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One of my favorite things about where I live is Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens, a huge public mosaic installation by Philly native Isaiah Zagar. A few months ago, Mr. S and I went to check it out. We fell in love. It’s so strange and unique and beautiful and colorful. I love the idea of getting married inside a work of art. And I think our guests would love it.
There are also some really practical reasons why this venue will work. First of all, it’s surprisingly affordable to rent for the entire day. And imagine the money we’ll save on decorations! I mean, this place is so colorful and vibrant already that we wouldn’t need much else. It’s close to our home and easy to get to.
But there are a few drawbacks. First of all, if it rains, there is room to put up a tent, but it will seem incredibly crowded. It’s a large installation, but not very roomy, as most of the garden is taken up by a labyrinth of sorts. There is one large area big enough for our tables, but tenting the area may feel a bit claustrophobic. Yes, we’d only have to worry about that in case of rain, but rain could very well happen.
Also, after seeing countless photos of brides and grooms traipsing through fields, farms, and flowers, I began to feel disappointed that there’s not a single patch of NATURE in the gardens.
So, Mr. S and I decided to add the Magic Gardens to our list of contenders, but we continued our venue search…
A few weeks later, Mr. S and I scoped out another venue: Bartram’s Garden, which is the oldest living botanical garden in the U.S., right here in Philadelphia.
It’s in a fairly remote area of the city, and we had to drive through a verrrrry sketchy part of town to get there. Here is a the conversation that Mr. S and I had on our drive there, as we approached the place:
Me: I want to let you know that this garden is apparently located in a pretty crappy neighborhood, according to the reviews I read online. But—
Mr. S: Oh, then I don’t want to get married here.
Me: BUT, the reviews all say that it’s beautiful once you turn off of the street and into the gardens.
Mr. S: Well, some of my family members have never been to Philly before, and I don’t want them to see (gestures to the scenery, which is worsening as we drive) this when they first get here.
Me: Well, what’s more important? What your grandmother thinks about the neighborhood or the fact that we might love it and feel that it’s right for us?
Mr. S: I know. I’m just saying.
Me: Okay, well, just wait until we get there, and please, try to have an open mind?
(Neighborhood gets even worse)
Mr. S: I really don’t know about this.
Me: *Sigh*
And then, we turned into the garden, parked the car, and saw this:
It was quaint, lush, and stunning, and right in the middle of the ’hood!
It’s a bit more expensive than the Magic Garden but more versatile in that there is plenty of space to use, and we can use it how we wish. Their preferred caterer is very accommodating and extremely affordable. It is incredibly beautiful in the spring, and I love how it’s not too landscaped or manicured.
After Mr. S and I looked at these two options, we were kind of tired of venue research. Unlike Miss Socks, who had the motivation to check out about a bajillion venues in Philly, Mr. S and I are lazy sloths who would rather lie around our living room watching Netflix than zooming around town checking out wedding sites.
We liked both the Magic Garden and Bartram’s and would be happy to have our wedding at either place. So we decided to make a pros and cons list:
By weighing our options, Philadelphia’s Magic Garden came out the winner by a hair. So it would make sense that we chose it, right?
Except that we didn’t!
We decided that the rustic, historical vibe of Bartram’s Garden was much more fitting for the type of wedding we wanted. Sure, it meant paying a bit more and traveling through a rough part of town to get there, but our intuition told us that Bartram’s was the site for us, so we went for it!
Now that we had our rustic, pastoral backdrop, it was time to get started on planning the par-tay!
How did you decide which venue would be best for you?
That place looks gorgeous. Since my husband lived there for 5 years, maybe he’ll take me there when we finally make it up there. As for venue searches, he picked the venue, so we never went anywhere.
Somehow my husband ended up deciding that he would like to be by the water, even better if on a boat. After checking out a few boats in the area and finding them all pretty dumpy, we went to both the Seaport Museum and the Moshulu. We ended up spending a little more at the Moshulu than at a regular old boat, but it turned out wonderfully. I never thought of the Magic Gardens before as a venue, which is a shame because I lived by it for years! Of course it also poured on our wedding day, so that choice I guess is for the best.
Maybe if you haven’t already you could do an engagement shoot at the Magic Gardens?
