Venue Option: Overture Center

This is the first in a series of outlines of different venues I'm considering. Keep in mind that, while I am drawing information from the locations' websites, I am drawing conclusions based on my own criteria. I may not be thrilled about a potential venue that seems perfect for your shindig, and if that's the case...don't listen to me! These are just my preferences. To get things started, let's begin with the Overture Center.

Well, the architecture is crazy beautiful and the inside is very grand, for starters. There are several lovely rooms to choose from depending on the size of your party, but the rental fees can get a little high. It is situated on State Street, so a vibrant downtown atmosphere comes with this venue choice. Because it's downtown, there are any number of hotels nearby that would make your event easy to walk to. If you have a special connection to the music world, this would be a great place to get married.

Although beautiful and impressive, the Overture Center has gotten a lot of so-so press lately. There have been a series of money mismanagement issues, and now the place is essentially bankrupt. The current debate is whether or not the city will take ownership of the center and foot the bill to keep it running.

I've heard from two brides who had their wedding there that it's a georgeous venue, and they both confirmed that it's in convenient proximity to hotels. My sources also said that the food left something to be desired. Both said it was good, but not great. One bride did say that they were very accomodating and willing to work with her, but they weren't wowed. They both also said that they basically blew their budget on the food. Food is one of our non-negotiable things, so I'm looking for great. Also, the price per plate for dinner is $19+ dollars, and the buffet is $25+, so this would put a healthy dent in any budget.

So, let's review...

PROS: beautiful, lively downtown atmosphere, convenient location for guests to get to

CONS: $$$, maneuvering downtown could be annoying, allegedly so-so food

Thinking of Venues

UGH!! It's been in the 80's these past few days, which is totally killing my fall euphoria...or should I say eufallria? I've been distracting myself by making a preliminary guest list and checking out venue ideas. I've been looking around town, checking out other local weddings, and finding some serious inspiration. There are actually a lot of awesome non-ballroom options that I'm thrilled about. Here's a running list so far.

Quivey's Grove (literally a couple blocks from where I live)
Agora Pavillion (Fitchburg)
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (downtown! I'm in love with the architecture)
Goodman Community Center
Overture Center

As you can see from my choices, I'm really torn between a stylin' city wedding and a rustic country wedding. I plan on devoting a separate post to each location, complete with pros and cons. I'm sure I'll add more locations to the list as I find them. I haven't even had time to look at the many parks in town yet. If you, dear readers, have any experience with any of these venues I'd love to hear about it. More on this as it develops...

Lovely Lighting

I am really into the paper lantern look. Not just for weddings, but for lighting options in general. Case in point, these are two of the lamps in my apartment right now.



They're a little bland in that they're not colorful, but I love the shapes and texture. So cool!
Anyway, I was browsing the ads at A Practical Wedding and I came across Allsop Home and Garden. And wouldn't you know it, the next day Meg put up a nice post about this family-owned, environmentally friendly business.

Allsop has lots of beautiful garden and lawn accessories, but I'm really into the solar lanterns. That's right...solar. Each lantern comes with a solar panel, LED lights, and batteries to get you started. Just let them sit in the sun for a day and you're all set! And boy, are they beautiful...

Yes, please...

I see these in my future.

There are also more colors and shapes to suit your individual taste, as well as some cool silk covered lanterns. I. Love. These. Lanterns. And they're an investment, too. Not only do you get to support a small, eco-conscious business, but you can use these lanterns for every picnic, barbeque, or lazy summer evening you have in your yard. They could even be used inside at night. So many wonderful possibilities without using one watt of electricity.

I hope you're sitting down because I'm going to throw even more awesome onto the pile. You can buy these in Wisconsin (and other states too)! There are several stores across Wisconsin that sell Allsop's products, but that may or may not include the lanterns. Check the website of a local store listed on the Allsop website, or call to see if you can save yourself some shipping.

Institutionalized Wedding "Fun"

I was recently talking to an aquaintance who is planning his wedding and he was going over the laundry list of everything they had gotten done. "The invites are in the mail, she got her dress, I rented my tux...and oh yeah, we booked a photobooth," he said without any trace of excitement. Not only was there not excitement, but it sounded like one more obligation in a long list of things you need to have at your wedding. I realized that the photobooth is the latest "must-have" at weddings. I don't know how it happened, but it did. The first time I remember hearing about it was at Christian Aguillera's wedding, and it was a really cool idea! It was something no one had seen before...and then it became a trend. Everyone had the photobooth for a while, and now it has somehow transcended from trend to obligatory "fun" wedding staple.

Once you feel like you have to have something in order to show the world that your wedding was "fun" you're not being true to yourself anymore. Photobooths are inherantly cute, but if it's just something else you feel like you have to book because the wedding world is telling you that it will make your reception fun or you feel like your guests expect it, then it's probably time to think about what you really want. If a photobooth is not your personal idea of fun pick something that is! You've probably already hired a photographer, so what about something that isn't photography oriented? I'm just throwing it out there. Catch it if you want. Throw it back if you hate it.

Anyway, there are a few cool looking photobooth rental companies in Madison that are a little different than your traditional booth. Eventworks has some cool additonal options, like projecting pictures as they are taken onto a screen or wall. The Traveling Photo Booth has a lot of cool features (open back to fit more people, quality light, etc) while maintaining that vintage feel of the old photobooth. Their website is really modern looking and fun to poke around even if you're not considering a photobooth (like me). I'm sure there are more resources, but those are the few that I found.

Examples...

Here are a few other songs that I either rocked out to at Krush Girls, or am hearing now that they could easily be playing at the 40 Watt. These songs will give you that dance party vibe I'm going for.

1901 - Phoenix

Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand

any Lady Gaga song, for sure

Galang - M.I.A.

Read My Mind - The Killers
Are You Gonna Be My Girl - Jet

Hopefully keeping this running list now will help me when it comes to downloading the things later.

Wedding Music from Another Awesome Bride

Yes, that's right. I'm looking at you Giovanna (and I will respond to you when I'm not in the middle of finals). I was involved in a cd exchange started by Anna at Accordions and Lace, and I got this awesome cd from Giovanna in Hoboken, NJ. I'll go into more depth later as I'm running out the door to go to work on this cold, rainy day. Thanks for the mix, and we'll talk more about her selections, our shared New York Italian girl heritage (which is so much a part of my identity), and her stylin' blog later this weekend.

I promise you Krush Girls

For those of you who went to UGA, or have spent a decent amount of time in Athens, GA you will know what I'm talking about. For those of you who haven't here's the rundown. Krush Girls is an amazing duo of DJ's who throw the best dance parties in Athens in my humble opinion. The music was great and there were always great songs you haven't heard in a while mixed in with new ones. The absolute best part was that it wasn't a meat market like so many bars.

They always look like this above. Just people getting down without caring who thinks what or wondering who's watching them. I haven't experienced this kind of freedom in a space this public, and I miss it. I am not one to whistfully remember college as the best years of my life, but that atmosphere of freely dancing till you drop with your girls is one I really miss. Every time Krush Girls made an appearance we were there, and we had the best time. I think we left every time saying how this one was the best one, not the party last month we thought was the most fun. Only the MIA concert has ever surpassed it.
I desperately want to recreate this atmosphere of non-judgmental fun at the reception, and I think conjuring the spirit of Krush Girls will do just that. For those of you who remember Krush Girls, leave me some song suggestions. I plan on dancing like a maniac, so bring your dancing shoes and your game face because it is ON! We're planning on doing a DIY DJ with our MP3 players, so hooray for complete creative control! For those of you who don't dance, there will be board games et al.

Photos courtesy of Nuci's Space.