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Hmmmm…that title doesn’t really work. In my head, I was imagining all of our potential venues battling for our business, Olympics-style. But that’s not really how it happened.
It was actually more like this: “Yay, we are Chicago venues! We don’t have to fight for clients because we book up a year in advance!
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Anyway.
When Sparks and I got engaged, I honestly expected all of the planning to just fall into place. I know. Maybe I was delusional, but it just didn’t seem like it could be that hard. Pick a place we like…book it. Pick the band we want…book ‘em. No problem, right? Wrong. Things don’t exactly happen that way. Especially when the city you’re getting married in hosts an average of 5,000 weddings a year. (I made that up, but I’m guessing there are a LOT of weddings. Too many to count.) But what did I know? I put together a to-do list and got my pencil ready for checking those babies off.
Since Sparks and I had already decided on our date, the next obvious task was choosing a venue. We had a very short requirement list:
So with that, I set off on a mad internet search for the perfect spot. This is where it started to get difficult. First of all, there are about, oh, A MILLION venue options in Chicago. This might seem like a good problem to have, but it was unbelievably overwhelming. To make matters worse, half the places I called were already booked! I couldn’t believe it. Who were these people planning their weddings over a year in advance??? I was (as you can tell) completely naïve about weddings and planning in general.
To find the perfect place, I knew we needed to get more specific about what we actually wanted. So after a few conversations with Sparks, we realized that we wanted a venue that was modern and open. We wanted a “blank slate” that would show off the urban vibe of Chicago, while still allowing us to create a very personal space. With that vision in mind, we were able to shorten our list of potential venues to the following:
Architectural Artifacts
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Prairie Productions
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Ravenswood Event Center
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Chicago Illuminating Company
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Gallery 1028
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River East Art Center
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Looking back now, I think we really succeeded in finding venues that met our modern/urban vision. However, instead of feeling excited, I was anxious. I just wanted to find a place and book it. Luckily, the venue we ended up going with was waiting right there on that little list.
Was the venue search overwhelming for you as well? Or was it easy?
I found the venue search a little overwhelming too!! Glad you found something that fit your vision perfectly, all of your options look fabulous! Can’t wait to see which one you picked!
I love Gallery 1028. So my kinda place.
Finding our venue was easy. We didn’t know it existed until we went to a networking event there. Its a restaurant with event space upstairs. There is a deck for the ceremony that overlooks the downtown skyline (Houston) and the park. The adjacent room has glass walls so you get the view there, too. Very modern with a touch of rustic. So us.
We didn’t even call any other places.
I’m still venue searching (16 months out - yes, I am that bride, lol!) and like you I thought it would be easy. Instead everything is either too expensive, too far away, or not our style. We’ve been able to narrow down our tastes, but finding someplace that’s affordable and stylish in DC is easier said than done. 
Love the venue showcase, though - you have great taste!
Wow, these are all gorgeous!! You can’t go wrong with any of them.
i love all of them Sparks! Can’t wait to see what you chose!
I actually found our venue pretty easily, it was the first one that popped up when the FH suggested our sister city. As soon as I saw the grand staircase, I was sold.
I love your selections! Chicago is my favorite large-city and your options do reflect the chic, urban setting of the city in general!
Our venue selection, fortunately, was not difficult once we agreed on guest list size and city. MrTimber had been a guest at a wedding held at what was to become our venue so he was pretty set on having it there. He was also dead set on 10-10-10 as our wedding date, which fell on Sunday. Two of the three rooms were still available because the date was a Sunday so it worked out 
I felt totally trapped by our budget when we were venue hunting. But in the end, it all worked out.
oh, i feel your anxiety! i had the same preconceived notion about wedding planning when we first started. …wrong. Chicago does have one of the best venue selections, but i guess i am glad i wasn’t overwhelmed with all those choices because they all look GREAT! it took us 9 months to pick a venue because i was pretty stubborn on finding the modern/urban/chic venue to fit our personalities, but budget tore that dream away from me. can’t wait to see which one you went with!
I love these pictures. It makes me want to get dolled up and get my party on.
Venue search was a bit overwhelming because we say 8 places in 2 days. It was alot to take in all at once especially since we did it pretty much on our own (our mom’s went to 3 of the 8 places).
Our engagement will have been 2 years long and I started researching venues right from the start. Since we only have a budget of $5,000 for the whole wedding I knew it was going to be difficult to find a venue. My search included three states, and eventually two different time possibilities. In the end we found the place that was perfect for us just a little more than a year out. We’ve been back like six times and love it more every time!
I love that we checked out almost all the same venues! Sorry that Ravenswood was booked… that’s what happens when brides like me book it up in July for a Sept wedding… Forgive me?
My absolute hands down favorite is Prairie Productions, it’s just so clean and quaint and sweet. I love the all white which means you can do crazy with your color palette. But I also love Ravenswood simply because it screams Chicago.
My venue search was originally really hard, just couldn’t find one that had everything I wanted and was still clean and modern, but then I found thee place, only problem was I had to give up my dream date to get it… by 2 months! You’re killing me with the suspense though, not cool.
love Gallery 1028! So romantic and modern! We made our venue hunt a little easier by picking the place first and then choosing a date they had available. Lucky me they had 9/10/11 which was the date I was hoping for!
I was one of those people booking the venue over a year in advance. *blush* Chicago Illuminating Company looks amazing! Those dramatic curtains!
Yes, we are having the exact same problem. These places sometimes book out 18 months(!!!) in advance, forcing US to book out 18mos in advance. “Dese brides be crazy,” I keep muttering to myself. 
. (Ok, not really. But that seems ridiculous to me).
I was completely overwhelmed finding a ceremony venue. We had the reception venue, so that limited the distance away the ceremony could be. I feel stressed about finding the right place with the vibe we wanted. Luckily it all worked out… but it was rough there for a few weeks!
All of those venues are amazing! Love the high ceiling drama of your chosen venue. It took us awhile to figure out what we wanted, what would work within that vision and lastly, what we could afford.
All of those venues are amazing! Whichever you go with will be a wonderful backdrop for your wedding.
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Mrs. Sparkler, Chicago Age and Occupation: 27, Communications Aficionado Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Publisher Engagement Date: July 21, 2010 Wedding Date: September 2011 Venue: Chicago Illuminating Company About Me: I’m a Southern lady living in the big city of Chicago. Well, lady may be a stretch, but I’m working hard to keep some Virginia charm in our sleek, urban, wedding-palooza! I’m addicted to marathons, not-so-famous bands, Chicago restaurants, and Mark Twain. I cry during SPCA commercials, and I think LOST was the best show to ever hit television. Mr. S and I met at a classy college mixer and, 7 years later, he’s still by my side. He’s the only child, laid back, free spirit... I’m the oldest of five kids, type-A, organizer. It doesn’t work on paper, but we’ve never paid attention to that stuff anyway. Somehow it works. And like they say, sometimes when you know…you just know.
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