The Venue Search {Part 1}

Yes, I'm the girl that has thought about my wedding since I knew what a wedding was. I didn't however have my wedding planned out as most people thought. Honestly, I didn't know much about what my wedding day would look like, not my dress, the venue or the colors. 


When Clay and I got engaged I was in a rush to select a venue and a date. I knew if we just picked a date, everything else would fall into place.


Venues are one thing that Clay and I had talked about for the past year or so yet we had a really hard time selecting where our wedding would be. I had already emailed several venues to gather information that way when the time came, we had a better idea of where to start. 


Our Venue Wish List
1. Large
2. Inside
3. Not in a hotel


See, our list wasn't even that demanding! 


Knowing most of the venues in the Austin area, surprisingly there wasn't a lot of venue to pick from that met our criteria. 


Initially we started with The Long Center. From pictures on the internet it was beautiful. We really liked how the room had floor to ceiling windows that displayed the Austin skyline without being in the heart of downtown where parking became a problem. After talking to the staff at The Long Center, there was just no way that we could fit our guest list into that room. I was a little sad after crossing this venue off of our list.

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Another option was Mansion at Judges Hill. As you can see from the picture, it is beautiful! It has an outdoor ceremony space and an indoor reception area and from what I have heard the food is amazing! We set up an appointment to view the space but sadly never made it to the appointment. Again, I think the space was just too small and didn't want to waste my time or theirs viewing the space.

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We also considered Villa St. Clair off the toll road in Austin near Manor. There were definitely pros and cons to this venue, just as there are to all venues. We both didn't like the location. No matter where our guest hotels where, it was going to be pretty far for them to drive. I also didn't like how the ballroom overlooked the parking lot. I just couldn't imagine dancing with Clay for our 'first dance' and then looking over into the parking lot. 

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Like Mansion at Judges Hill, they had an outdoor area that would be great for cocktail hour or an outdoor ceremony, weather permitting. In the end I think the biggest concern was the size. At that point in time, our guest list was still growing and with so many people from out of town it was really hard to determine what our final number would be. If it does rain on our wedding day, I can't see 220 people in the narrow hall way while they flip the ceremony space.


All of these venues are GREAT venues but sadly, none were for us. 


So where did we choose? I guess you will have to wait and see :)


Happy Friday!