Anyhoot, I had been looking at the Vandiver Inn for a while. A few things let me know right away that this place could very well be our wedding venue:
1. Fantastic reviews on Weddingbee & Wedding Wire. Check.
2. Their website has a whole section dedicated to weddings.. with basic price points listed. Chhhheck! This hardly EVER happens, at least with most of the venues I was researching. There's usually a fun game where you email or call and wait for a response back that can take days or weeks, and I'm an antsy pants. One place I looked at didn't respond for 5 months.. what?!
4. Those price points listed? Are totally in our budget. BIG CHECK.
3. The day of coordinator (hereto referred to as DOC) answered my email and called within 48 hours. Check check check.
4. It's located in Maryland, on an inlet that leads to the bay. This means water. Lots of water.. and having grown up 10 minutes from the beach, I'm a total sucker for that. :))) Check x10.
Since I was already falling in love without even laying eyes on the place, I made an appointment for Foxy and I to meet the the DOC (who's really more of a quasi-wedding coordinator.. she's seriously amazing) and take a tour of the place. After an hour and a glass of wine, we were sold. Two weeks later we faxed over the signed contract. BAM. Venue: donesky! This totally goes against my usual indecisive nature, but when I just love something that much? I get impulsive and hope it works out.
Some background for you: the Vandiver Inn is an old mansion that is now run as a family owned bed and breakfast and has really seemed to have found a niche in the wedding market. The town it's in is so cute and quaint, like it was taken from some old, historic New England town and dropped in northeast Maryland. The water is two blocks away, and 'downtown' is about four blocks away and full of cute little shops and restaurants. It's almost as if we're getting the upstate New York feel, while still staying in Maryland. Score!
Also? If you sort of recognize the place.. it's because Mrs. Lox just got married there!!
There are two other smaller houses affiliated with the Vandiver Inn, located right next to it. The Vandiver has 8 guest rooms (where Foxy and I + family will be staying), and the two other houses have another 9 rooms total (for more family and wedding party). I LOVE this, because we can all stay together and it will make getting together for the rehearsal (dinner) so so so much easier.
Images via Vandiver Inn
The mansion itself has a very rustic and old town feel, like the town itself. There's a porch that leads into the first floor of the mansion, where the cocktail hour will be. If the weather permits, they can open the doors and windows (that act as doors) so people can mingle both inside and out on the porch. There is also a grassy area with a few tables for people to sit at out front.
Images via Vandiver Inn
The outdoor ceremony location is to the right of the mansion, between the Kent house and Murphy house.
Images via Vandiver Inn
Is it lame that I can already imagine walking down the aisle to that pretty gazebo? (Which makes me think.. how am I going to decorate?!)
And last but most certainly not least, the reception will be in the pavilion just behind the mansion!!
Images via Vandiver Inn
How great is that? It can be open air on nice days (picture on the right) or closed off on crappy days (left), so you don't need to worry about rain. The string lights on the ceiling are already in place, and you can add extra decorations pretty much however you want. To us, it's perfect.
One of the greatest things is that the wife of the family who owns the place (Susan) is also the head chef. They get all their ingredients from local farmers and produce stands and cook it on site in a kitchen no bigger than a closet, so you know it's fresh. They even have their own herb garden and borrow herbs from neighbors if they need other kinds! How freaking adorable is that?! I just may move here after the wedding.
Oh.. and, lets be honest.. the deciding factor?
6 comments:
Aw it's amazing! I love the reception room! I want to wedding plan. I need to unleash my amazing planning skillz.
The boyfriend still gets antsy when I watch all sorts of wedding shows though, so I've got some time yet. Plus the fact that he's still in school doesn't do me well. A psychic told me I would be married in 2012 though, so mayhaps we'll be getting married the same year? Which is crazy to think about since I need at least a year to plan a wedding. I think the psychic is wrong {secretly wishing he's 100% correct}
Chica, I TOTALLY hear you. Scot still rolls his eyes at me when I watch a wedding related show. And I started watching them like 2 years ago, so it's been a while ;)
#1, I love that second photo layout with the various sized pics! How'd you do that?
#2, I saw photos of a wedding at that venue on FB and it was pretty! So I know you'll have a gorgeous wedding!
#3, Um, you totally have to do a photo-op in your dress on that street!
Your venue looks perfect! The pavilion is awesome, love the brick floors. :)
That venue is amazing! I love the pavilion and the lights!!
I was clued into your blog from your comment on my blog. I was smitten with the title itself. I hadn't even heard of your venue, but that just goes to show there are so many different and unique venues out there for every budget. I think your venue is lovely and I can't wait to see how you plan to decorate it.
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