Venue Search Continues: Morgan Creek Golf Club

I went to the Morgan Creek Golf Club today. And I think I may have found the venue! I took some pictures so you guys can see and so I can show my FH later tonight. But I am so excited. I loved Trinity, the sales rep, and the venue. Here's some pictures:

This is the ceremony site. Notice the pond in the background...it has duckies. :)

This is the inside of the reception area. Those gorgeous drapes and chandeliers are there permanently so you save on the decorations. You get to chose from a bunch of colors for the linens with no extra charge and the carpet design isn't that bad either.

A close up of the chandelier. I love it!

So now all I have left to do to finalize this venue, is get my FH there to see it. He's been busy with work and biking up in Tahoe so hopefully later this week I can lure him away. :) Oh and next Tuesday we get to go and try some of the food. Yum!

Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn

Wedding trends to dream about...

There have been a few trends that seem to keep popping up as I look in bridal magazines or on bridal websites that I just love! So of course I had to share them with all of you. :) P.S. I got all the photos from the Knot.

1. I love the idea of honoring all the married or even engaged couples in a unique way at your wedding. I love how this wedding made the pictures into a gorgeous backdrop.

2. I love new and unique h'orderve ideas. Not a fan of the classics? Rock some new ideas by serving up you and your fiance's favorite snacks!

3. I also love personalized cakes. You've got personality (and so does your fiance) why not show it off? :)

4. I also love the idea of having a top your own cupcake bar as a desert table. And who doesn't like this little sign? lol

So there are my top four. I will probably try to do something like #1 in our wedding. What are some of your favorite trends right now? Feel free to send me a message or post up a comment.

Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn

Promising Venue Ideas

Ok so today I found two possible venues- which will (I'm pretty sure) fit into our budget and I'm excited about. Here they are:


1.) The River Mill in French Camp, CA












2.) The Japanese Gardens in Micke Grove Park.

I can't wait to go check these out! Has anyone heard of them or seen them in person? By the way, that wedding at the Japanese Garden was gorgeous! Be sure to follow the link attached to the picture and check out that photographer's work!

Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn

Finding a Venue

Finding a venue for our ceremony and reception has proven to be the most stressful decision.so far. Because of our limited budget plus my semi-specific vision, I have been looking for almost 2 months (officially) and still haven't found anything promising. I did however come up with a very organized and useful chart that I'd like to share. Trust me it helps to have something you can glance at to remind yourself of important details rather than looking up the websites one at a time. So here we go!

Venues:	Miners Foundry	Centerville Estates
Fri/Sun. Prices:		$4,458*
Sat. Prices:		$4,990*
Distance from RB:	133.87 mi. 2hr 44min	68.48 mi. 1hr 43min
Distance from RC:	55.12 mi. 1hr 13min	109.9 mi. 2hr 09min
Insurance:	Min $500,000 req.
Vendor Limits:
Time Limits:	Whole day	9am-11pm
Parking:	Yes	Yes- Directed.
Set up and Clean up:	$25/hour with a 3 hour min.	Clean Up
Tables and Chairs:	Many options	Yes - wooden
Linens:	At extra cost
Dishes:
Included Décor:	Candelabras, Hurricane Oil Lamps	Umbrellas
Coordinator:	No.
# of Events:	1	1
Max # of Guests:	200 for stone hall
Taxes or Other Fees:
Bathrooms:	Yes	Yes, 3
Dressing Rooms:	Bride	Bride & Groom
Bar:	Available	Indoor & Outdoor
Backup for Rain:		Indoor Space
Misc. Pros:		Electricity outside
Misc. Cons:
Dance Floor:		Indoor & Outdoor
Venue Amenities:	Historic, Stone Walls, Indoor	River, Lawns, Patios
Website:	Minersfoundry.org	Centervilleestate.com

Centerville estates: * possibly less for a small guest list

I was trying to get the chart to fit into your view, but I think it may still cut off a few letters. Usually my chart is about 4 venues wide. I currently have about 4 pages of this plus more info to update and venues to add . You can add or change the rows to whatever is important to you. Oh and in case anyone starts to wonder, RB is where most of our family is located and RC is where we're located. 

I cannot wait until we decide on a venue! Things will get so much easier. :) Hope this helps everyone- I know it made things easier for me.

Forever Dreaming,

Katelyn

DIY Rustic Wedding Cake Stand

So I have wanted a rustic feeling wedding since I began planning. Not completely all out rustic, but lots of rustic touches. One idea that I fell in love with was the idea of using a piece of tree stump as a cake stand. Infact the idea came from this photo I found in one of my bridal magazines (I can't remember which one, sorry). Here it is:

Well as I was surfing around on the web today I found some other ideas using wood as your cake or dessert stands! Check out this DIY project on Once Wed!

Follow this link to see the DIY instructions, but isn't that adorable! And because you can change the style and hight so easily you could make a variety of stands for your dessert table. Oh I love it!

Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn

Music Fun

So one of the things that my dude and I am excited about- Planning the music for the reception! We can be pretty goofy and some of our music choices will definitely highlight that, such as these awesome classics!:






And my favorite:


Hehe I just can't wait!
Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn

Alternatives to the Guest Book

For those who don't know, I am in love with Wedding Wire, and while I was searching the message boards for interesting things I saw one girl asking for ideas for guest book alternatives. After a few minutes I had tons of ideas and thought I'd share a few of my favorites.

#1. The Wish Tree

Not only is this an adorable DIY project but its also a great alternative to the traditional guest book. Your guests sign a note or give some advice and simply hang it on the tree. At the end of the night you can just take the notes off, place them in a box, and either read them all at once or ration them off through out the year to come. And did you know that this is actually a Dutch wedding tradition? Fun factoids like that always make me feel full of wedding conversation starters! :) Now on to the next.

#2. The Wish Jar

Much like the wish tree, your guests write down a little message (or wish) to you and put it in the jar. Easy to transport and fun to read afterward since the guests will know that no one is going to see the note besides you and you will most likely end up with some great thoughts! By the way this picture came from My Dream Wedding.CA Shoppe where you can actually purchase it if you were interested.

#3. The Guest Puzzle
This was such a cute and unique idea I had to include it! For couples that love putting puzzles together this is not only a way to get messages from your guests but also a fun project for later! I found this on MGC Puzzles where you can purchase it (the price varies based on the size and number of pieces).


#4. The Wedding Recipe Cards
I actually saw this in the Bridal Guide magazine back in 2007 and it just stuck with me. There are many Wish Boxes you could chose from but I loved the idea of making it look like a box of cooking recipe cards. I found the following adorable box from Jean M. on her website for only $25.



As you can see there are many alternatives to doing the traditional guest book. Personally I'm torn between the wish tree and the recipe box. Hmm...decisions decisions.

Well hope everyone had a great weekend and got some good ideas from today's blog! And as always if you have any ideas, questions, comments, or funny jokes (I LOVE finding funny thinks in my email) feel free to email me at weddingsbykate.dream@gmail.com

Forever Dreaming,
Katelyn