The Wired Bride: Archive

Venue Feedback - The Hotel George & The Hotel Monaco

Last week was a big week in the venue search front. If you were wondering, we are still unsuccessful. Kelley and I looked at the The Hotel George near Union Station Metro. It is a Kimpton resort so it has all the uniqueness and charm we are looking for. What is doesn’t have is space. We were warned that the space would be tight for 80 - 90 people and they were right. The space is designed for meetings, not weddings. Basically, we would have to have our guests stand up during the ceremony. Even though it will be a short ceremony, I want my guests to be comfortable.

After the disappointment of The Hotel George not being spacious enough for us, we headed to Chinatown to look at the sister property, Hotel Monaco. I fell in love! This is the first venue I could see myself getting married. Aside from the history of the building and the quirkiness of it (providing guest with complimentary goldfish to keep them company in their rooms), the space is beautiful. From the long spiral staircases, to the cathedral ceilings, to the openness of the finely decorated rooms.

I immediately looked at my wedding planner and said, “This is it!” Of course, my dreams were shattered once we started talking money! With a $20,000 food & beverage minimum, that basically sums up the budget we have set for our wedding. Unbelievable. I am still so amazed at how expensive everything is in the district. You would think having a winter wedding when most wedding professionals are hurting for business, we would be saving an arm and a leg. Turns out we are paying more for services. Yikes!

Which means…the search is still on for the perfect, affordable venue.

Aug 30, 20100 notes

#the hotel george #the hotel monaco #chinatown #union station

Venue Feedback - North Hall at Eastern Market

Today Beetle and I met with our planner and checked out the North Hall at Eastern Market for a possible wedding venue. We LOVE the Eastern Market area (its super dog friendly with lots of flea and food markets).

The first impression of the space was great! We liked the high cathedral ceilings, the big open windows, and the “Blank canvas” feel of the space.

There were some downsides to the venue though. The rental fee is $4500 for the building until 1am, which means we would have to pay $200 for each additional hour. Realistically, we would need at least 1 or 2 additional hours on the back end for breakdown and such This means we are looking at about $5,000 just for the room!

We would basically have to pay for EVERYTHING, which means pipe and draping, scaling down the dance floor, tent and heaters for caterers, furniture, decor, stage rental for DJ/band to enhance acoustics, transportation because there aren’t bridal suites, and lighting. All of these extras make me see lots of dollar bill signs because those are a lot of “extras.” Especially considering we still have to come up with money for the food, vendors, favors, etc.

Another downfall of the space is that we can’t have the sparkler exit I wanted!

There was a fire at Eastern Market in 2007 that nearly shut it down forever. Because of this, they have made some changes, which now prohibits fireworks from the premises. Seems like it wouldn’t be a problem to abide by the change until I think about our guests saying farewell without sparklers in hand.

I know this is a very small detail but one that I wanted in our special day.

Aug 25, 20100 notes

#eastern market, #washington dc #venue feedback #north hall at eastern market

Venue Feedback - Mansion on O Street

Our first venue visit was The Mansion on O Street in Dupont Circle. Me, Beetle, AND our wedding planner were SO EXCITED to see the mansion. Last week we headed down to Dupont Circle in the pouring rain to “book” our venue.

The mansion has over 100 rooms and 32 secret doors spread throughout four maze-like floors. It is actually four row houses opened to one another and turned into one elaborate hotel and museum where EVERYTHING you see is for sale. Literally, everything!

We were very surprised once we walked inside because it was VERY different than we had imagined - all of us!

One room was called the John Lennon room - you can see his picture on the bathroom floor!

The rooms were filled with STUFF. I couldn’t stop laughing as we walked through each room because there was stuff everywhere! I felt like we were walking through a flea market or we were filming an episode of “Hoarders: Buried Alive.”

In the end, the venue is very unique and eclectic. If i were to have a Sunday Brunch wedding, I would heavily consider it, but it does not fit into our New Year’s Eve theme. One thing to note is there are a lot of hidden fees. A LOT. Basically, there is a $1000 membership fee and a $4500 rental fee for the main floor. Sounds reasonable until you learn that you pay for EVERYTHING. For instance, they will provide paper plates and cups, but if you want real plates and glasses, you pay for each! You also pay to have them cleaned!

Aug 23, 20100 notes

#mansion on o street #venue feedback

DIY Idea - Candle Shades

Wow. What an amazing idea to create your own little lamps. I wonder how these will work once the candle burns out? Does the wax get all over the wine glass? Is it ruined? I may have to try this out! Tutorial here - http://www.casasugar.com/DIY-Wine-Glass-Candle-Lampshades-1551107

Aug 18, 2010-1 notes

#shades #candle lamps #wine glass DIY

Making it Official - Social Media Style

In our times, it is not “official” until it is Facebook official. So, we waited a few weeks until we changed our statuses so we could verbally share our news with our friends and families.

Then came the time to tell the world!