Wednesday, July 8, 2009

we've set the date!

Talk about a sigh of relief! This was one of the most stressful pieces of starting to plan for me, choosing a venue & setting the date that would fit within our budget.

I started researching and browsing online for different venues, just looking for someplace I thought would be "pretty" enough for our big day. We weren't picky about where, just as long as it was in Southern California. I looked in the Redlands/Inland Empire area, San Diego, Orange County, and Palm Springs. We also knew we wanted to get married outside. I started making a list/spreadsheet with pricing information and started looking!

My mom and I only looked at two venues before we fell in LOVE. The first we looked at was the Mitten Building in Redlands. I had this idea in my head that getting married in our hometown would be something special to share with our guests. We visited the Mitten Building and it is a very unique space that I really liked. It is an old, historic building (which I loved) filled with brick and original wood paneling. It's definitely a space you could decorate and make your own. Leaving the Mitten Building, it was a definite contender in my mind.

A few weeks later we made the drive to San Clemente (about an hour and a half from Redlands) to visit the Casa Romantica Cultural Center & Gardens. The second I got out of the car and saw the space, I fell in love. It's also a historic estate, looking over the ocean. My favorite thing about the venue is that we have the entire estate for the day - ceremony in one area, cocktail hour in another, dinner here, dancing there... The gal at Casa Romantica was great, and so helpful. She gave us lots of ideas and tips, thanks Regina! I'm really looking forward to working with her.

Well, we decided this was THE place and decided on a date - September 5, 2010! The great thing about this date is that it's a Sunday (which means Sunday prices) but it's like a Saturday because it's over Labor Day weekend! Don't worry, Travis approved :)

I feel this huge weight lifted from me now that this is decided. No more stress from here on out, right? :) Here are some images of this beautiful space...






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