Rob's Mom and I decided to go shop around for venues. For those of you who haven't been to Columbus must realize that it is a BIG city and there are so many options. I knew that one day wouldn't be enough time to search and decide on a place but knew it would be fun and give us ideas. Let's just start off by saying the day didn't start off as planned. My car was making a horrible noise so I had Marla follow me to drop my car off at Midas because Rob said it sounded like the brakes. A couple hours later they called and said I needed new brake pads and rotors. When I went to pick it up the bill was not what I expected, almost $900. So all the extra jobs I have going this summer will now have to go towards paying for my brakes instead of saving for the wedding. Oh Well I guess, Life Happens as some say.
Anyways let's get back to the fun stuff. Our first stop was called the Bryn Du Mansion. The directions said it was in Granville and I thought this wouldn't be too far of a drive. Well, when you get Marla and I together, who are not the best at driving or directions it makes for an interesting day. We were 45 minutes late for our appointment but we made it. It was beautiful! The total property consists of 52 acres. The front field, known as the Polo Field, is 32 acres. There are Polo games and practice that takes place weekly on the field. Me being from KY and loving horses made me like this location even more. The two buildings that can be rented out are the Federal style mansion built in 1905 or the recently built 7200 sq ft Field House. There is also places for the ceremony to take place in several places, one being a beautiful garden, at no extra cost. You can bring your own alcohol which is a plus and hire your own caterer which is also a plus since I have been working for a catering company for the last year. One negative is we would have to rent tables and chairs which is an additional cost. The second negative is almost all of the Saturdays are already booked for next summer. Another negative is this location is about 25 minutes North East of Columbus and with so many out-of- towners I hate to make them drive even further. Here are some pics of the location.
This is one room where the reception would take place. People would be eating in several rooms.
This is one ceremony site which is the front patio and overlooks the Polo field.
The second place that was planned to visit is called Berwick Manor. Of course we were running behind but that was ok because once we showed up in the neighborhood and drove into the parking lot we realized this was NOT the place to have a wedding reception. It was NOT in a nice part of town. Of course there was a reason I wanted to check it out... there is no rental fee for the facility. Now we know why.
Moving on...
The next place was downtown. It is called the Lincoln Theater. It was nice but not exactly what I wanted. It is a big ballroom and that's really all there is to say about it.
The next place we visited is one of our top favorite places so far, the Franklin Park Conservatory. It was built in 1895, and is a botanical landmark. It is a premier horticultural and educational institution showcasing exotic plant collections, special exhibitions, and a signature collection of work by glass artist Dale Chihuly. It is set within the 88 acres of Franklin Park, the Conservatory houses 400 species of plants from a variety of global climate zones and features a Victorian Palm House with more than 40 species of palms. It is surrounded by botanical gardens and floral displays. It is absolutely gorgeous! There are three locations on site to choose from to rent. Each space comes with an outdoor and indoor area to use. One positive is we wouldn't have to spend much on the flowers because there are already so many. A second positive is all of our guests would be able to go through the different exhibits as much as they wanted throughout the night. Another positive is the pictures would be absolutely beautiful. However, there are a couple negatives. The best room to rent is called the Palm House and it is sooooo hot. The outdoor area is absolutely stunning, but if it rains we would be stuck in the hot, humid Palm House. Another negative is the alcohol is soooo expensive because you have to use their alcohol due to liquor license laws. One more negative is all of the Saturdays are booked for June 2012 and we aren't sure if we want to go into July and August with it being so hot. We thought about going into September. The only date open in September is the 28th. Soooo anyways decide for yourself with some pictures.
This is the inside of the Palm House where the ceremony and/or reception could take place.
This is the Palm House at night, there are lights that change colors.
This is the outside of the Palm House where the reception can be set up to take place.
This is the Brides Garden where we could take pictures at.
This is in front of the Palm House where the ceremony could take place too.
After the FPC we went across the street and visited the Columbus Art Museum. It was very nice but pretty pricey for having no outdoor space.
There is another place that we haven't gotten a chance to look at yet but the pictures are gorgeous! This place is called the Athletic Club of Columbus. It is not what it sounds. There is way more than an athletic club. It is an old building downtown. You have to be a member but Rob's parents belong to a club in South Carolina and they do reciprocating memberships, this club included. Hopefully this will make some of the rental fees less. Before knowing the cost of this place the only negative I see is there is no outdoor space, but that may be a good thing. Oh yeah and also I'm not sure how conducive this place would be for kids. Between the 7 bridesmaids they have 10 kids and thats just the wedding party! We will make it work because there will be kids at my wedding! Here are some pictures.
There is one last place that I am maybe thinking that Rob hasn't looked at yet. It is called North Bank Park. It is a park that overlooks the river in downtown Columbus. It is the least expensive to rent. They let you bring your own alcohol too, which can save a bundle. Here are some pics!
This is such a hard decision and I feel like there are more places to look. It all comes down to what Rob and I want our wedding to feel like and be like. That's the problem though. These venues are all so different. Do we want the downtown Columbus feel or the botanical garden feel or the old mansion feel? There are also some golf courses in town we would like to look at too. So that adds the country club, green grass feel. Hopefully soon we will come up with a decision and you ALL will be the first to know! Please let me know what you think!
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