May 6, 2010

#Venuegate Update

The suffix -gate has been overused to the point of exhaustion in recent months (see Troopergate, Kanyegate, Tigergate, Lohangate) ... so much so that I thought it wouldn't hurt to add one more to the pile.

See: #Venuegate

The # hashtag just makes it that much more official.

2E's and I have moved on from the our original Loft space (though we're still contracted with the venue until we find a new home for our wedding - just in case) and are exploring new options in both Manhattan and BKLYN.

Remember those September days? When we had a list of demands? When we were so cocky and comfy and had oodles of time, and so we demanded that our venue be A and B and C and Z? It had to be modern AND old-fashioned. It had to be rustic AND pristine. It had to be $3,000 or we wouldn't go near it.

Those were the days...

Now 2E's and I are open to a whole slew of venues that we didn't consider before. After all, we're not 13 months out. We've got 5 months. 5 months. That's under 150 days to nail this thing down. We're already behind with invites due to #venuegate (<--- it's more ominous with the -gate, right?), and time is slipping by. Most venues are already booked for 10/2/10. Lucky for us, most of those venues are out of our price range.

On my friend Lindsay's suggestion, I'm checking out the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture on Monday and doing a walk-through of the Bathhouse Studios on the East Side tomorrow morning, which I'm particularly excited about. Also checking into the Housing Works Bookstore for either the wedding or the rehearsal dinner -- amazing to think that all of the proceeds from the space benefit homeless New Yorkers living with HIV and AIDS.

So we're still fighting. 2E's is nervous, understandably. So is my mother, who insists this morning that there must be someone in New York with a "house" that we can rent for the evening.

I love you, mom.

Spending tomorrow flipping through BizBash.com's city venue guide and walking into any and all buildings in any and all boroughs, asking if they "do weddings." Welcome to any other suggestions you lovely readers may have to offer. You all smell lovely, by the way.

cheers,
madman

4 comments:

  1. MarieMerin may be able to help you! They know a lot of great and new venues in Manhattan particularly. www.mariemerin.com

    Good luck!!

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  2. MarieMerin is fantastic, I'm sure - those girls have enough energy & enthusiasm to light a small village...

    ...but if we had the funds to hire a planning team, we would have done it last August. This budget is strictly DIY, Elizabeth, and we're okay with that!

    Thanks for the suggestion - and thanks for reading!

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  3. Just stumbled upon your blog, so forgive me if this has been covered, but are you at all amenable to Queens? The Foundry and The Metropolitan Building are both beautiful spots my fiance and I looked at when we were still considering getting hitched here (I am partial to TMB in particular). If you've already discarded these particular options or Queens in general, sorry!

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  4. No worries, Weddingness! Feel free to jump in at any time!!

    We absolutely love the Foundry, but sadly, because we're married at "peak season," the price for the rental fee is easily $4-5K over our space budget. What a shame that it's so expensive - but apparently people are willing to pay ridiculous prices even outside Manhattan.

    I've never heard of the Met Building - but I will check it out! Our biggest troubles are cost (we're looking for spaces b/w 3 and 5K) and size (we're only 85 guests total and don't want to be consumed by a huge ballroom).

    I'll look up the Met today - thanks for the suggestion! Please feel free to read on ... and send any disoriented grooms this way :)

    cheers,
    madman

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