“We met at a bar!” says Suzanne “Suzie” Welsh, the founder and CEO of BINTO, about her first encounter with her future husband, Patrick Devine, an attorney in Philadelphia. “My group of girlfriends was meeting up with his group of guy friends and Pat and I started talking.” Four and a half years later, during their annual hike up Old Rag Mountain in Shenandoah National Park, Patrick surprised Suzie by proposing. “I was waterworks when it happened,” she says. “Someone caught it on video for us. I’m so happy we have that day recorded!”
After getting engaged, the couple started discussing location options and ultimately settled on the same spot where Suzie’s parents tied the knot 35 years earlier: The Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville, VA. “We knew we wanted a special weekend for our guests, not just your average wedding where everyone goes home after,” Suzie explains. The couple hired Dickie Morris Wright of Just a Little Ditty Events to help plan the big day, and worked with Paige Smith on the save the dates, Alex O’Brian on the wedding invitations, Valley Forge Flowers (where the bride worked growing up) on the table linens, and Floral Images on the flower arrangements.
For a long period of time, Suzie actually wanted to be a wedding dress designer. “I was obsessed! I still have all of my sketches, which my mom framed and set out at the bridal luncheon the day before our wedding,” she says. While she thought this would mean she would have a hard time finding a dress, she quickly fell in love with an Ines De Santo design which featured stunning embroidery and a blush skirt underneath. “I liked that it looked classic but with a little whimsy,” Suzie adds. She complemented her dress with a raw edge long blush veil and pearl and diamond earrings that belonged to her mother. “The dress was such a statement that I didn’t want jewelry or busy shoes,” she explains. “Since we got married out in the grass, I wore nude block heels from Target! Comfortable and easy to walk in.”
Suzie’s bridal party was decked in sapphire blue dresses by Alfred Sung—“to pop against the green mountain backdrop”—while the groom chose a Brooks Brother’s tuxedo.
The day of the ceremony, the couple were married on the North Lawn of the Farmington Country Club in a traditional episcopal service, which featured string music from a bluegrass band. A reception with a sit-down, 100% gluten free dinner followed. “We served filet and crab cake, Virginia ham, biscuits, a fall green salad, and wedding cake macarons,” Suzie explains. The couple danced to “Time Is Love” by Josh Turner, one of Patrick’s favorite songs, and enjoyed toasts from the father of the bride, best man, and maid of honor. As for what came next: an after party at The Boar’s Head Inn and later, a two week honeymoon for the newlyweds in Thailand. The perfect way to start the rest of their lives together.
