Clubbin'

Mr. Candy Apple and I had a tough time figuring out the venue for our reception. I mean, you don't find many barns in Seattle. At least not cheap ones (why are barns so expensive, anyway? For serious). 

So when we were in Seattle this past summer, we decided to check out a few spots. We puttered around downtown, looked at a few hotels. Forced my mom to drive us by SODO. Forced my mom to scope out another few venues (she's a trooper!). And what did we end up finding? A place that I have gone to for a lot of my life! Seriously, it was right under my nose. Have you heard of it?

Ladies and gents, we are having our reception at the Seattle Tennis Club. And I have been a member there since I was in middle school. Yep, a long time (I am an old lady). I hadn't really considered it as a venue because, well, I spent a large amount of my youth there, running around in little swimsuits, attempting to conquer the high-dive and rolling-log, and getting sun-burnt. For some reason, I guess it just didn't really pop out in my mind as wedding material.

It is most definitely not a barn. Duh, it's a tennis club. And it's perfect. It is right on the shores of Lake Washington, and has beautiful views of Mt. Rainier. Score! Scenic shots are my favorite (clearly). And, it was on the lower end of estimates that I got from other venues. Double Score!! Don't ask me why, because it is an AMAZING venue, people. I got lots and lots of pictures the last time we were there. And by "I," I really mean "Mr. Candy Apple," because he stole my camera. Unfortunately, you can't really see Mt. Rainier in these pictures, but I promise, you can see it in person.

{see? told you the views were pretty}

{me, enjoying the view. or texting.}

See those balconies? Yeah, the ballroom where the cocktail hour and reception will be held is on the second floor. So, if when it is sunny and beautiful for our August wedding, people can go out on that little rail for the cocktail hour! Gorgeous. I LOVE Seattle in the sun. And aren't those views b-e-a-utiful? Told you.

I love the STC because it has tons of little nooks and crannys to take cool pictures in. Like this one (because I'm totally a tennis pro):

{Photography by Michele M. Waite}

Mr. Candy Apple and I need to find some sweet old tennis rackets.

And this one:

{Photography by Sarah Rhoads Photography}

And seriously, are you NOT obsessed with the chairs?? I might be a little bit obsessed. I almost died when I saw this next picture. Chiavari shmavari; I love the backs of these chairs. And they come with the venue?? Yes, please!

{Floral design by Steven Moore Designs/ Photography by Michele M. Waite}

There is even a little room for me and the girls to get ready, and a manly bar area for the boys to get ready. A few cool old rooms with neat chairs and fireplaces. A sweet stairwell. Oh, and there's a dance floor. Obviously. You know, so we can get down with our bad selves.

I am honestly so excited for the reception to be here! I love that it holds a special little place in my heart already, and that it will really show off Seattle's goods for the out-of-towners that are traveling to make it to our big day. 

Did you pick a venue that was hiding right under your nose? Was it different than what you had initially wanted? Do you not care?! Are you as excited about the space as I am? Did YOU have your wedding at the STC? So many questions!

All pictures are personal unless otherwise noted

Location Location Location

I already posted about the location that wasn't (sigh). Today, I want to talk about the venue and style that wasn't (weren't)! I realize these posts may sound a bit negative-nancy, but bear with me; we're narrowing things down and will eventually get to "what was"! Well, is. But, you get the idea.

Once we agreed to have the wedding in Seattle (as opposed to Santa Clara - our college - or San Diego - his home city), I decided to channel my inner Pacific-Northwestern vibe and developed a very specific vision for the wedding.

 {Photograph by Mark Brooke/ Coordination by Joy de Vivre Wedding Coordination/ via Stylemepretty}

 {Photographs by Sean Flanigan, both from this post}

{Photograph and styling by Martha Stewart}

{Photograph and Styling by Martha Stewart Weddings}

Serious swoonage. Barn. Old, peeling wood. Moss. Lots of moss. More moss. Milk glass. Mushrooms (okay, maybe not mushrooms). Wood slabs. Shrubbery. Basically, I wanted to take the Olympic Peninsula and stick it in a barn-like venue for the reception (without the rain).

Yes. Love love love.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Sigh again. The place we were crushing on (Sodo Park, actually the second and third images above) was a bit out of our price-range, and it is in a super-urban area of Seattle. I suppose it wouldn't have been the end of the world, but we really wanted a location that was on or near the water, or that could at least show off the city of Seattle (and not make our guests schlep around by all the warehouses).

So we searched. And searched. And searched some more. But honestly? We could not find any other barn-ish venue. Not in the Seattle area, anyway, and because we have quite a few out of town guests coming, we didn't want anything too far away from the city center (or airport).

Thus died my dream of a rustic barn wedding. In the end, though, it was all for the best, because the venue we ended up with is amazing. AH-mazing. Trust me!

Did you go into your planning with a specific vision, only to have it change completely/ dramatically/ with-tears-involved due to location, budgetary issues, etc? Did you consciously change your wedding vision, or did you find that it subtly evolved through the planning process?