The One Where We Choose a Venue

After our whirlwind venue tour, Mr. Coyote and I sat down and talked about the pros and cons of everything we saw. The dude was pretty set with River Stone, but I was wavering a bit. I wanted to see a few more places.

And so in November we packed up our bags (again) and went to see three more venues.

The first one could not really accommodate our large group. The second one was insanely over budget. And the third one was just right.

You know how some girls find a wedding dress and they put it on and they just “know” that it’s the one? That’s how I felt about this venue. I walked into the space and I just “knew”. This was the one. I could picture myself getting married here. I could see us celebrating with all of our friends and family. It was just pure perfection.

Are you dying to see it??

Well I won’t hold you in suspense any more. Here is the world’s (okay, maybe just my) most perfect venue:

Image via Franklin Plaza / Photo by Michael Gallitelli
Can you see me walking down the aisle to meet my wonderful fiance??

  Michael Gallitelli

And now, the same room.... Set up for the reception. Oh and hey they can hold way above and beyond our measly 200 person guest list. BOOM! Sold.

  
Image via Franklin Plaza / Photo by: Moak Photography

Look at that ceiling!!

Franklin Plaza

Nerd Alert: I could go on forever about the architecture and historical significance of this building, but it will probably bore you to death so I’ll try to keep it short.... I don’t want to sound like this guy:

Screen Junkies

Anyone? Anyone?

I fully admit that I’ve seen Mr. Coyote's eyes glaze over more than once when I’m on one of my “History is F-U-N!” tirades, so I apologize in advance.

Our venue was built in 1833 and housed financial institutions. When they remodeled they kept the original bank vault and transformed the marble teller’s counter into a bar. This is very location where the plans and financing were decided on to build the “Monitor” - a famous Civil War battleship. Oh-Em-Gee.... I die. I think the building’s amazing history has a lot to do with why we chose this venue.

Once we decided on the venue everything else kind of fell into place. I truly felt like a bride now and this whole we’re-actually-getting-married-and-planning-a-wedding-thing sunk in. It was kind of nerve-wracking and incredibly exhilarating.

What part of the planning process made things “real” for you?