Rent a “Bathhouse” for your Wedding Venue

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I just did a wedding at the Golden Gardens Bathhouse last night that was truly amazing.  It was amazing because this is a facility that is a blank slate except for the beach right outside the windows.  It has been remodeled so it is a very clean canvas to work with.  The couple that I married last night, however, really made an impression on me as to how much this space can be transformed.  Lisa chose purple and green for her “colors”.  The tables were beautiful with their green runners and brightly colored flowers in shades of purple and pink.  The vases were also filled with sliced limes, adding to the purple and green color scheme. The biggest feature that really transformed this space, however, was the lighting.  Lisa’s mom hired a specialty lighting company to bring in strings of lights that were hung up everywhere, creating a very intimate and romantic setting.

Check out the Golden Gardens Bathhouse for your wedding: Spring, Summer, Winter or Fall!

Find a restaurant for your reception!

Last weekend I made a dinner reservation at Ray’s Boathouse via an online booking company called Open Table . Open Table is really cool — they have hundreds of Seattle restaurants in their program — including restaurants who can do private dining for wedding receptions! Check out the link to choose a restaurant for your rehearsal dinner and/or wedding reception. Lots of great options to choose from!

 

Summer Weddings

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So what’s been happening over the last month?  Well, I have performed weddings indoors and out, far and near.  One of my favorite weddings was the wedding of Chelsea and Joshua.  They are a young couple living here in Ballard that contacted me many, many months ago for their Bainbridge Island wedding.  They rented the Seabold Inn, which is an old schoolhouse built in the 1800’s with a huge yard out back.  Chelsea and Joshua chose wedding favors from Archie McPhee and a friend made their beautiful wedding cake which was decorated with fresh seasonal flowers.  The ceremony was held inside the schoolhouse and was quite charming with it’s mis-matched chairs and wooden floors.  Everything about this wedding was charming actually, but especially Chelsea and Joshua with their great big smiles!  The couple celebrated outdoors with a big picnic including lemonade and yummy food.  Tables were decorated with vintage tablecloths.

And how about Chelsea’s shoes?  Wow!  Fantastic!

 

 

 

 

Last Minute Proposal at Sculpture Park

Tyler proposing to Apryl at the start of the wedding ceremony at the Olympic Sculpture parkI recently had the pleasure of performing my first “sunrise wedding” for Tyler and Apryl.  They chose the Olympic Sculpture Park for their 5:30 a.m. nuptials.  So I set my alarm for 4:15 a.m. that morning and was up and ready to go by 5.  Unfortunately, there was cloud cover but it was still enchanting at the park that early in the morning with Puget Sound and the Olympic mountains as our background.  Due to the early hour, the park was empty except for our small group that met under the “Eagle” at the sculpture park, including parents and the couple’s young son.  But there was still a lot of excitement and anticipation in the air.  Probably the most surprising and exciting part of the ceremony was just before we began and Tyler got down on one knee and “officially” proposed to Apryl.  Everyone was surprised, especially the bride!  The photographer: Jonathan Steinberg of JMS Weddings caught this great picture just as Tyler proposed to Apryl.  So romantic!

Another Military Wedding

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I recently had the pleasure of doing a wedding for a couple who chose a very unique place to get married:  The Mukilteo Lighthouse!  Because the groom is in the coastguard the lighthouse was available to him and his bride at no charge!  Imagine that — a free venue because you are in the coastguard and my 10% discount because you are in the military!  This couple really saved and look at how beautiful their small, unique wedding was.  Another example of how to have the wedding of your dreams without breaking the bank!  Call me today for your free consultation: 206-406-7919.

 

Mother’s Day Backyard Wedding!

Yesterday was mother’s day and I had the great pleasure of marrying a couple who — as they put it — were celebrating the love that began over 25 years ago. And you can really see the love in these pictures.

It was a very simple and very sweet wedding, with their two mothers in attendance, along with their two boys, the photographer and myself.  We were originally going to go to a local Ballard beach but with the weather constantly changing yesterday, decided to have the wedding in their charming backyard — along with their chickens and dog! 

A loving neighbor baked them a beautiful chocolate cake with chocolate dipped strawberries scattered over the top. The bride had a lovely bouquet of flowers that she chose herself.

