Puzzle Pieces
by Dana Gerber
This North Potomac couple’s multi-day nuptials included a giant crossword icebreaker, an Indian-style street fair and a buffet ranging from paella to sliders
The couple: Izzy Guimaraes, 33, grew up in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Georgetown Day School. She owns Wheelhouse Learning, a test prep company. Sid Luthra, 32, is originally from India. He is an entrepreneur who is currently between jobs. They live in North Potomac with their two dogs, Louie and Ruthie.
How they met: The pair became friends after meeting on their first day of business school at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Mellon University in 2019. When the pandemic hit, and their friend group hosted Zoom happy hours, Sid and Izzy would stay on talking until the wee hours. “There was a week where we logged, like, 40 full hours on Zoom,” recalls Izzy, who was living in North Bethesda at the time. They isolated for two weeks so Izzy could drive up to Sid in Pittsburgh for a “four-day first date,” where they played New York Times word puzzles and ordered takeout. “Then I drove home, and I was like, All right, well, I think this is it for me,” she says.
The proposal: “She doesn’t love surprises,” says Sid of Izzy, so telling her he was taking her on a last-minute date on Nov. 10, 2021, without giving her any details, “did not go over super well.” But she agreed to the mystery outing, which ended up being a trip to The Inn at Little Washington in Virginia, where they had talked about going since they started dating. “We made it there just in time for sunset,” Sid says, and that was when he popped the question. “That was the one good surprise,” Izzy says.
Traditions: The day before the ceremony, the pair put their spin on several traditional Indian wedding festivities at their venue, the riverside Brittland Manor in Chestertown, Maryland. The day commenced with a baraat, a processional for the groom, followed by a varmala, where Sid and Izzy exchanged garlands, and a milni ceremony, during which members of their respective families were introduced. Then, they kicked off a street market-style event, where guests could pick out favors like bangles and bindis from vendor carts, get their henna done and munch on curry, kebabs and samosas. On the dance floor, the DJ led a lesson in bhangra—a type of folk dance—which “loosened everybody up,” Izzy says. Much of the celebration’s decor—paper umbrellas, hanging garlands and drapery—was sourced by Sid’s parents from India.
The ceremony: The pair said “I do” on May 28, 2023, with about 170 guests present. “It’s a totally magical place,” Izzy says of Brittland. “You feel like you are totally in the middle of nowhere with all of your favorite people.” The morning of the wedding, however, the pair had yet to write their vows. “We took a golf cart out to a random place on the property where there was no one else around and just wrote them together,” Sid says.
The reception: After the ceremony, guests migrated to a sailcloth tent on the estate’s back patio, where string and bamboo lights overhung the dance floor, which was surrounded by lounge furniture. “We basically just tried to make it look like our house, so it’s all a little bit midcentury influenced,” Izzy says. The earth-toned tablescapes were outfitted with taupe-colored candles and floral arrangements, including Queen Anne’s lace, garden roses and hydrangeas. After three of the newlyweds’ close friends performed their first dance song, Sunny Sweeney’s “Grow Old with Me,” the DJ spun dance remixes of wedding classics, such as “September” and “I Wanna Dance with Somebody.” “They read the room perfectly,” Izzy says.
The outfits: During the Saturday festivities, Izzy donned a custom pink-and-red lehenga—an Indian bridal ensemble—that Sid’s parents had gotten made in Delhi. “It’s my favorite outfit,” says the bride. Her “second favorite outfit,” she says, was her wedding dress: A V-neck gown from BHLDN. “It felt a little bit hippie-ish and a little bit boho, but also put together,” she says. Sid sported a light blue suit from Indochino, completing the look with a green floral tie that matched those of his groomsmen.
The menu: The fare at the reception, the bride says, was “upscale comfort food”—a wide-ranging spread including stations for charcuterie, mezze, tacos, sliders and paella. No assigned seating meant “people could just go grab whatever they wanted,” Sid says. Izzy doesn’t drink, so the bar offered a range of zero-proof options, including mocktail versions of the signature drinks: a sparkling Bee’s Knees and a boulevardier. Instead of cake, there was a selection of mini desserts, such as strawberry shortcake trifles, chocolate ganache s’mores and brigadeiros—Brazilian chocolate confections as a nod to Izzy’s cultural roots.
