Venues- the search continues

I talked about my stalking a few posts back and then hinted at it again yesterday, but today the search for the perfect wedding venue continues...

Today we visited the William Penn Inn. I met my sister and my mom for brunch. It was incredible. Three rooms of delicious food buffets, each one as great as the last. After filling up on mimosas and coffee and trying a little bit of everything they had to offer, we were ready to meet with the wedding coordinator

 Colleen led us through the Banquet entrance. It didn't look so pink when we got there, but this is a great day-time view.

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We went into the Carriage Room (the main Ballroom at the William Penn Inn). It was set up like this image below for a wedding ceremony.  It looked a lot less sparkly without all the beautiful Christmas decorations and I'm so glad I did some stalking a few weeks back because I don't know that I would have been sold on this space without all the festive decor, although the chandeliers are pretty spectacular!

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 My inner-fat-kid did cartwheels when Colleen showed us this picture. And my inner-Christmas-addict did back flips when I saw this pretty red and gold dessert set up. 

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Just like that, I was sold. I know Jay will love this place. It's a very classic and elegant restaurant with a traditional old-world feel. Right up his alley.  I can't wait to take him to brunch next weekend so that he can see it too! (and I can get more bananas foster Belgian waffles)!

Venues - The search is (officially) On

After much deliberation, and many dirty looks from The-Wedding-Planning-Elite, Jay and I have decided to embrace the possibility of change to our wedding vision board. (yes, Jay will kill me when he reads that he has been included in a sentence with the words "vision board").

What the vendors say:"October is the new June". I can't tell you how many times we've heard those words over the last 6 weeks. Apparently, we should have been booking vendors and venues about 2 years ago if we wanted to book something that looks like my Good Ol' Reception Board above. We weren't engaged then though, so that would have been a little cart-before-the-horse, if you ask me.  Also, as it turns out, the rentals and catering costs for an event like this were more than we were prepared to spend. It's a good thing I'm none-to-attached to these things or I would be facing critical disappointment levels right now. The only thing I'll be sad to part with will be the twinkle lights and lanterns. Oh, how I love them.

In brighter news, I spent this week on PartySpace, looking for vendors. If you haven't visited this site, I HIGHLY recommend it! It is very convenient for one-stop shopping browsing. That is where I found this! The Lake House Inn... dream venue come true!

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I showed pictures to my mom and my sisters yesterday and when I went to my mom's this morning to help her dismantle the Christmas decorations :( I was bombarded with questions about the place and why we didn't look here to begin with! (because I didn't find it until yesterday!?!?) So we checked out their link and as it turns out, they were available on October 5!! What were the odds!? We called, they were having an open house! We went over to check it out and were floored! This place seriously has everything you could want! It was absolutely stunning. Tent-feel, over-night accommodations, lakefront with water views, not to mention the fire-pit and after party accoutrements!  It was perfect!

Then there was the people who came right before us. Literally, the couple that walked in directly before us! One October date, one couple ahead of us. We lost it. As it turns out, this place was also on the pricy side and for an off-season wedding (because those were now the only dates available) it was going to be about $10k over our budget (and that's only accounting for venue, bar and catering, not dress, DJ/band, photographer, flowers). Disappointment checks in. I should have known it was too good to be true.

I was so upset when I got home, Jay made me promise not to go on their site again. He also said all the right things... "no matter where we have the reception, it will be beautiful because we will be married" and promised me that everything was going to work out for the best, which he's usually right about these things. So I closed their website and their facebook page and have not visited them again, and promise not to linger on this post after it is published. :)

Also, this is where this venue fell on the checklist:

1) Capacity for 200+ guests (my huge fam + Jay's friends = giant guest list)
2) Somewhere neither of us have been for a wedding
3) Close proximity to hotels and the church
4) Unique venue - anything that makes it stand out from the standard reception hall/country club
5) Must fit in the Budget (maybe this should be the first consideration, but the other things are so much more important to me)

The good news is, we got a great little advertisement in the mail last week so I had already scheduled an appointment at the William Penn Inn for tomorrow along with a reservation for Brunch before The Lake House was even on my radar, so things are already looking up :)

What does the Perfect Venue look like?

Let's talk about the Must-Haves for our venue-

1) Capacity for 200+ guests (my huge fam + Jay's friends = giant guest list)
2) Somewhere neither of us have been for a wedding
3) Close proximity to hotels and the church
4) Unique venue - anything that makes it stand out from the standard reception hall/country club
5) Must fit in the Budget (maybe this should be the first consideration, but the other things are so much more important to me)

Some of my Favorites:

PECHE 

Pros: unique and industrial, open space, floor to ceiling windows, blank canvas and has an outdoor space.

John Armich Photography

Susan Stripling Photography

Cons: it's almost too big, holds 600-700 people but might look empty if we're *only* having 200 people. and doesn't meet 3 or 5 so it's out.


 

POMME

Pros: interesting combination of rustic and Mediterranean, has an outdoor space.Separate rooms for Cocktails, dinner, and dancing.

John Armich Photography

John Armich Photography

Cons: the space feels kind of choppy, and it only holds up to 200 people so it doesn't meet #1. Also doesn't fall into #5 so it's out of the running, too.

PHOENIXVILLE FOUNDRY

Pros: unique and industrial, open space, floor to ceiling windows, blank canvas and has an outdoor space.

Wedding Wire

The Knot

Cons: Doesn't meet #3, nothing even remotely close. Also, doesn't meet #5, because we'd be required to use their approved vendors and by the time we get everything we need/want, it puts us over budget.

Venue-stalking

So I failed to mention in my previous posts that Shiela (and Elisabeth) and I did some serious venue-stalking last weekend (12/29).

We had spent that Saturday at the Expo then went shopping for supplies for wedding crafts for Shiela's friend Beth, who is getting married in April. On the way home, we just happened to be driving past the William Penn Inn.

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Back story - I've driven past this place thousands of times in my life. I have never once, not ever, stepped foot inside the building. It is absolutely beautiful all year round, but especially at Christmas when they have extra light outside on all the bushes and in greens and in wreaths.

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The place is just magnificent! I love it so much. Which is crazy to say since I've never been inside, let alone eaten the food.

So needless to say on Saturday night while we were on our way home, my sister pulled into the banquet entrance and told me to go inside to take a peek. She wanted me to see it in all it's Christmas-decorated-glory. I am soooooooo glad I did because when I walked in, I saw the banquet room swagged with beautiful greens glittering with gold and ivory accents.  I am not exaggerating when I say that it took my breath away. The woman who was working in the coat check, and so graciously let me go in and look around found me staring at the decorations like a small child.

I could tell by the way she vividly explained the layout of the room and how things would look different for a wedding that she too was in love with this place. That speaks volumes to me as I was a coat-check girl, a hostess, a waitress, and a bartender at one time or another in my life and I know how easy it is to lose the awe factor when you work somewhere.

I was pretty-much sold on a Christmas wedding right then and there.