Wedding Crashing

What a kickass kickoff to Memorial day weekend!  Ash and I headed North yesterday to "NorCon" — my HILLARIOUS name for North Conway — where we did a bit of outlet shopping.  Ash picked up a sundress and a cardigan at GAP, and I snagged 3 really nice pairs of pants from Banana Republic for about $10 each - normally I can't stand that place, but I lowered my guard since I was looking for a vest/pant combo for the wedding and ended up striking gold.  For bonus points I scored a watch that I plan on wearing when I go surfing on week-mornings so I can tell when I need to paddle back in and get ready for work.  Shawing!

After a quick jaunt downtown for ice cream (Ash) and a carnitas taco (Adam), we headed back to The Brass Heart Inn where we got hooked up with a free tasting of their dinner menu.  Sheena, the event coordinator for the Brass Heart, basically invited us to come and crash a wedding since it'd be convenient for them to whip up 2 extra plates for us.  Ash and I rolled in around 6:30 and wandered around, jaws agape, taking photos of every beautiful nuance.  We both fell in love with the place all over again just looking at the gorgeous landscape and seeing the lawn set up for the ceremony.  I'd blab on about it, but I took photos, and each of those are worth 1,000 words as you all know, so here are 19,000 words to paint a picture of our future wedding site.  We hope you find it as romantic (in every sense of the word) as we did.

Besides the site itself, the staff are just outstanding. Sheena and her husband are just the nicest, most down-to-earth people. The staff are fun, and funny, and seem to really enjoy what they do. Jason, the bartender, joked around with us about crashing the wedding while we were taking pictures in the corral outside of the barn. Later, when we had the courage to enter in the middle of the reception, he hooked us each up with drinks. Ash Sheena put it, "we love being around people at their happiest moments."

Barns = Romantic

barns = romantic

Ashley:

I can't pinpoint when my fascination / love for barns began....I wish I could! I do, however, remember when the movie "Lassie" came out (1994) and I was semi-jealous that the city-boy moved with his family to "the country" (who knows which ONE...). He had a farm. With chickens. And a barn with a loft. And his faithful companion Lassie, of course. And I remember wanting a piece of that; it was a lifestyle I couldn't very well have growing up in East County San Diego, so it was foreign but oh-so-cool. 

So perhaps it was then, at the tender age of 10, when I first began admiring farms and barns and wondered what it would be like to move to a more rural area... Raising sheep and collecting eggs from the chicken coop seemed like they'd be fun, and taking a long bus ride to school after milking the cow in the early morning was something I couldn't relate to in the slightest (shoot, I didn't ever ride a bus until I went off to Santa Cruz for college!). ;o) 

While I never did get the opporunity to grow up and work on a family farm (I don't think I would have survived to be completely honest), I did participate in activities that I deem "rustic" and "country":  picking blackberries and fishing for crawdads in my gramma and papa's back yard with my brother; picking strawberries at my mom's aunt's house up in Idaho; fishing at the Santee Lakes or at any river we happened to pass while on a family vacation; camping up in Yosemite every spring...

Reasons why I have fallen in love with barns:
* Gambrel roof: It is just so "barn," and anytime you see a gambrel on a house you can't help but think "barn!" Granted, not all barns have the gambrel roof style, but it's a feature that can't be ignored.
* Wood: I love wood, and I especially love structures made of wood---they just scream "rustic." Wood is a natural material and anything constructed purely of wood has to be admired and considered something of an art. I dig the look of wood siding on a home...probably because it reminds me of a barn...and when the wood weathers, it looks even cooler than it originally did!
* Scenery: Barns aren't typically found (if ever) amongst skyscrapers and super-mod color palettes. Barns are rustic, commonly found amidst fields of gold (ooh I love that song!), green grass, chestnut mountains, and wide blue skies. A barn standing solo in the countryside contributes to the landscape...and makes for the perfect postcard! I love how eye-catching a red barn with white details can be, and yet I also hold a strong appreciation for the poor dilapidated barns that haven't seen a fresh coat of paint since the early 1900's. It's hard for me to explain because I lack the vocab, but whenever I look at pictures of barns or drive by one on the road, my heart feels light; I can't help but smile and I get a feeling of old romance dancing about my insides. :o)
* History: Some barns are so old that it's a miracle they are still standing----so awesome!! Talk about sturdy structure and outstanding craftsmen (I've heard the Amish hold the title for being the best). Going along with old age is a back story, and it is amazing to learn about what certain barns were used for, owned by, or transformed into. 

