while you’re sitting at your sweetheart table, look around and appreciate everything you did and everyone who came to celebrate you (especially in these times). Lastly, if you have a photobooth go in it! I had one and was only in a few pictures, my husband seemed to find it just fine though. Just enjoy your day with your loved ones!

Honeymoon Location?
First, we went to Dubai. We stayed at the W Dubai for 3 days and then headed off to the Maldives where we stayed for one week. We stayed at the all-inclusive Centara Ras Fushi Resort and Spa in a private Deluxe Spa Over the Water Bungalow.

the details

Hometowns

Somerset

Reception Location

Ashford Estate

Photographer

Catalina Fragoso - Photos by Catalina

Officiant

Rev. Robert Jani

Bride’s Gown

Allure Couture - Castle Couture

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Victoria and James at Ashford Estate

the details

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Bride’s Shoes

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