Handmade: The big day included several DIY touches from the couple, starting with the guest book, which took the form of an atlas. “People left recommendations, like, ‘If you’re ever in this place, you have to go see this,’ ” says the groom, who also fashioned a mini photo booth out of an iPad and a bespoke wooden box. Guests tested their knowledge of the couple with a giant customized crossword puzzle, which Izzy designed and made into a dry-erase board. “It got people talking early on,” she says. There were also cornhole boards—monogrammed by Izzy—to add another activity into the mix. “We wanted to make sure that the non-dance floor people had enough stuff to do,” Sid says.
The honeymoon: The couple hopes to take their honeymoon sometime this year and has their sights set on San Sebastián in Spain as the destination due to its high concentration of Michelin-starred restaurants. “We read that, and we were like, All right, I guess we’re going to San Sebastián,” Izzy says.
Vendors: Bridal alterations, Yolanda’s Bridal Alterations; catering, Chesapeake Chef Service; DJ, DJ Taj Productions; florals and rentals, Pretty Little Wedding Co.; golf carts, Golf Cart Sales and Service; guest shuttles, Chesapeake Charter; hair and makeup, Behind the Veil; lehenga, Show Shaa; marquee lights, Alpha-Lit Marquee Letters; mehndi, The Mehndi Diary; photographer, Stephanie Dee Photography; planner, Social Graces Events; restroom trailers, LuxLav; pipe-and-drape structures, On Your Mark Lighting Design and Equipment; second dress, Bardot; suit, Indochino; tent, Eastern Shore Tents & Events; venue, Brittland Manor; videographer, Toast Wedding Films; wedding dress, BHLDN.
Musical Mitzvah!
by Kristen Schott
The Fillmore Silver Spring was a show-stopping venue for this rock-and-roll reception
The teen: Matthew Kobrick, 13, was born at Sibley Hospital on April 3, 2010, and lives in Bethesda. His parents are Stacy Kobrick, an attorney at Covington & Burling LLP, and Jake Kobrick, a historian at the Federal Judicial Center. Matthew attends Sheridan School in D.C.
The birthday: Matthew’s special year around the sun was commemorated in multiple ways—on a spring break trip honoring both him and his grandmother (who recently turned 75) at Rosewood Baha Mar in the Bahamas; a Capitals game, Shake Shack (his choice for dinner) and a sleepover with his best friend; and, of course, the main event a month later.
The service: The bar mitzvah service was held on May 6 at Temple Sinai in D.C. It was led by rabbi Stephanie Bernstein and cantor Rebecca Robins, who paired Matthew with another boy for the occasion. “[Rebecca] knows the boys, and it came through in the service how much she cares for them and loves being part of this milestone,” Stacy says. Matthew wore a tallit (prayer shawl) that his grandmother had made for him out of his Auntie Samantha’s wedding chuppah. She died five years ago, and Matthew spoke about her in his d’var Torah (his interpretation of a Torah portion). A reception at the Fillmore Silver Spring followed the touching ceremony.
The reception theme: Matthew is a big music fan (and burgeoning guitarist and pianist), and he and his mom often attend concerts together. The Fillmore was an obvious location—the two had seen Blue October, Smallpools and Half Alive perform there. “We thought we’d do something unique to highlight his love of live music,” Stacy says. It was important for Matthew that the party strike the right note. Luckily, Ali Weitzman, a mitzvah-throwing expert and chief event officer at Ali Weitzman Events, knew how to achieve a blend of fun activities, decor and design elements to delight the most discerning 13-year-olds (and their parents, too).
The kids’ cocktail hour: The 40 children who attended the service got the VIP treatment thanks to Weitzman, who arranged for a bus to escort them to the reception. “It was almost like they were in a band,” Stacy says. When the young people arrived at the Fillmore, they received VIP badges and were whisked to the green room for a private kids-only cocktail hour. “Matthew was so psyched about this,” she says. “The girls were posing in front of the mirrors like rock stars, and the boys were chilling on the couches.” While it was “off-limits” for the 100 adults, Stacy and her sister, Jill Sandusky, did sneak down to watch Matthew and his friends living their best lives. A special moment for him was signing his name on a brick on the wall, alongside all the bands that had played sold-out shows at the venue.
