I Did the Unthinkable

I have a confession to make. I did the unthinkable… I considered booking my wedding at a venue other than Stonebridge Manor. I even went so far as to tour this other venue. I felt like I was cheating on my significant other (*I would never do this, just to clarify*). My bosses do know about this, and they are not going to fire me over it. Phew! In the end, this is what I learned from touring a venue that was not my beloved Stonebridge…

I used The Knot and the Wedding Wire apps to look at venues that might work in the Phoenix/Northern Arizona areas for my upcoming nuptials. I found a venue in Sedona that I thought would provide a beautiful red rock backdrop for the big day. I will not name the venue in this post because it is beautiful and I’m sure it will be perfect for some brides’ weddings – just not mine.

When I toured this venue, I saw the beauty of the surrounding landscape and understood why brides fall in love with this location. HOWEVER, this particular venue and their associated affordable fees only cover the cost of the venue. If you want tables and chairs, you book them and contract the vendor from whom you rent them. If you want china settings for your guests to eat off of, you book the vendor. If you want an archway to rent, you book the vendor and coordinate the delivery. The list goes on and on: tent in case of inclement weather, flowers, DJ, officiant, caterers, photographer, wedding planner, cake bakery, etc.

The venue was absolutely stunning.  The amount of work that would go into making a wedding there happen was daunting to say the least. And working at a wedding venue, I have a pretty decent understanding of how much back and forth communication there is with each individual vendor in order to get everything straight for the big day. How much communication is involved with setting up meetings with each of these vendors to make sure you are on the same page as them. How much communication goes into any last minute changes you make. And so on, and so forth!

In the end, my fiancé and I decided this Sedona venue was not the one for us. I am already a perfectionist, so I don’t need to add stress to my plate in order to coordinate 5-12 separate vendors for our big day. I wanted to be able to focus on the personalization of our wedding and the small DIY touches rather than being frantic for our entire engagement. Please stay tuned next week to learn about the value of Stonebridge Manor and what led me to choose it as my venue.

Happy Planning!

xoxo

Chelsea