Charlyne & Richard's Luxe Multicultural Wedding in Chantilly, VA

Gorgeous style and a perfect blend of Haitian and Jamaican heritage in this luxe multicultural wedding. As seen in the Spring/Summer 2020 Magazine.

Have you ever played matchmaker for a friend? It is always a gamble. You never know if your efforts will result in a true love connection, but that gamble paid off for Ebony. See, Ebony is Richard’s cousin and best friends with Charlyne. She knew Richard and Charlyne would be perfect for one another, so she sent them a group text message with their pictures attached! Charlyne recalls, “The text read ‘Rich meet Charlyne, Charlyne meet Rich – have your way Lord…’ “ Charlyne replied with a simple, “Lol!!, Hi Richie…” and got no response! After two weeks with no reply, she called Richard out, and he promptly apologized. Turns out, he replied to her text, but failed to hit “send.”

After three months of conversations on the phone, they went on their first date. It was the beginning of a beautiful four year courtship that led to Richard’s romantic proposal. Charlyne shares, “Richard told me that we were going to see the Shen Yun ballet, which I’ve wanted to see for years! We pulled up to the Kennedy Center earlier than expected, and he suggested we go for a walk around back. We stopped and leaned over the ledge looking over the Potomac, enjoying the moment. Then Rich said, ‘Babe, I’m ready.’ I went to gather my purse, and when I turned around, he was there on one knee.” Rich hired a photographer to capture the moment. He then took Charlyne to a restaurant where 30 of their friends and family waited, holding single stem roses. It was the perfect surprise.

They spent the next seven months planning their wedding. It was an elegant, faith filled affair. Guests enjoyed soothing live music from a string trio during the ceremony and cocktail hour. Charlyne loved her bouquet and the floral arrangements with mixed rich burgundy roses with cream and pastel pink florals. It was the perfect, romantic color scheme for their fall wedding. During their reception, they made sure to represent their Haitian and Jamaican heritages by waving their respective flags and jamming out to traditional music. They didn’t want the night to end, but afterwards they traveled to Singapore, the Maldives, Phuket and Phi Phi Islands in Thailand for an epic Southeast Asian honeymoon.

Full Names of Couple: Charlyne Delus & Richard Lawrence Jr.
Occupations: Charlyne – Human Resource Officer, US Marine Corps: Richard- Principal Planner (Urban Planning) City of Alexandria, VA
Wedding Location: Chantilly, VA – Bellevue Conference & Event Center
Wedding Date: November 10, 2019

Quick Facts

Wedding Song; “The Vow” by Ruthanne
Wedding Favors: Custom wedding cookies by The Occasional Cookie

Interesting Highlight

The biggest surprise of the wedding day would have to be the 3-piece string band (Rockville Strings) that played during the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour. It was always my dream to have a string band play during my wedding (since I played the violin as a child), but as wedding planning progressed, we didn’t think it would work within our budget. Needless to say, Richard managed to find the perfect band to play during our wedding and kept the whole thing a surprise!

Bride’s Favorite Wedding Detail

Charlyne – I have such a hard time picking favorites. I would say that my bouquet tops the list. My bouquet was more than what I could have imagined. It was vibrant, full, elegant, and timeless.

Groom’s Favorite Wedding Detail

Richard – While every detail of our wedding was perfect, from the flowers to the décor, my most favorite detail would have to undoubtedly be Charlyne’s wedding dress. It was perfectly her; graceful, classy, classic, and sexy. The dress fit her perfectly and she was absolutely breathtaking.