The reception: The show-stopping elements were plentiful. To find their tables, guests had to match a lyric to the correct artist on a large record-inspired seating chart. “We wanted to make sure that each table represented an artist that would be known by that age group,” Stacy says. Artists included Fitz and the Tantrums, David Bowie and the Beatles (some of Matthew’s favorite bands), along with Rihanna and Taylor Swift. (Matthew also donned a T-shirt under his suit with Bowie’s blue-and-red lightning bolt.) The emcee, Christian “Exxo” Valentin, got everyone dancing. “It doesn’t happen at every bar mitzvah,” Matthew shared with his mom. The dance floor featured a logo bearing his name, which was also printed on graphic pillows designed by MitzvahLogos. The blue-patterned table cloths mimicked concert lighting, and the table numbers were repurposed 45s with corresponding album art. There was even a “merch store” stocked with tees made especially for the party.
The menu: The menus were labeled by track instead of course and featured, among other things, family-style edible centerpieces (in lieu of flowers), espresso-crusted tenderloin and seared Alaskan halibut, plus a cookie-skillet station for a sweet treat. The Raise Your Glass lineup of signature cocktails ranged from the Purple Rain (Empress gin, Champagne, lemon juice and simple syrup) to the Spritz and the Tantrums (prosecco, Aperol and soda). There were mocktails for the kiddos and guitar-shaped straws for all.
The pink flamingo “floatie” drink holders: These made Matthew’s—and everyone else’s—hands clap. “They were such a hit,” Stacy says. The flamingos were inspired by one of Matthew’s first favorite bands, AJR, and the cover art for their single “Bummerland.” Not many were left by the end of the night since everyone took them home as favors.
Vendors: Planning and design, Ali Weitzman of Ali Weitzman Events; invitations, Paper Becomes You; catering, Ridgewells Catering; decor, DaVinci Florist; photo booth, Snap Entertainment; emcee and videographer, Washington Talent; photographer, Rachael Spiegel Photography; photo montage, Paige Rosenfeld; transportation, MJ Valet; dance-floor wrapping, MitzvahLogos; tallit, handmade by Meg Fisher of Elite Tallit.
Garden of Love
by Kristen Schott
The couple: LaTasha Mosley, 30, was born at MedStar Washington Hospital Center and grew up in Brookland; most of her family still lives in the D.C. area. Anwar Shagarabi, also 30, was born in London and raised in Atlanta. The couple lives in Birmingham, Alabama. LaTasha is a program manager for a nonprofit, and Anwar is a resident physician at University of Alabama at Birmingham.
The introduction: The couple connected through a mutual friend, Jeffrey Moore (later a groomsman), in 2013 while in college. (LaTasha went to Spelman and Anwar went to Morehouse.) According to Anwar, their first date was the night they met—in a car, waiting for Jeffrey and his friend at the grocery store. “I was in the front seat, and she was in the rear passenger seat, so we weren’t even facing each other,” he says. “But we were talking about our childhoods and families.” Their first official date? To see her favorite football team (the Washington Commanders) play the Atlanta Falcons, followed by dinner at Lure, a seafood restaurant.
The proposal: Anwar popped the question in December 2021, choosing Piedmont Park in Atlanta. He told her he wanted to go out, just the two of them. He followed the proposal up with a surprise engagement dinner at Lure—he’d also arranged for her mom and best friends, and some of his family, to be there to celebrate.
The venue search:Because LaTasha was in the final stages of her PhD program when they became engaged, the pair took things slow. They also realized that finding a venue in the D.C. area would require advanced planning. They tapped virtual planner Brittany Smith, founder of The Venlist, to help them find their dream venues—National Cathedral School for the ceremony and Marriott Bethesda Downtown at Marriott HQ for the reception. They set the date for Sept. 2, 2023, the day before Anwar’s birthday.
