It's probably time to post some useful info about the wedding on here, yes?
Let's start with DATE and VENUE.
We're getting married on March 26, 2010 at Sebastiani Vineyards in Sonoma, CA.
Venue link
Map
We'll post some photos of the location soon - their website doesn't really do it justice. This is our ceremony and reception site.
Sonoma is about an hour north of San Francisco. Fly into SF or Oakland. We don't have hotel blocks lined up yet, but we're working on it. I'll post more when it's been settled. The nice thing about Sebastiani is that it is just a few blocks off the main Sonoma square. You can stay pretty much anywhere in town and be able to easily get to the wedding venue.
Timeline
Thursday, March 25
4:00 - Ceremony rehearsal for wedding party and immediate family
Friday, March 26
5:00 - guests begin arriving at Sebastiani
5:30 - Wedding ceremony
6:00 - Cocktails
7:00 - Reception - dinner and dancing
Saturday, March 27
No scheduled events, but if you're able to hang around in Sonoma, there's plenty to see and do.
Showing posts with label venue. Show all posts
Showing posts with label venue. Show all posts
Monday, June 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
FOUND IT
Venue hunt over and wedding date secured. You would think with only two posts on this that it was super easy to find, but not so much. In addition to the places in my previous post, we also saw these places in Sonoma:
- Cline Cellars (too big)
- Jacuzzi Vineyards (beautiful but laughably expensive. I don't think they really want to do weddings there)
- Gloria Ferrer (meh. Also, undergoing a renovation at some point in the near future and not booking weddings for 2010)
- Sebastiani Vineyards (nice)
- Paradise Ridge Winery, Santa Rosa (nice, but remote. You have to drive through a suburban neighborhood to get there)
The winner, dear readers, is....Sebastiani Vineyards in Sonoma!
Winning date is....March 26, 2010!
The attempts to decide on a date were nearly as intricate as picking a venue. That probably deserves its own post. Now that we have one set, it seems easy. But as all of you who received multiple emails from me checking dates already know, I may have obsessed.
So what? I want you to be here for it.
Anyway, Sebastiani is lovely. It's just a few blocks off the main square in Sonoma, so there's lots to walk to. They have a couple outdoor spaces we can do the ceremoney: either around a fountain or on the lawn. I like the fountain. If it's raining or cold, we can do the ceremony inside in front of a big ol' fireplace. They have a barrel room for the reception, lounge to hang out in whenever, and changing rooms for bridal party and groomsmen. Also, by getting married on a Friday in March, it turned out to be the cheapest site fee we saw anywhere in wine country.
Website, if you want to visit it:
http://www.sebastiani.com/home.asp
But be forewardned that their website is not so pretty. We'll take pictures next time we're up there and post those.
- Cline Cellars (too big)
- Jacuzzi Vineyards (beautiful but laughably expensive. I don't think they really want to do weddings there)
- Gloria Ferrer (meh. Also, undergoing a renovation at some point in the near future and not booking weddings for 2010)
- Sebastiani Vineyards (nice)
- Paradise Ridge Winery, Santa Rosa (nice, but remote. You have to drive through a suburban neighborhood to get there)
The winner, dear readers, is....Sebastiani Vineyards in Sonoma!
Winning date is....March 26, 2010!
The attempts to decide on a date were nearly as intricate as picking a venue. That probably deserves its own post. Now that we have one set, it seems easy. But as all of you who received multiple emails from me checking dates already know, I may have obsessed.
So what? I want you to be here for it.
Anyway, Sebastiani is lovely. It's just a few blocks off the main square in Sonoma, so there's lots to walk to. They have a couple outdoor spaces we can do the ceremoney: either around a fountain or on the lawn. I like the fountain. If it's raining or cold, we can do the ceremony inside in front of a big ol' fireplace. They have a barrel room for the reception, lounge to hang out in whenever, and changing rooms for bridal party and groomsmen. Also, by getting married on a Friday in March, it turned out to be the cheapest site fee we saw anywhere in wine country.
Website, if you want to visit it:
http://www.sebastiani.com/home.asp
But be forewardned that their website is not so pretty. We'll take pictures next time we're up there and post those.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
site scouting
In planning our wedding, the first thing I thought we ought to do is nail down a venue. [Okay, not really. The first thing we did was make phone calls. Then I started actual planning by hoarding wedding magazines. Then we discussed when to put our engagement on Facebook.]
Do you know how many wedding venues are out there in the world? My best guess is fifty bajillion. If one were to narrow it down to wineries/vineyards in Northern California with both indoor and outdoor capacity and a rustic* ambiance, that would leave one with approximately 500 venues. Or so it seems based on the amount of time I have spent looking at websites in the last two months. I am arbitrarily ruling out venues that seem too garden-y, bland, reception hall-ish, Victorian, large, or small before I even pass them on to Timo. And you can forget about places with pools or golf courses. Nuh uh.
That leaves us with some decent contenders. And that means we have already visited the following over the last several weekends:
Byington Winery, Los Gatos (nice except for the family antiques that you can't remove from any of the rooms and the standing-room only backup ceremony spot)
Calistoga Ranch, Calistoga (laughably out of our price range. though I saved the packet if you'd like a hearty chuckle. did you know there were packets? well there are)
Hans Fahden Vineyards, Calistoga (closed when we got there)
Mountain Winery, Saratoga (very nice. in the middle of nowhere. if we were eaten by deer, it might take up to a week for someone to find us)
Testarossa Vineyards, Los Gatos (nice)
V. Sattui, St Helena (nice)
This weekend we're headed to Sonoma County to visit four more spots. Wish us luck! I get bored pretty quickly, so if we need to keep looking after this, I'm in danger of dropping wedding planning in favor of some new diversion like apartment hunting. Yes, that could keep us busy for at least another month or two.
--Jessica
*after seeing so many different places, reception styles, and flower arrangements proudly calling themselves "rustic," the term retains little actual meaning for me.
Do you know how many wedding venues are out there in the world? My best guess is fifty bajillion. If one were to narrow it down to wineries/vineyards in Northern California with both indoor and outdoor capacity and a rustic* ambiance, that would leave one with approximately 500 venues. Or so it seems based on the amount of time I have spent looking at websites in the last two months. I am arbitrarily ruling out venues that seem too garden-y, bland, reception hall-ish, Victorian, large, or small before I even pass them on to Timo. And you can forget about places with pools or golf courses. Nuh uh.
That leaves us with some decent contenders. And that means we have already visited the following over the last several weekends:
Byington Winery, Los Gatos (nice except for the family antiques that you can't remove from any of the rooms and the standing-room only backup ceremony spot)
Calistoga Ranch, Calistoga (laughably out of our price range. though I saved the packet if you'd like a hearty chuckle. did you know there were packets? well there are)
Hans Fahden Vineyards, Calistoga (closed when we got there)
Mountain Winery, Saratoga (very nice. in the middle of nowhere. if we were eaten by deer, it might take up to a week for someone to find us)
Testarossa Vineyards, Los Gatos (nice)
V. Sattui, St Helena (nice)
This weekend we're headed to Sonoma County to visit four more spots. Wish us luck! I get bored pretty quickly, so if we need to keep looking after this, I'm in danger of dropping wedding planning in favor of some new diversion like apartment hunting. Yes, that could keep us busy for at least another month or two.
--Jessica
*after seeing so many different places, reception styles, and flower arrangements proudly calling themselves "rustic," the term retains little actual meaning for me.
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