 

It was a great honor and pleasure to marry such a lovely couple.  And it just goes to show you that you don’t have to break the bank to have the wedding of your dreams.  Just look at the love on these faces and you will see a very happy couple who kept it simple!   Thank you Gary and Shelley for inviting me to be part of your very special Mother’s day!

Wedding on the water

I did a beautiful wedding last night at the Edgewater Hotel on Seattle’s waterfront.  My couple ordered my “Main Event” package, which includes my officiating services, my photographer, flowers and a cake.  They rented a private dining room just off the main restaurant and two tables for 10 each.  After the ceremony they used the bridal bouquet and an additional bouquet that I provided for their centerpieces.  They invited my photographer, Peter, and I to stay for dinner and I had such a great time getting to know them better and some of their family as well.  They did a fantastic job planning everything and I was overjoyed at being included in their big day!  Congratulations Darren and Rebekah!

Another Space Needle Observation Deck wedding!

Just got back from another wedding at the Space Needle Observation Deck  Congratulations Andrew and Teresa!  You are a beautiful couple and I wish you much happiness!

I have to give the folks at the Space Needle a great big thanks for letting us have our way.  When I arrived I wasn’t aware of the fact that my couple wanted to eat at the needle after the ceremony.  I asked them if they had a reservation and they said no.  I also advised them that if they were going to eat up there that their elevator ride would be complementary.  They were excited about that considering the elevator ride fee for adults is $18 per person.  But what we didn’t know — and this is partly what I’m blogging about so others can be aware — is that they only give out the complementary tickets 30 minutes before your meal reservation.  The problem with this was that my couple wanted to get married on the observation deck at 1pm and their brunch reservation wasn’t until 2:15.  So that meant, if they wanted to have their elevator ride paid by the Space Needle folks they (we) would have to wait around for 45 minutes.  I insisted that they wait and get the discount because who wants to pay $18 per person when you don’t have to, right?  Instead, and this is where my compliments go out to the Space Needle, we went to the desk and spoke with a manager and long story short, she personally escorted us up the elevator to the observation deck and we were able to have our ceremony on time with the couples meal to follow later.

That’s customer service!  Thanks Space Needle!

Great Waterfront Hotel For In-suite Wedding!

I just returned from doing a really sweet wedding for a couple at the Edgewater Hotel (http://www.edgewaterhotel.com/edgewater_hotelinfo.aspx).  Remember the one that years ago (I don’t want to date myself here) advertised “Fish From Your Window”?  Yep, that one.  Since I was there last, they have done a renovation which is gives the hotel a rustic and cozy feeling.

Anyway, my couple rented a one-bedroom suite that featured french doors separating the bedroom and bathroom from the sitting room, where we did the ceremony.   And to add to the ambiance they had a waterfront room so there will be some great sunset pictures.  I brought the cake, flowers and photographer and the bride decorated the room.  Since I had my photographer there I didn’t take pics with my Blackberry, which just isn’t doing my pictures justice lately, so thank you Peter for your pictures when they are developed.

This is an excellent idea for a small wedding.  I highly recommend it because it’s cozy, romantic and small enough that you can handle the details, and large enough so you can invite 10 or so of your friends and family.  And if you wanted, you could invite more friends to meet you in the hotel lounge for a celebratory glass of champagne — and then maybe dinner in the hotel restuarant!!   The options are really limitless with this one-bedroom hotel suite wedding idea.

And last but certainly not least — Congratulations Kathy and David!  Kathy you really did a fantastic job with your decorations and planning.  You made my job so easy because you had a vision and it was a joy putting your vision together!  Thank you for including me in your very special day!

Hotel Suites for Ceremony

I would like to introduce a trend that I think is a great value for a small (10 or less) wedding ceremony and more…

I’m talking about renting a suite in a nice hotel in downtown Seattle for the night.  Have everyone gather at the suite for an intimate ceremony with a few refreshments in the room.  Then proceed to one of many restaurants nearby for your celebration.

Many of the hotels are offering great rates right now because this is the “slow” season.  Except for all the Christmas parties all over town this month rooms are generally not full.  A way to make up some of this is to offer a great rate on the suites.

So plan an evening with a few of your closest friends/family in a beautiful downtown Seattle hotel suite and celebrate with a meal afterwards at one of the many award-winning restuarants in this part of Seattle.

Check out the suite options at the Seattle Downtown Warwick Hotel by clicking on the link below:

http://warwickwa.com/default.aspx?pg=accommodation&rp=specials