Weddingbee Blog

There’s no way I could handle a smoke smell - we had been so concerned about our venue smelling because the first day we visited happened to be a few days after New Years Eve and they had allowed a cigar tent addition to the room. Ugh. Thank goodness the coordinator convinced me to come back in a week - the smell was totally gone! I can’t imagine a room after YEARS of smoke though.

I ran into issues based on my own requirements, our super small budget and our small guest count of 60. I constantly found food minimums and guest minimums that didn’t work for us. Either the places were to way too big for 60 people or way too small. After numerous un-returned phone calls, from all kinds of vendors, I pretty much labeled our wedding the non-money maker. Really, who wants a measly sixty guests on a Saturday in August when they could give that date to 150-200 guest wedding. But I agree with the original post - vendors, I know you are trying to run a business and make money but a simple two minute phone call or email to say you can’t accomodate my wedding makes an entire world of difference when it comes to what I will tell others about your business. Thankfully we did find a nice place with good prices and the whole place is mine for the entire day.

Wow, I hear you. Finding a venue was the most (and probably only) traumatic part of planning the wedding. I got so tired of thinking about it, but knew we needed the right spot. I hated every minute of the venue search.

We went with a restaurant banquet hall, which was perfect for us. It wasn’t outdoors, like we had hoped, but the space was free and we didn’t have to worry about rentals, staffing, etc. We also found theater lobbies to be reasonably priced, beautiful, and the coordinators were experienced. After we had put down our deposit, a friend got married in a park in the most perfect place for nearly nothing. We had dismissed a park wedding because there were so many rules and possibilities of public nuisances, but they picked a secluded picnic area (rather than “wedding area”) and avoided those problems.

We’re right in the middle of venue selections as well, and I’ve figured out several different types to consider:
1. The All Inclusive - these places are great because there is little to DIY in terms of pulling together vendors. They will either have a set list of approved vendors, or will actually do everything for you (like a vineyard or inn). Usually these are the most expensive, but the least hassle.
2. The Put-it-together-yourself Hall Rental - literally, you just rent the space and have to go find chair rentals, table linens, bartenders, etc. Much more work to pull it all together, but you can save a lot of money by buying your own beer/wine etc.
3. The Restaurant Reception - they don’t charge you to rent the physical space, service staff, or tables/chairs, and you know the food is good. Often decor is already very nice. In the end, it’s usually the lowest cost option. Ceremony-only fees for church, park, historical buildings are usually not bad.

Current desire: go with option 3! We have called our favorite restaurants in town and their Saturday night minimums are at the very most $12k for in-town Atlanta.

Good luck!

It’s not you! I’m constantly amazed at how many vendors act like I’m doing them a diservice (or actually never respond) by my contacting them! Don’t you want my money?! I’m amazed by the crappy level of customer service out there.

Anyway, we only visited two places during our venue search. One was my “dream” location, a quirky museum in downtown Baltimore. The other, was a lovely historic house near where my parents live. Since the house was $2,000 less than the museum, it was a no-brainer, so I cancelled the rest of my appointments. The venue isn’t what I was thinking, as I’m more of a modern type of gal, but I really fell in love with it and could see our wedding happening there. I also knew there was no way I’d ever find such a lovely venue for so cheap anywhere else, especially one that rents Chivari chairs for only $2.50 each!

luckily i found a vendor on my 2nd inquiry via a best of vendor list on theknot, unfortunately what i wasn’t prepared for was the lack of patience and condescending attitude of vendor she seemed irritated with my lack of knowledge and suprisingly annoyed with my fresh just engaged positive outlook (i guess she was so used of bridezillas it actually bugged her that I wasn’t)
Honestly all i could remember from my contact with her (we’e only met once) was incessant need to remind me of all the legalities and “do not dare do on”our property rules, it just left me with a very nervous feeling because she just kept reiteritating the rules like and has scared the crap out of me.
why did i book? well, i knew it was the place for us, 1930’s merchants manor and it gave me goosebumps when i saw it in person. it truly spoke to me, however, i hope i caught her on a bad day and that i will be dealing with her assistant in the future.