This week's edition of blogs I love-Stylish Year

Stylish Year follows Amy as she goes through everyday of her 29th year, showcasing her outfits along the way. The catch? She promises never to wear the same thing twice! Plus, she is super adorable and has a great eye for fashion. http://www.stylishyear.com/ Tell her I sent you!

From her about me "One of my favorite times of the day is just before I fall asleep... I lie in bed and think about what I am going to wear the next day. I almost never wear the same outfit twice and I love to shop my closet over and over!! I started this personal style blog on my 29th birthday and plan to photograph my fashion choices every day till my 30th."





















Not only is she model gorgeous, she is one of the nicest, most genuine people I have ever met!

What blogs do you love?

How's this for a carnival wedding venue?

This is our top choice *as of today lol. I'm a bit indecisive*

This is the Victoria Inn in Hampton, NH. Unless otherwise noted, photo credits to www.thevictoriainn.com

Ceremony Options

This is the pavillion untented.

Here is it tented :) Hello Carnival Wedding!

Throw in some popcorn and cotton candy makers and BAM carnival wedding!

Venues we considered-part three

Next stop was Brookside Park in Derry, NH. It is a very upscale (at least it looks that way-I don't play golf) golf course.  The event center is in the back part of the grounds and has plenty of parking.

GaronePhotography.com


There is one large room for the reception.  It is beautiful with the dance floor in the middle.

They outside patio is used for the cocktail hour  and/or on-site ceremony and has a tent and optional heaters!

The view is pretty including the fountain pictured below.

Venues we considered-Part 2

The next venue Mr. PinkPixie and I ventured to was the Danversport Yacht Club. I fell in love at first sight-my dear fiance did not. He actually ended up not being a fan-he rated it a 5 out of 10. He hates the area since he works there and hates the commute.

I love the fact that it is on the water, has gorgeous ceremony sites, and a lot is included in the packages.

Seriously, is this place beautiful or what?

Top three images from Danversportyachtclub.com

Pros:

-Food is AMAZING.  My dear fiance and I stayed for dinner after and it was one of the best meals I've ever had.

-Location, location, location-It is right on the harbor (at least I think that's what the water area is). It is perfect for an outdoor nautical themed wedding.

-Prices and packages are a great value. One of the best deals we found. 

Cons

-He hates the location- he is not a fan of the area.

-There can be as many as THREE weddings going on at one time.

-To get to our reception room, we would have to walk past the opening of the restaurant-seems like a small thing but it bugged us. I want privacy!

Venues We Considered- Part 1

The first venue we looked at was the Granite Rose in Hampstead, NH.

                         

How gorgeous is this room?


                        First dance


                                A nighttime view

                                


The ceremony site.

 

The staff there is very nice and were quick to answer any and all questions whether by email or phone.

We have not fully crossed them off our list but I don't think it will really work with our theme.

With that said, the Granite Rose is gorgeous and I would recommend at least looking at it to local brides.

Pros

-Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. (Oh and the walls in one of the rooms are pink!)

-Incredibly nice and helpful staff

-I have seen amazing photos taken here.

-Everything is packaged-linens, entree, cocktail hour, flowers, cake and they are all from vendors I really liked.

Cons

-Two weddings at a time! Even though they are seperate rooms and seperate gardens for the ceremony, I want my guests to feel like my wedding is the only wedding in the world that day (selfish, you bet!)

-Everything is packaged. If you did not like one of the vendors, I think you were stuck

-The food options, while plentiful, were not very flexible.

Bottom Line-Evening wedding for 100 guest with one hour of open bar would have run us about $12,000 (which is exactly what we are looking to spend on the reception) including upgrades for fancy linens and chivari chairs.

Did someone say CANDY?

So I haven't picked a venue, a date or a dress but I've picked out candy :)

                                                      

                           

 

I love these lollipops and will most likely do them as our favor with a little note attached saying we made a donation to the Victoria Snelgrove Memorial Fund http://www.victoriasnelgrove.org/

http://www.sweetfactory.com/

I imagine our candy buffet looking something like this

Or maybe this

Or even this

Ooooh or how about this

http://blog.catchmyparty.com/category/trends/page/4/








Look what comes in pink and yellow!



Ohnuts.com



And, of course, no carnival wedding would be complete without cotton candy



http://bitofsugar808.blogspot.com/



And my future hubby and I have to get a pic like this!

http://amorologyweddings.blogspot.com/2009/06/sweet-love-affair-part-2.html

What decisions were a no-brainer for you as part of wedding planning?