Ahhh the Magic Gardens! This was my favorite place ever when I lived in Philly. And Bartram’s is gorgeous as well- you have a beautiful pallet to work with! I’m probably (ok, definitely) going to be following (ok, stalking) your blog quite a bit, as Philly is where my beau and I met and spent the beginning stages of our relationship, and we’re considering exchanging vows. So excited to see what you have in store for us!
The Magic Gardens is so cool! You could always just do a e-pic shoot or anniversary shoot there. I think you made the right choice. A good balance of style and versatility for your event.
Wow, I really love both venues! They are both beautiful and unique!
I think you can pull off a lot more at Bartram’s than at Magic Garden. You’d definitely be branding your wedding in a setting like that. The possibilities are unlimited with the space you’ve chosen! And it’s gorgeous!
I think you made the right choice, even though I’m a bad Philly area girl and have never been to either! Gosh I’m a loser….but I think BG will be so lovely! You can do much more with it…
Love the one you chose, it’s totally something I would’ve have picked as well!
both of those venues look fantastic, but bartram gardens is not only amazing but looks like it has flexibility and room for a rain plan. great venue!
Both are really cool venues, but I love your final choice!
Wow, those are some cool venues. I agree with jordynrose…you should do your e-pics at the magic gardens if you haven’t already taken them. But I do love the bartram gardens for the rain plan and its beauty.
I laughed really hard that the headline on your venues website was “A Buzz With Bees” and for a second I thought they were talking about Weddingbee…
@ILikePink:I noticed that too! A happy coincidence!
I stumbled across the Magic Garden by accident when I was visiting Philly and thought it was amazing! But the photos of the venue you chose look absolutely stunning.
The venue you have chosen is stunning!! As for the neighborhood… have you thought about being able to provide transportation for your guests if you don’t want them to drive through that part of town? You could have the host hotel be more center city or a nicer (safer?) area. You are only 15 mins from downtown right? That is another way that some of Mr. Sloth’s family can See the City
Hello Miss Sloth… did you definitely decide on Bartram’s Garden?? I know this post is almost a month old, but I only just saw it! I live in that general area… as you go along, further towards the airport, it gets nicer again. Where Bartram’s Garden is is situated right behind Bartram’s Park… the housing project. The Phila. Housing Authority was recently in a lot of trouble, can’t remember what for, but it’s places like Bartram’s Park that give it the bad name, and give MY neighborhood a bad name. We considered Bartram’s Garden as well because we live five minutes down the road from it. I want to tell you that I’m thrilled you’re picking such a pretty place, but I also am obligated to tell you about the few bad eggs that stand around the housing project and just yell at passersby! I don’t mean to scare you, but if you haven’t made your final decision yet, I would, maybe, just hint at advising you to consider a bit further… Have you heard of Morris Arboretum? It’s outside of the city but it belongs to UPenn and is also part of the Greater Philadelphia Garden Association (Bartram’s a part of it). It was in such a nicer area and had a similar feel to Bartram’s. Maybe check out greaterphiladelphiagardens.org… just in case…
[...] we wanted to make sure that our wedding food was fabulous without breaking our budget. Bartram’s Garden only has five preferred caterers, so after we decided on our venue, we started contacting caterers [...]
[...] pretty flowers! I think it’s perfect for our wedding because we’re getting married in a garden, and they’re perfect for us because we’re cheap and lazy! And if our guests decide to leave [...]
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Ms. Sloth, Philadelphia Age and Occupation: 35, Account Manager and Fashion Blogger Fiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Design Admin Engagement Date: December 25, 2009 Wedding Date: May 2011 Venue: Bartram's Garden About Me: I'm an internet junkie and music snob with a good eye for a bargain. I couldn't live without thrift store shopping, cheeseburgers, sushi, Coke Zero, websites devoted to silly photos of baby animals, Photoshop, and Mr. Sloth. Speaking of which, he and I are a pair of goofball homebody nerds who love our beagle (the most ridiculously adorable dog EVER) to an embarrassing degree. We're planning a low-key and intimate yet festive and quirky outdoor wedding with DIY details and deeply personal touches, and it's all taking place in the city where we fell in love and call home: Philadelphia.
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