Bride Blogger Update: The Venue
After last week, we are certain that Bride Blogger Catherine knows how to hit a sample sale…but, is she so skilled at finding the perfect venue? Well, if you read on you will find out…absolutely, yes!
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There are so many different places to get married. I learned that you really need L.O.V.E. for the venue search: a Location, an Outlook, a Vision, and a sense of your Entertaining style.
Whether you choose a destination, a farm, or somewhere in D.C., think about your guests and how far they will be traveling. Do you want to transport people to multiple locations or outside of the beltway? I feel very fortunate to live in D.C., so I wanted our out-of-town guests to be in the heart of the city so that they can experience it the way that we do.
After you decide on your location, think sensibly about the event’s outlook. How many people are you expecting and how much do you want to spend on the venue? Size matters when it comes to the venue; some are too small and some are too big. Do you want multiple rooms where dinner and dancing can be separate? Do you want a large space for your guests to roam around? I want our wedding to be like a hug: cozy, intimate, and warm. With everyone in the appropriately sized room, the party will be full of energy.
Incorporating your vision with the location and outlook will help narrow down your choices. Knowing the look ahead of time will also allow you to establish the dress for your guests. A lot of great spaces can be tailored to your design aesthetic, whether it is historical elegance or contemporary minimalist. We knew that we wanted an evening, indoor, black-tie wedding, so our search began with historic buildings in D.C.
Having the hostess gene is a gift, and unfortunately not everyone (I fall into this category) has it. Understanding how you approach entertaining will help you decide if you are looking for a venue that offers convenience like a one-stop shop or a clean slate for you to exercise your inner Martha Stewart. My fiancé and I were looking for a checklist of options, so we were delighted about the convenience that hotels offer.
We attended the Engaged! in Washington event last March to compare our top prospects. It was a great opportunity to see how a wedding would look in the five participating hotels and to sample the food. Ultimately, we decided The Hay-Adams was the perfect place for us to get married. These are the reasons why:
- Alison Okobi, Director of Catering, is wonderful. Our personalities mesh well and we trust her.
- We will be the only event at the hotel that night. The thought of taking over an entire hotel is appealing. I don’t know why, but it is.
- The John Hay Room is the perfect size and look for the reception. It has fireplaces, dark wood, and feels like fall.
- The location is perfect. We are having the ceremony in the Lafayette Room. When you look out the window you see The White House. How cool is that?
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