Happy Monday, Maharanis! We hope you've had a great weekend full of love and inspirational ideas! It feels great to be back with a new love story for you, and we are sure that today's fusion wedding is going to amaze you! So let's check it out together! Sonam & Akshath were so lucky that they didn't just have one wedding ceremony, they had two! And we are kicking off this love journey by taking a look at the first wedding ceremony! This big day started with an elegant and romantic outdoor photoshoot that became the perfect preamble for the opening ceremony that united this lovely young couple in marriage. They both looked flawless and thanks to the folks at Photographick Studios we get to take a peek at this intimate and romantic photo session! Once the photo shoot was over, it was time for these two to tie the knot! And they did it in a beautiful outdoor wedding that captivated every guest thanks to the minimalist yet elegant decor that Yaadein created for this life-changing ceremony. Without any question, this was an ideal and dreamy scenario for Sonam & Akshath to start their journey into their lifetime love story! If you want to take a closer look at this incredible event, don't miss the gallery that we prepared for today! It showcases fantastic and inspiring shots that you are going to love! 

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How did you meet your Groom and when did you know he was "the one"?
Both Akshath and I had just graduated from college in 2014. I moved back home to Northern Virginia after college and Akshath got a job in Northern Virginia...but the two of us did not know each other. It was not until we swiped right, that we got to speak to one another...this was the beginning of our love story. 
 
Share the scoop on your Proposal Story!
This day had been planned for a couple of weeks; little did I know that my plan was extremely different than Akshath’s plan. My brother and sister-in-law had come to town and we had planned on going to a couple of breweries together and doing dinner as a family (that was it).  As our brewery day went on, we arrived at Vanish Farmwoods Brewery. Akshath had gotten up to get a round of drinks, and I, thinking I was being super slick, whispered to my brother and sister-in-law “one of you tell Akshath to propose to me here one day!” Little did I know, that day was happening right now. Akshath came back to the table and told me to grab my drink and come with him. Before I knew it, he was down on one knee! He just knew. 
 
Tell us how you went about planning your wedding, and your overall experience with the Venues, Hair & Makeup, Outfits, Decor Theme, and all of the other important details.
We knew we had to start off with the venue, once we found the venue it was all go, go, go. We researched many vendors in the area and set up meetings to go over what our vision of the wedding was and what they could do to make that come to life. From the venue, we moved on to the other "big" vendors and continued to check off our checklist. 
 
How did you select your bridal lengha or wedding dress? Did you have a favorite color in mind?
I was particularly lucky enough to be able to select BOTH a wedding dress and a lengha. I went wedding dress shopping with JUST my mother. I figured that the less people the better, I didn't want that many opinions. We had been to one bridal dress store before finding "The Bridal Room" in Tysons, VA. My mother and I went into the store and my mom ran right up to a dress and said, "this is it Sonam, you don't need to try any other dress on!"...I didn't listen to her. I picked out 3 dresses, tried all three on and of course...picked the dress that my mother knew was "the one."
As for my lengha, this story is a bit different. My mom and I went through the wild streets of Chandni Chowk to find my wedding lengha, this was the last outfit on my checklist of wedding outfits. I knew I wanted it to be red because this was probably the only "traditional" aspect to the wedding that I really wanted to keep traditional. We went into one store and after hours of trying on lenghas, we left disappointed but the lengha search continued. Our next stop, Om Prakash Jawahar Lal; this search also took multiple hours but once I tried my lengha on, I knew it was the one!
 
What was the most enjoyable part of the planning process, and why?
The food and cake tasting :) Our caterers were just incredible, each and every dish was created to such perfection with amazing presentation and taste. Going to the food tasting opened our eyes to what could be offered and the experience was just great. Who wouldn't love trying all that food!
 
Was there a really special moment in your wedding that constantly replays in your mind?
Our first dance, this was our surprise to everyone. When we look back at our first dance our initial reactions are just to sit and cuddle up next to one another and just laugh. Neither of us are "dancers" so to speak, but we were able to tell our love story in a way that no one expected! Our countless hours of practicing paid off!
 
Do you have any words of wisdom for Brides-To-Be?
My main advice for future brides would be, when your wedding week is finally here, just have fun! All your hard work and planning will pay off and there is absolutely no reason to stress. You have worked for months, maybe even years for all of this to come together, the last thing you want to worry about is if your table numbers are printed. Enjoy each and every moment with your friends, family and your new husband  
 
Anything else you want to tell us? We'd love to hear all about your other details! (jewelry, mehndi, venue, cake, bouquets, etc.)
Thank you to all our AMAZING vendors, our weekend could not have been more perfect without you all! From day one until the day of, working with the management and event planners at the Westfields Marriott to accommodate all of our needs, Yaadein Weddings for making all my crazy visions come to life, Elite Entertainment (DJ Binda and DJ Babz) for making each and every event more hype than the last one, Pearl's Event and Co. for day-of coordination to make sure everything went smoothly, Bhavna's Henna for her amazing artwork and being able to put up with me for 8+ hours, Sarah Rillon for KILLING all of my looks, Liberty Baking for TWO of the most prettiest/most delicious cakes, Moghul Caterers who STILL have people telling us that the food at our wedding was the best food they have ever had, and lastly, Sunny and the ENTIRE Photographick team for capturing each and every moment so that we never forget our amazing week. We thank all of you for making our dream wedding come to life!
 

Don't go too far if you don't want to miss the second wedding ceremony! 

STYLE
GUIDE
style
Fusion
Romantic
Outdoor
season
Spring
color
Photography: Photographick Studios | Venues: Westfields Marriott Washington Dulles | Photography: Photographick Studios | Planning & Design: Pearls & Events | Floral & Decor: Yaadein | DJ: Elite Entertainment LLC