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Outdoor Options | Caitlin & Brooks

Couples predominately come to Keswick Vineyards because of the natural, picturesque views. The beautiful oak trees that are over 300-years-old, the abundance of the vineyard, and the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background makes for picture-perfect scenery. When you think of a simply natural and beautiful setting, this is it! With outdoor settings, though, comes outdoor options! Caitlin and Brooks, who had their wedding here on September 2, 2018, was a couple that used every aspect of the natural, outdoor setting to their advantage. We loved their various, fun outdoor options and can’t wait to share it with our readers!

One thing that we recommend to our couples is to use place cards that have some weight to them. With the nice breeze that you get for being in a mountainous region, sometimes the cards cannot withstand it and, therefore, do not stay in place. Caitlin and Brooks created a window frame and wrote each table and guests’ name on it. They leaned the beautiful window frame against one of our wine barrels and placed it on the side of the stairs so that guests could see where they were to be seated. Having such a sturdy, decorative piece was ingenious! We also loved the touch of greenery and florals that made the sign really “pop!”

Amongst this sign was also a bar sign with all of the alcoholic beverages being served. Caitlin and Brooks, again, used a window frame so that guests knew exactly what was on the menu for their drink options of the day. We thought that having the bar sign rest upon an easel, opposed to on the bar, was a great way to make a simple sign more of a decorative piece that could withstand the breeze that we receive. 

Our favorite “outdoor option,” though, was the Carpe Donut truck! With transitioning into fall, it’s a great option to have apple cider donuts in lieu of a cake. Guests love to go up to the truck, order their dessert, and mingle amongst other guests outside. It’s also a great option to have for coffee so that the tent space can be maximized for other things. I know that I am not speaking for myself when I say that we could never get tired of Carpe Donuts!

The remainder of the night was spent snacking on some fall-themed donuts and dancing the night away with all attention on Caitlin and Brooks. Congratulations to the happy couple! 

Thank you to the following vendors for all of their hard work:

Event Planner: Keswick Vineyards, Caterer: Harvest Moon, Florist: Amanda Burnette, Officiant: Mary Schmotzer, DJ: John Garland, Desserts: Carpe Donut, Musicians: The Bloom Trio, Photographer: Jen Fariello, Hair and Makeup Artist: Top Knot and Rouge 9, Lighting: Skyline Tent Company, Rentals: La Tavola and Harvest Moon.

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Hillary & Peter's Wedding Day | Hillary & Peter

"A parade without a march leader is a mob; an orchestra without a director is noise and a circus without a ring leader is random chaos!" These words came from one of the many amazing vendors who helped to make Peter and Hillary's wedding day one of the best we've had this season.  For this wedding, Meghan Streit  was all of the above. She was the leader, the director, and the ring leader who beautifully crafted and coordinated one heck of a shindig!

On Saturday, October 1st all of the hard work, planning, and coordination that took place for the past year for Hillary and Peter went live. All of details that had been schemed, hammered out, and conceptualized were brought to life and together they helped to make this day one of the absolute best days in Hillary and Peter's lives.

It's hard to even know where to begin when you have so many glorious and gorgeous details. For simplicity, I say we start from the beginning! Meghan and her team got to work early with help from The Catering Outfit and set up a brunch buffet for the girls in the bridal suite. The spread was complete with Keswick Vineyard's newest sparkling wine as the perfect pop to start them off and an arrangement of fresh juices, fruits, and cheeses to send these bridesmaids into hair and makeup bliss. The guys weren't forgotten either. Hillary wanted to make sure that her guy and his guys had the perfect day as well. She planned a beer tasting for them in our man’s cave, which included beer and snack pairings of some of Peter's favorite beers. The guys loved the surprise and relished in both the beer and the snacks!

After a relaxing morning and early afternoon of pre-wedding fun, the couple was ready for their ceremony. They incorporated a wine blending into their ceremony, which is always a vineyard wedding favorite. Hillary and Peter shared their “I do’s” and then sent their guests off to enjoy cocktails and appetizers around Keswick’s big oak tree. It was important to them that they kept their guests happy and entertained while they snuck off to take photos, so they made a little scavenger hunt out of their guest’s table assignments! Each guest had their own copper Moscow Mule mug (their signature cocktail) with their names tied in ribbon and suspended from the trees. In order to find out what table they were at for the reception they had to go on a hunt to find the mug with their name on it. Guests loved it!

As if the moments leading up to the reception weren’t enough, even more attention was put into the reception. Take a look for yourself! There was not a corner of the tent left untouched when it came to designing the most picture perfect reception for Hillary and Peter. Everything from the farm tables to the florals were nothing short of breathtaking. Focus on the florals. Take a look, and then look some more. Southern Blooms went wildly above expectations and arranged some of the most beautiful florals we have ever seen! One of the focal pieces for their floral design was suspended above the head table. An old wooden ladder was decorated and adorned with stunning rich fall florals and stretched almost the entire length of their head table. Personally, I had never seen anything quite like it before but I certainly hope this won’t be the last time something that majestic makes its way underneath of our Sperry tent!

With the energy and the ambiance just right, we were all well off to a great start! The night continued with dinner, dancing, and late night donuts. (You can’t go wrong with donuts!)

For us, this was an incredible wedding for many reasons. It was amazing to watch the transformation and progression throughout the day, but it was even more rewarding to see the reactions and the faces of pure joy and happiness from all guests and… most of all… the couple!  

Congratulations to you both, Hillary and Peter. Marriage has started out for you nothing short of first class and we hope it continues that way for all of your years to come!

Wedding planner, Shindig Weddings & Events. Catering, The Catering Outfit. Photographer, Jen Fariello Photography. Rentals, Festive Fare. Florist, Southern Blooms. Hair & Makeup, Rouge 9 and Top Knot Studio. Desserts, Albemarle Baking Co. and Carpe Donut. DJ, John Garland. Musicians, Encore String Quartet. Transportation, Camryn Limousine and Albemarle Limousine. Stationary, Sue Corral Ink. Officiant, Phil Gates. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company.

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