Choosing a Wedding Venue: 6 Tips you Probably Haven't Heard

Hey y'all!,

I'm so excited to begin this journey with all of you! I will warn you, this one is lengthy, but it is worth the read! 

In order to really start, we need to go back. Way, way back to last March, when we reserved our wedding venue. 

Yes, we reserved our wedding venue over 18 months in advance. Most wedding checklists would tell you that you need to do this 12 months in advance, but I am here to tell you, you need to get it nailed down ASAP. Especially when you know it's a good deal. Don't assume you are the only one who knows about it, because trust me, you aren't.

I won't bore you with a list of things you need consider before choosing a venue. Most of them are common sense, or things you can find on theknot.com.

Before starting our search, this is what we knew:

• We knew from the beginning that we were going to need a large space because we wanted to be able to accommodate our church family. We made a list, it was close to 250. I immediately had a stroke. But, we vowed to find a way!
•   We really weren't passionate about it being indoors or outdoors, but I preferred to have an outdoor ceremony.
• We decided that we would have a rustic/southern/simple/shabby chic style. (think, burlap, mason jars, and lace, but with a twist!)
• We wanted to spend NO MORE than $1,000 on our venue.
• We were open to an all inclusive package, but soon found out it wasn't for us.
• We knew we wanted dancing, so unfortunately our church fellowship hall was out.
• Our only real non-negotiables  were cutting our guest list, and our wedding month.

So after talking it over, I started calling places a month after our engagement. I began calling a lot of "big name" places in the area like The Springdale House, The Mitchell House, Wintergreen Woods, 701 Whaley, The Mill at Adam's Pond. If it was in the phone book, I called it. Yes, I still use a phone book. ;) (Forgive me if you are not from Columbia, or SC for that matter and you have no idea what I'm talking about!)

And when I was done, I wanted to cry. Some of these places wanted between $1000-$1200 to rent the place, but then you had to choose THEIR caterer and THEIR caterer charged at minimum of $22 a person. And that was just for cheese and crackers. And several of them were "all inclusive," driving the price up even MORE. I was distraught. Then, I thought, there has to be a better way. 

So, I thought, I'll find a local plantation. Maybe a farm. That can't be too expensive. Right? Wrong. Wrong, Wrong, Wrong.

One farm quoted me $5,000 just for use of the space. This did not include tables, chairs, linens, or anything. Which, I mean, I guess it made sense because they had to stop production at the farm to hold an event. But, good grief. Other places I called had limited space, and also no tables, no chairs, etc. All I could see was $$$$$$ going out the window. Actually, all I could see was Tyler and I at the courthouse because I truly thought it was all we could afford because there was just no way that we were going to cut down our guest list.

Then, I started talking to people. People in class that were getting married, people at work, people at church, my friends, my friends' friends. I started stalking local photographer's blogs to see other places people were having weddings instead of limiting myself to common local wedding/reception sites (I highly recommend doing this, as it not only helps in finding more unique venues, it also shows you how the venue looks when it is "dressed for a wedding" and can oftentimes provide for more ideas!).

I began to find out about places like the Palmetto Collegiate Institute, the Town of Lexington conference room, and T & S Farms. Places that were finally reasonable! For us it came down to the Palmetto Collegiate Institute (a beautiful historical house that was once used as a college turned wedding venue) and T & S Farms (a farm owned by Shealy's BBQ in Batesburg, SC with a beautiful outside area for a ceremony and barn for reception). 

We ended up choosing T & S Farms because it fit our theme perfectly! This is what we got for under $1000:

• Use of outside grounds for ceremony.
• A barn that holds up to 350 for a reception. 
• Tables, chairs, and linens for ALL of our guests. And even some tables and chairs to go outside for an indoor/outdoor feel.
• Plates, cups, napkins, and utensils for ALL guests.
• Use of a bridal cabin.
• Use of a projector.
• Use of other misc. items including an easel, tin tubs filled with ice, wreath hooks, etc. 

 We do have to use Shealy's BBQ as our caterer...but we wanted to use them anyway! And the cost is less than $10 per person. Score!!

We were a bit nervous choosing a venue in a small town about 30-45 minutes from our own, but we decided that those who truly care about us won't mind the drive!

So...What did I learn through all of this?

1. Ask around! Shop around! Don't assume that the only venues that exist are the ones you've heard about.
2. ALWAYS CHECK IN SMALL TOWNS. You will hear me say this a lot. I truly believe that small town venues/vendors are cheaper, of better quality, and the people are all around better to work with, and in most cases, they are even more experienced. Even if your guests have to drive a few extra minutes, it will be worth it. And if they love ya, they won't mind!
3.   Stalk! Stalk, stalk, stalk the blogs of photographers in your area. It will give you great ideas for unique venues, and hey, you might even find your photographer!
4. "All inclusive" does not always (and really hardly ever) means "value deal." In my opinion, you would pay less finding your own vendors. HOWEVER, if your guest list is small, and you don't want the hassle of searching, this may be for you!
5. Farm does not always equal cheaper. Don't just assume, call and find out!
6. If you find a place you like, book it! I just found out that my wedding venue is booked straight through every weekend in 2014 and already part of 2015!

I hope this helped! If you have any questions at all, feel free to leave a comment below. I would love to eventually call all of these places again and get their prices, as well as what their prices include, and make a list of that here. I'm sure it would save someone A LOT of headache.

Until next time, friends! Happy planning!