Venue Higlight - The Harvest Inn

The Harvest Inn in St. Helena is one of the most beautiful wedding venues. Now, I may be a bit biased because 5 years ago tomorrow, at about this time, I was walking down the vineyard rows with my new husband taking in the Inn's romantic vibe and watching my guests clink wine glasses under the setting sun. So in honor of my anniversary, I am going to brag about how fabulous The Harvest Inn is for a wedding. My top five reasons for getting hitched there...

5) You "own" the venue for the entire day, no other weddings will be performed on site that day. And since it is an Inn, your guests can stay - no need to drive after the big event!

4) The stunning brickwork, lush landscaping and Tudor-like guest cottages make the Inn feel a little bit magical.

3) The service is amazing. Let's just say I had a snafu with my dress on the big day and their staff and my coordinator came together for the big rescue. I may have had to wear a white sheet if it weren't for them. (People, wedding planners/coordinators are a must have on your wedding day - another subject for another post).

2) The access to different locations throughout the wedding. This keeps your guests exploring and enjoying new locations throughout the night. The manor lawn, the library room, the patio over looking the vineyards, the fountain and bridge...I could go on and on.

1) You can get married literally in a vineyard. The patio opens up onto Whitehall Lane's impeccably kept vines. It was the only true vineyard backdrop I found on my search for a wine country wedding without the pain of getting married at an actual winery. The rules at winery can sometimes be tough for a bride to deal with.

I found these great photos over at Project Wedding of Marisa and Mike who also got married at The Harvest Inn. They show great area shots of the venue with the vineyard. You can also check out the galleries on Trisha Dean Events for another Harvest Inn Wedding.













The patio overlooking the vineyards for the ceremony.



















Transformed for the reception.

Photo source: Richard Wood Photographics

Beautiful Bridal Hair Pieces

Recently a few brides have come to me in search of the great bridal hairpiece, straying from the traditional veil or adding to it with a headband, beaded hair vine, silk flower or fresh flowers. When it comes to fresh flowers, only a few types hold up to the heat, hugging, dancing and movement of an entire wedding day. But I will leave that topic to another post. I want to talk about the silk, beaded or feathered kind. Chatting with some of my vendors, I found that bridal hair jewelry tends to get incredibly pricey, very quickly. Then I stumbled upon a great site for inexpensive bridal hairpieces - AND the best part is - for the budget bride, some hairpieces you can rent! Tigerlilly Jewelry has designed adorable silk flowers, sparkling beaded vines, headbands and more to perfect any wedding ensemble. Pictured below was one of my favorites, the Lulu Comb. Take a peek for yourself!

















Photo source: www.tigerlillyjewelry.com

Remembering Loved Ones at Your Wedding

When planning the wedding, one thing I have found is brides and grooms wanting to honor special family members that have passed on within their ceremony. Finding ways to acknowledge these people have included such things as a heartfelt note within the couple's program, a special red rose placed within the bride's bouquet which was her grandmother's favorite, or taking a piece of fabric from the wedding dress of the loved one and sewing it into the slip of the new bride's dress. All of these meaningful touches make the ceremony personal and special.

In working with a bride we stumbled upon another amazing way to remember her fiancé’s father and her grandfather. With personalized memory candles we were able to add ambiance to the ceremony and create a special moment where the bride and groom acknowledged and lit the candles.

These candles are quite easy to find though a quick internet search, and since then I have seen vases with floating candles that are just as beautiful. Just wanted to drop a quick note for all those couples out there planning!













Photo by XSiGHT Photography