Wedding Blog
Our search for a venue was like a scene out of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. One venue was too expensive, one was too modern, one was too rustic, etc. It was difficult to find a venue that was “just right” for us.
For example, I loved the Ritz-Carlton Huntington Hills in Pasadena (Mrs. Pearl’s venue!):
The Ritz-Carlton is a beautiful and lavish property, with a lovely Japanese garden for the ceremony and resplendent ballrooms. Unfortunately, as can be expected, the pricetag would have been a real budget buster. Moving on…
Rancho Las Lomas was another wonderful venue:
A private estate in Orange County, Rancho Las Lomas is a favorite of wedding photographers for its unique scenery. With lush greenery and a zoological garden on site, Rancho Las Lomas is home to many one of a kind weddings. Unfortunately, the ballroom, while completely charming, was a little more rustic than I wanted– I was searching for something a little more formal. Moving on yet again…
I also loved Seven-Degrees, a very cool venue in Laguna Beach. Seven-Degrees is part art gallery, part event space and it utilizes a lot of cool technology like special lighting and flat-screen televisions for their events. I’ve seen pictures of so many amazing weddings there and it’s a fantastic space if you’re looking for something really modern and unique. Unfortunately, I was looking for something a little more warm and classic. Additionally, it was not available on our wedding day.
Finally, after much fruitless searching, we found a venue that was just right: the InterContinental Hotel Los Angeles-Century City. A sophisticated, elegant hotel located in Century City, the InterContinental had everything we wanted: a gorgeous, chic ambience complete with orchids and modern decor, a lovely garden for the ceremony and cocktail hour, and a classic ballroom for the reception. It’s in a great central location which makes it easy for our many out-of-town guests to sightsee. They only have one event there at a time, so our guests would have the run of the place. Plus, I really liked the ease and convenience that a hotel venue offered. I think the InterContinental is a hidden gem among Los Angeles wedding venues and I’m so excited to have our wedding there.
How was your wedding venue search? How many venues did it take until you found one that was “just right”?
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Share this post: Too Big, Too Little… Just Right
Finding the church was the hard part; most of the local churches required us to be members for at least a year and since we live in different towns it would not be possible for both of us to attend each Sunday for a year. Or, they were asking outrageous fees for use of their church. One church said they don’t do wedding during the month of March. Just that month only. Weird, and of course my wedding month. But, on our 15th or so church visit we found just the right one. Cutest little chapel.
The reception was easy, we chose the restaurant where we had our first dinner date together. They have a cozy greenhouse that we have reserved for our party. Exactly what we wanted. 
We looked at all kinds of venues here in Kansas City, and I remember that we personally looked at 4 before I got that tingly feeling at the last place on the list. We checked out a country club (fiance’s least fave), a boutique hotel downtown (which was lovely, but we would have had to move from room to room for the dinner and then the dancing, which didn’t sit well with me…even so, it was #2 on our list when we were making the decision), an old club building that currently hosts events in one part, while it houses people in apartments in the other…
And then we saw the Boulevard Brewing Company’s new space. Hot DAMN, that was it!
I cannot wait for our wedding in 3 weeks. So excited, I’m tearing up just thinking about it!
I drooled over all of these… You’d better watch out, Miss Kiwi might sneak in to your wedding! I won’t eat anything, I’ll just stand creepily in the corner and give you tiny waves.
Miss J, I *love* the Intercontinental. When I was on a biz expense account, that was my favorite hotel of all of downtown LA. Even the standard rooms are large and luxurious, unlike even the better-known hotels, which have crappy 5×7 pens masquerading as rooms (*cough*Biltmore*cough*).
Great choice, and kind of off the beaten path!
Yay, you found the one! Looks beautiful.
For ours, we just had to find one that was available on our day three months before the wedding. The other venue didn’t work out and it was a last-minute scramble. But we found it. The only thing I didn’t really like about it was that it was such a long drive from the highway, so every guest was practically an out-of-town guest.
I’d had my eye on a B&B about 45 minutes away. We decided to go by and just check it out when my mom was in town for Christmas. (We had gotten engaged Dec 15 - and I promised the FI I would start planning until after the new year)
I think we looked at the place on the 26th. Yeah - The B&B was perfect (view) and I had practically the whole wedding planned before the new year started!! Even the dress ordered! haha.
Kinda helps we live in small town VA - once we’d decided to stay local I had 2 florists to choose from, 2 caterers, 2 bakers, etc. Plus with only 4 months to plan there was no time to sit on decisions! (I highly recommend the short engagement!)
It took me quite a while. I was looking in the same area you were looking Miss Jasmine and I actually looked at the Ritz and Rancho las Lomas as well. My favorite was Vibiana Place but I really couldn’t afford it. I ended up with the Crystal Ballroom inside the Millenium Biltmore and I couldn’t be happier! Good luck with your planning, I love your venue, it looks beautiful!
My FH actually found our reception site, since I live in Texas and the wedding will be in Seattle where he lives. I got some recs off of theknot.com Seattle message board, he looked at 5 of them, and picked one. For our ceremony site, we went together. Saw two indoor venues, neither impressed us much. Then we went to the Seattle zoo, which has a rose garden. As soon as we stepped inside the gates, we looked at each other with one of THOSE looks, and that’s how we knew.
Your venue looks gorgeous, Miss Jasmine! Congrats on picking your venue!
We literally went to ONE place. I fell so in love with Wente Vineyards (in Livermore, CA) that I had to reserve it that same day.
I (so far) don’t regret our decision to go with our first place.
we had my wedding there in may!! mrs. bee was kind enough to feature us here if you’d like to see pictures from our wedding and read reviews of our experience.
Hi Miss Jasmine!
I had my wedding at your same hotel a year ago.
We researched and visited at least 20 locations and were pleased with our choice.
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Mrs. Jasmine, Chicago/LA
Age and Occupation: 25, Attorney
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Attorney
Engagement Date: March 24, 2007
Wedding Date: June 7, 2008
Blogging Since: September 20, 2007
Venue: Hotel on the westside of Los Angeles
About Me: I'm a happy-go-lucky, imaginative spirit trapped in the body of a lawyer. I love reading, shopping, dining out, and exploring my beloved adopted city of Chicago with my fiance. We're planning the wedding of our dreams in my hometown of Los Angeles and we're excited to incorporate our cherished Indian/Pakistani customs and traditions.
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