I meant to post this months ago!
So, I originally wrote the bulk of this post MONTHS ago, after Eric and I made a quick trip to Oregon so he could renew his license (even though he now has to get a Maryland one) and to see the wedding venue. I wrote most of it while doing nothing at work, and just found it in my email. Pre-made wedding update? Heck yes!
Coming away from looking at the venue, I am really excited and already plotting all the fun decorating things I can do and exactly how things will be set up. On the website for the Oak Grove they really only give pictures of the largest area with the gazebo. But when visiting, we found out it has two other areas:
This is the fire pit area. I doubt we’d use the fire pit, but I love the big giant open field of grass with the whole valley in the background. I am already plotting awesome picture taking opportunities. (A plus: one of the owner’s daughters is a photographer in the Portland area who not only takes awesome pictures, but is obviously already familiar with the venue. She even directed her dad how/ where to position things to get the light right when he first cleared out the grove.) I also think it would also be a good place to gather everyone pre-ceremony. (Except Eric, maybe. I am still waffling on whether or not we should avoid each other until the ceremony, or if we should do photos before the ceremony so we can just get straight to the reception.)
This is a small secondary grove that is hidden in the back:
You can get here from the fire pit area down a short path (that has awesome over-hanging branches to take pictures under), but you can also get to it from the main grove area down a longer, winding path through the trees. I don’t think they have ever had a ceremony in this little grove, but I think this is the perfect opportunity. It would be more intimate than the main area, and I love the idea of the guests having to wander through the trees to get there. I used to be a big fairy tale/ fantasy nerd (and still am to some extent), and while I am not really planning on incorporating much of this former obsession into the wedding, I think this is one of the less weird/ more…um… need a word… whimsical/ elegant/ non-obvious ways to do it. (I didn’t actually take any pictures of said path because Eric’s mom and I were too busy talking and plotting having the ceremony back there).
This also solves another one of my problems: how to handle setting up the large grove for both wedding and reception. When we were planning on having the ceremony in the main area, I didn’t know how to do it. I didn’t want to have the tables and chairs set up and have people just sit at the tables during the ceremony, especially since the majority of the tables would be circular and some people would be facing away from us. I know it has been done, and done well, it just seemed weird to me and I was never enthusiastic about it. I also didn’t want to rent a double amount of chairs (considering they are at least $1.50 per chair, and that is for cheap ugly ones) just to have them pre-set up around the tables and in front of the gazebo. But I also didn’t know if it would be weird to ask the guests to move their own chairs to the tables.
By having the ceremony in the smaller back area I can have all the tables and chairs set up ahead of time (and spread out so they aren’t all squished off to the side). Originally we were thinking we would only provide chairs during the ceremony to the more elderly guests and ask that everyone else stand. Standing sounds a little more uncomfortable, but hey, the ceremony should only be a half hour or so. Ever been to a parade? You’ve stood longer than that. And in more uncomfortable conditions (concrete + feet = not good friends). BUT! Then I saw photos like these:
Source
I LOVE this idea. This particular wedding has a lot of cowboy boots and what not, which is not really our thing. But I think in the setting of the little grove and with some pretty blankets, it will fit in just fine. Eric's parents also think they might be able to get a hold of some hay bales that we can just borrow for the day (hopefully for free).
Now I just need to find blankets. Our families have a bajillion quilts and blankets, but I don't really want to use our nice ones made by our grandmothers in case it rains, they get dirty, etc. Time to start looking at Goodwill, if you ask me.
Coming away from looking at the venue, I am really excited and already plotting all the fun decorating things I can do and exactly how things will be set up. On the website for the Oak Grove they really only give pictures of the largest area with the gazebo. But when visiting, we found out it has two other areas:
This is the fire pit area. I doubt we’d use the fire pit, but I love the big giant open field of grass with the whole valley in the background. I am already plotting awesome picture taking opportunities. (A plus: one of the owner’s daughters is a photographer in the Portland area who not only takes awesome pictures, but is obviously already familiar with the venue. She even directed her dad how/ where to position things to get the light right when he first cleared out the grove.) I also think it would also be a good place to gather everyone pre-ceremony. (Except Eric, maybe. I am still waffling on whether or not we should avoid each other until the ceremony, or if we should do photos before the ceremony so we can just get straight to the reception.)
This is a small secondary grove that is hidden in the back:
You can get here from the fire pit area down a short path (that has awesome over-hanging branches to take pictures under), but you can also get to it from the main grove area down a longer, winding path through the trees. I don’t think they have ever had a ceremony in this little grove, but I think this is the perfect opportunity. It would be more intimate than the main area, and I love the idea of the guests having to wander through the trees to get there. I used to be a big fairy tale/ fantasy nerd (and still am to some extent), and while I am not really planning on incorporating much of this former obsession into the wedding, I think this is one of the less weird/ more…um… need a word… whimsical/ elegant/ non-obvious ways to do it. (I didn’t actually take any pictures of said path because Eric’s mom and I were too busy talking and plotting having the ceremony back there).
This also solves another one of my problems: how to handle setting up the large grove for both wedding and reception. When we were planning on having the ceremony in the main area, I didn’t know how to do it. I didn’t want to have the tables and chairs set up and have people just sit at the tables during the ceremony, especially since the majority of the tables would be circular and some people would be facing away from us. I know it has been done, and done well, it just seemed weird to me and I was never enthusiastic about it. I also didn’t want to rent a double amount of chairs (considering they are at least $1.50 per chair, and that is for cheap ugly ones) just to have them pre-set up around the tables and in front of the gazebo. But I also didn’t know if it would be weird to ask the guests to move their own chairs to the tables.
By having the ceremony in the smaller back area I can have all the tables and chairs set up ahead of time (and spread out so they aren’t all squished off to the side). Originally we were thinking we would only provide chairs during the ceremony to the more elderly guests and ask that everyone else stand. Standing sounds a little more uncomfortable, but hey, the ceremony should only be a half hour or so. Ever been to a parade? You’ve stood longer than that. And in more uncomfortable conditions (concrete + feet = not good friends). BUT! Then I saw photos like these:
Source
I LOVE this idea. This particular wedding has a lot of cowboy boots and what not, which is not really our thing. But I think in the setting of the little grove and with some pretty blankets, it will fit in just fine. Eric's parents also think they might be able to get a hold of some hay bales that we can just borrow for the day (hopefully for free).
Now I just need to find blankets. Our families have a bajillion quilts and blankets, but I don't really want to use our nice ones made by our grandmothers in case it rains, they get dirty, etc. Time to start looking at Goodwill, if you ask me.