The attire: LaTasha chose an off-the-shoulder gown with a floral applique to fit their modern summer-in-the-garden-themed affair. (She shipped the gown to her mother’s house in D.C. so she wouldn’t have to hide it.) Anwar donned a white tuxedo jacket: “I won’t have another opportunity to wear one,” he says. His groomsmen sported gray ensembles, while LaTasha’s bridesmaids wore long dresses in various styles and shades of pink.
The ceremony: Some 80 guests gathered for the union, which was officiated by LaTasha’s former youth pastor, Jeffery Fleming, and took place in the outdoor courtyard. The bride walked down the aisle with her mother. (Her father, who lives with dementia, was not able to escort her, but he was in attendance.) “I remember dreaming as a little girl about getting married, and to have the support of my mom was special,” she says. Because the couple didn’t do a first look, Anwar finally got a glimpse of his beloved as she made her journey toward him. “That’s my bride!” he recalls saying to his groomsmen. “She’s about to be my wife.”
The reception:Following the ceremony, the group headed to the Marriott. Among the most memorable moments were the speeches, which included remarks from Anwar’s brother, Rani Shagarabi (the best man); groomsman Jeffrey Moore; and LaTasha’s maids of honor. Anwar got the biggest surprise of the day when LaTasha unveiled a video featuring those who couldn’t attend wishing him a happy birthday. As for the music? DJ P-Knock from Wroyal DJ Co.—the official DJ for the Commanders, and a Howard alum—set the vibe. “We chose him because we wanted to bring an HBCU feel to the reception,” says the bride. “We graduated from HBCU colleges, and a lot of our friends did, too.”
The mother-daughter dance: The bride and her mother danced to “My Girl,” by The Temptations. A video of LaTasha and her father dancing together was projected in the background. “My mom was encouraging me: ‘Your dad would be up here cutting a rug with you too if he could be.’ ”
The florals: In keeping with the theme, Farah’s Wedding Flower Designs dreamed up textural arrangements and personal florals filled with ranunculus and roses in peach, ivory, dark pink and plum hues, with eucalyptus for a pop of greenery. The ceremony arch was repurposed behind the sweetheart table, and Anwar wore what he says his mom called “the biggest boutonniere I’ve ever seen.”
The menu: Guests dined on passed appetizers such as crabcakes and chicken and waffles. The main dish options were cola-braised short ribs with mashed potatoes (LaTasha says she wanted more), chicken or ravioli. The buttercream cake was made of lemon cake with blueberry, spicy vanilla chai and red velvet, with a Dr. & Dr. topper.
The vendors: Virtual planner, Brittany Smith of The Venlist; month-of coordinator, Maxi & Co; invitations, The Knot; catering, Marriott Bethesda Downtown at Marriott HQ; ceremony chair rentals, Party Rental Ltd.; florals, Farah’s Wedding Flower Designs; photography, J.W. Collier Photography; videography, nVu Films; ceremony violinist, LjViolinist; reception DJ, DJ P-Knock at Wroyal DJ Co.; cake, Sweet Elevations Cakes and More; gown, Bridals by Lori; tux, The Black Tux; hair, Salon Noa; makeup, Shades of Radiance Beauty; transportation, Ed Smith; rings, Verragio rings from Solomon Brothers Jewelers (bride) and Mervis Diamond Importers (groom).
Lights, Camera, Action
by Dana Gerber
This couple’s D.C. wedding pulled out all the stops—starting with their My Cousin Vinny-inspired engagement
The couple: Elyse Eisen, 39, grew up partly in Potomac. She is a travel and real estate publicist who owns her own company, The Chain Collective PR. Roger Sachar, 44, grew up in Southern California and Arizona. He is an attorney at Newman Ferrara LLP in New York. They live in Brooklyn with their dog, a Glen of Imaal Terrier named Judge Checkers.
How they met: In 2018, Elyse’s friend goaded her into rejoining Bumble—and the first person she matched with was Roger. She was charmed by the setup for a joke on his profile: Why does Mozart eat chickens? When they matched, he revealed the punchline: Because they go Bach, Bach, Bach. “She said she dropped her phone and decided to give me a chance,” Roger says.
