Tiffany Rogerson wears a popular “traditional” gown on the steps of the circa 1785 Fairview House bed and breakfast on the grounds of the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club outside Front Royal. The dress, Raylia Designs’ style W7627, was provided courtesy of Formalities in Winchester. Rogerson’s bouquet, provided by Shenandoah Florist in Stephens City, features white lilies, white roses, Gerber daisies, white limonium and flat cedar. Photos by Rich Cooley/Daily Rogerson wears a popular “traditional” gown. Raylia Designs’ style W7627 is a mock two-piece, strapless, A-line, organza gown with corset back and chapel train. The gown is embellished with lace detailing, accented with crystals, seed beads and bugle beads.

A valley wedding: the place, the dress, the flowers

By Jessica Wiant -- Daily Staff Writer

An ornate, corseted and beaded gown or a simple, flowing one.

The stately Bell Grove mansion or a vineyard, orchard or park decorated by nature.

A trio of long-stemmed red roses or a full bouquet bursting with a variety of fragrant, white flowers.

Brides- and grooms-to-be who already have begun planning a wedding in the Northern Shenandoah Valley know the choices are seemingly endless.

Here are just a few of the options:

The place

The site chosen for 2008’s bridal guide photo shoot was the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club. With it’s large, open banquet hall and sweeping views from the deck out over the golf course, the club usually hosts a wedding almost every Saturday from April through October — about 40 a year on average — says banquet manager Janet Maucione.

“I think the view is number one,” she says.

Nestled away eight miles north of Front Royal and past the Warren County Fairgrounds at 134 Golf Club Circle, Shenandoah Valley Golf Club also boasts a garden and the circa 1785 Fairview House bed and breakfast on its grounds.

The garden is a popular spot for ceremonies, as is the banquet hall for receptions.

“So it could be one-stop shopping,” Maucione says.

Renters pay a facility fee for use of the hall that includes tables, chairs, servers and the help of staff in coordinating the event. Bar service and food prepared by the club’s chef (who will prepare from the club’s regular menu or prepare custom or ethnic foods) is extra. Outside caterers aren’t allowed.

“The event is flawless, and they don’t have to think about a thing,” Maucione says.

To reserve a specific date, Maucione says to call at least a year in advance.

The dresses

Perhaps the most important decision for any bride-to-be is what she’ll wear on her wedding day. The selection of dresses photographed this year are from Formalities, at 157 N. Loudoun St. in Winchester.

Owned and operated by the mother-and-daughter team of Barbara and Amy Agregaard, the shop has been in business for almost six years and is the only bridal gown shop in Winchester.

Everything from tuxedos to shoes and veils are available there, as well as dress alterations.
Formalities provided three popular sellers: a traditional gown, a modern gown and a destination gown, the latter of which could be worn for oceanfront ceremonies. The shop also provided a variety of bridesmaids’ gowns.

The traditional gown chosen was style number W7627 from Raylia Designs. This dress is a mock two-piece, strapless, A-line, organza gown, with corset back and chapel train. It is embellished with lace, accented with crystals, seed beads and bugle beads.

The modern gown is the “Victoriana” by Maggie Sottero. It is a one-piece, corset, strapless, full A-line gown. The bodice features a fitted dropped waistline embellished with an embroidered beaded motif with Swarovski crystals, bugle beads, seed beads, glass beads and sequins. The skirt features royal embellishments detailing the caught-up accents. The skirt back also boasts caught-up accents cascading into a bubble hem chapel train.

For the destination gown, the Mariella Marie dress by Maggie Sottero was chosen. This dress is a one-piece, strapless, slim A-line, chiffon gown with corset back and sweep train. The dress is embellished with lace, Swarovski crystals, seed beads, bugle beads and sequins.
Popular features for gowns this year are cap sleeves and lots of lace, says Amy Agregaard.
Once a gown has been ordered, it takes four to six months to arrive at the store, so she advises coming in even earlier to start shopping.

For bridesmaids, cranberry is a perennially popular color, Amy Agregaard says. Also popular are shades of champagne and burnt orange, as well as chocolate brown.
Lighter colors, such as lilac and lighter shades of pink, are popular for the summer season she says.

The flowers

While the gown a bride wears will always be remembered, Pamela Jordan Henshaw, owner of Shenandoah Florist in Stephens City, also stresses the importance of the flowers.

“I try to impress on [brides] the flowers, along with the dresses, will be the lasting impressions in your pictures,” she says.

Jordan Henshaw recommends visiting the florist six to eight months before the wedding and planning by the “unwritten rule” of spending 22 percent of the wedding budget on flowers.
She also advises that brides-to-be bring pictures to the consultation and that they decide what flowers they want in terms of what will be available during the season of their wedding.

Jordan Henshaw and the shop’s floral designer, Will Smedley, provided a variety of bouquets to match the dresses used for the bridal guide.

To go with the traditional gown, Jordan Henshaw and Smedley selected a traditional or “formal round” bouquet of white lilies, white roses, white Gerber daisies, white limonium and flat cedar tied with white satin ribbon. For the bridesmaid, a similar bouquet was provided but without Gerber daisies and using seeded eucalyptus and a sheer teal ribbon.

To accompany the modern bridal gown, Shenandoah Florist provided a fragrant, contemporary or “hand-tied” bouquet of white hydrangea, pink wax flower, seeded eucalyptus, white hypericum berries, ivy and white rhinestones (“for the bling,” jokes Jordan Henshaw). The matching bridesmaid bouquet features the same flowers but with turquoise rhinestones.

Finally, for the destination gown, Shenandoah Florist provided a simple but dramatic arrangement of three long-stemmed, red roses.

During last year’s wedding season, Jordan Henshaw says, hydrangea was the most popular flower for bridal bouquets, but she also points out that bouquets don’t have to be all flowers. At Shenandoah Florist, she says, plants and other items can be part of the arrangement.

* Contact Jessica Wiant at jwiant@nvdaily.com