SO! I guess it goes without saying that I am MORE than pumped about having our wedding reception in a barn. I remember driving up to The Brass Heart Inn in Chocorua, New Hampshire on December 3rd and feeling a wave of joy wash over me. Then I stepped foot on the property and didn't know what to do first---run around in the open field screaming, "WE FOUND IT! THIS IS THE PLACE!" Or explore the inside of the barn?! Or just stand there and cry tears of sheer joy (which I nearly did after we'd been there for 2 hours talking and exploring with Sheena, the fabulous event coordinator). 

The inn is adorable and very photogenic, and there are 23 acres of gorgeous grounds for romping about and taking in the clean mountain air (while taking spectacular photographs, of course!). But it was walking into the barn that took my breath away.  I was able to envision our wedding reception while in there, and I must admit that the little film I had playing in my head was pretty amazing. It was just everything I was hoping for and it was surreal to have finally found it. 

The thing I appreciate the most about the inside of the barn: there is so little that needs to be done when it comes to decorations because it is already so awesome! Wooden walls and beams are just naturally beautiful, that's all there is to it. There are already little white Christmas lights strewn along the beams, and Sheena invited to bring more if we so desire. Other than that, and maybe white Chinese paper lanterns, there is nothing that needs to be done! How awesome is it that I don't have to work around funk 90's wall paper....or ridiculous Roman columns...or window treatments in a horrendous shade of mauve. There was no way we were gonna have our reception at a country club or hotel ball room---it's just not our bag, baby. By having our special "party of the century" in a restored 19th century barn, we get to bring in our desired amount of color with gerbera daisies and other props, and with our summer'y attire too! And then everything will have a romantic glow thanks to the white twinkly lights. Without the barn, our  "rustic elegance" vibe---a mix of old and modern---wouldn't be nearly as magnificent. I couldn't be more pleased with our location.

Oh yeah---and did I mention that I love barns??  ;o) 

Letter to the Bridal Party

Dearest man-friends,

I write you today because wind has broken of Ashley and I finding a site for our wedding. I just wanted to let all of you (who are going to be in the wedding!) know what the skinny is. First of all, we haven't officially reserved the site yet, but we do have a soft hold on it, and it's very likely that we will seal the deal within a week. If we do so, then here is the information.

The date: Saturday, August 21st, 2010
The venue: Brass Heart Inn, located in Chocorua, NH. http://www.thebrassheartinn.com

You won't be surprised to find that the place has a barn. :) We just visited yesterday and found that the photos on the website don't do the place enough justice. It's quaint and outdoorsy, the people are SUPER nice, and they are very flexible! Anyway, we know it's a bit of a drive, but we don't have many options at this point that are (a) in our price range (2) fit our aesthetic, and (d) within a reasonable distance. But hear me out cause this is the cool part -- we would have the place for the whole weekend! So... people could optionally rent rooms at the Inn (*) and crash there the night before and the night-of the wedding. The owners even said we could have a bonfire on the 20th (Friday night) in this clearing behind the cabins. It'll be like freakin' Woodstock! Okay, maybe not Woodstock, but think about how much fun it could be to turn a wedding into a weekend vacation with friends. After breakfast on Saturday morning, we can work to get things prepared for the wedding and punctuate it by tossing a frisbee around in the rolling fields. Then there's a short ceremony, and a long, booty-shakin' reception that we can stumble away from and it's just a few paces back to our cabins.

(*) Rooms at the Inn start at $80/night /2person room and increase to $240/night for a 6-person cabin, which is pretty rad. There is also other lodging available in the area that people can seek out if they're interested.

Ash and I personally toured ALL of the rooms and cabins, so we can have an idea of what would suit people. Personally, I thought the cabins were pretty rad since they had their own bathroom and little kitchen, but ultimately, it's just going to be a place to crash, and the most important thing is that we get to spend time with all of the people who come, which is why we like the idea of having everything in one place with the option of having many people stay with us the night before and the night after.

Alright, I'm going to stop rambling since I have to get to bed. Just wanted to update you all. Let me know if anyone has questions/concerns that we should be thinking about. Obviously this is our first time doing this and we can't think of everything.

-Adam