The proposal: “Elyse’s favorite movie, bar none, is My Cousin Vinny,” Roger says, so in June 2020, he decided to propose by bringing the film’s iconic courtroom scene to life. He told Elyse there was a dispute regarding his billable hours and that she would need to testify in his defense—he even conspired with a judge he knew to preside over the fake case. Once she had taken the stand, he handed her an “exhibit” on his law firm’s letterhead that said “Dear Ms. Eisen, will you marry me? P.S.: You’ve been a lovely, lovely witness,” citing a quote from the movie. “She goes, ‘Yes,’ and then she sits there and waits for the next question,” Roger recalls. It wasn’t until her mother came in that she realized the whole thing was a ruse. “And then I was bawling,” she says.
The ceremony: The couple wed on Nov. 5, 2022, at the Ritz-Carlton in Washington, D.C., with nearly 300 guests present. Prior to the ceremony, the couple signed the ketubah, the Jewish marriage contract, and said “I do” under a chuppah bedecked in white drapery and bouquets. The same judge who had participated in their engagement stunt was their officiant, alongside a cantor. Meanwhile, Elyse’s uncle, donning a floral suit, served as the “flower girl,” which was “the highlight, for a lot of people,” says the bride.
The reception:“Everything just felt very elegant, but not too opulent, where you couldn’t enjoy yourself,” Elyse says of the reception, and round tables ensured “people could see each other.” Elaborate tabletop candelabras stood out against the black, white and gold color scheme, and Roger picked out the flowers:
calla lilies—which are said to symbolize marital bliss—and white roses. A photo booth took 360-degree short videos that were sent to guests later, and an afterparty in the hotel lobby kept the party going well into the night. The kicker? “We did it on daylight savings,” Roger says. “Everybody got an extra hour of sleep.”
The menu:After a burrata caprese salad as the first course, guests had three entree options: a petite filet with wagyu beef truffle ravioli, miso-
marinated cod with wasabi mashed potatoes or a vegetarian dish of black rice, baby bok choy, edamame, tofu, shimeji mushrooms and carrots in a miso broth. For dessert, a five-tier chocolate cake with a dulce de leche filling was served alongside other small treats, such as macarons and mini ice cream cones. As is par for the course, the newlyweds had little time to chow down themselves, but they got a second chance when burgers and fries made an afterparty appearance. “We were so hungry—it may have been the best burgers and fries I’ve ever had,” Roger says.
The music: The 10-piece band “did not stop for anything,” Roger says—and that was just the way the pair envisioned it. “We wanted the party to keep going,” says the bride. The couple swayed to Linda Ronstadt’s cover of “I Love You for Sentimental Reasons” for their first dance, but the bride’s real moment to shine came with a different tune. “I ran ‘Shout’—it was me playing to people, like, a little bit softer now,” she says. Even Roger falling out of his chair during the hora couldn’t spoil the fun.
The outfits: Elyse’s long-sleeved, ’80s-inspired Leah Da Gloria dress was “not like anything I would have thought I was going to wear,” she says, but she was drawn to its detailing. “I just felt like, If I’m going to be a bride, that’s the dress I have to wear.” Later in the evening, both the bride and groom did outfit changes: Elyse traded her gown and heels for a black lace jumpsuit and sneakers, and Roger swapped his tuxedo for a green velvet jacket.
The honeymoon: After a mini-moon to Anguilla soon after the wedding, the newlyweds jetted off this past summer for a six-week trip through Europe and North Africa, hitting London, Morocco, Athens, Dubrovnik, Rome and more. “We actually did it in carry-on suitcases,” Roger says. The trick? “Airbnbs with washing machines,” he says.
Vendors: Accommodations, cake, catering and venue, The Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C.; band, The Blake Band of Starlight Music; design and planning, Jamie Kramer Events; dress, Bridal Reflections; florist and rentals, Amaryllis; hair and makeup, MAB Hair and Makeup Artistry; invitations, Etched in Sloane; jumpsuit, Zhivago; photo booth, Extraordinary Entertainment; photography, Michael Bennett Kress Photography; suit, LS Men’s Clothing; videography, G Muse Studios.
Dana Gerber, a Rockville native, lives in Massachusetts and works fulltime for the business section of The Boston Globe. Kristen Schott is the deputy editor of lifestyle and weddings for Philadelphia magazine.