Venue Pick: Kiona Winery

Outside photo of Kiona Winery

Awesome deck, amazing view, and a great place for a dance floor!

Look at that view, wouldn't you love to have dinner in this room looking out over the vineyards?
Photos: Mark Haffner

Last Friday I went out to tour Kiona Winery,  I had been in contact with Jeri out there and was so excited to take a tour. I must say I was impressed, not only was the view amazing, but the building is pretty amazing. Not to mention the downstairs barrel room (to die for).  The large patio would be perfect for a a band to set up and for guest to dance their night away.  They welcome any catering and have a large kitchen that can accommodate a catering company perfectly. The tasting area can be transformed with bistro tables for the perfect area for dinner.  The best part is the price range, their price point is one of the best in the area. Why get married at a hotel when you could have this view to look out at and have a unique winery wedding? (and I guarantee you Kiona's cheaper than most hotels)

Not to mention at the end of our hour long tour Jeri let me do a tasting, I fell in love with their 2006 Lemberger wine, when I looked up the cost online this week I found out it was only $12 a bottle when buying directly from the winery. Such a smooth tasting wine with such a great price.

All in all I was so impressed by Kiona Winery and mostly with their customer service that Jeri provided. I really hope to do an event there in the future, feel free to check out their website

http://www.kionawine.com/

as well as find them on facebook
http://www.facebook.com/kionawine

Traditional Chair Covers, NO WAY!

The Classic Chair Cover.
chairishtheoccasion.com

Garden chairs with rented cushions.
Mulberry Photography via Polka Dot Bride

Buy some tulle, but don't tie the tradition bow, spice it up by weaving it in and out of the chair.
The Knot.

Tulle in another nontraditional way, instead of the giant bows simply lay it over the back and play with it to create a unique look.
bridalpartytees.com

Or get away for the whole chair idea and rent big lounge sofas.
Cachicdesigns.com

My blog post was inspired by this weekend at the bridal show in the Tri-Cities.  I saw a lot of rental companies offering chair covers and sashes, but they all had them tied traditionally in a formal setting. I agree sometimes traditional chair covers in a ballroom can look stunning, but for an outdoor wedding or a fun summer weddings, why not try something different. Above are some different ideas instead of the traditional white chair cover and colored sash. I found two ways to take tulle and create your own idea with either twisting the tulle through the chair or simply laying the tulle over the chair then adding a few knots.

The other cool things I found was why not rent some cool metal garden chairs and add brightly colored chair cushions, I think it makes a garden party look so elegant. Or splurge for your guest to sit in style on some outdoor furniture.

I am so glad to be back in the Tri-Cities but get frustrated with some of the ideas we are caught up in, it's ok to break tradition, to try something new and fun.  I had a great conversation with the owners of Moore Mansion they have invested in some awesome plastic (stone looking) outdoor furniture, it is modern and elegant.  It's just nice seeing someone try something different and breaking from the expected. That is what I'm trying to do with these blog post, is try and give you some ideas to think about, ideas to make your event stand out, and for your event to look unique for all your guests to remember.

bright ideas!

Love the green and purple together 

Unique Cake, simple yet stunning. 

Candy Buffet. Good for a bridal shower, birthday party, or wedding. 

Any kid or adult would go nuts for the brightly colored dessert table 

LOVE, great idea for a center piece if you didn't want to use all fresh flowers

This is really a do it yourself idea. 

The past few days have been a bit crazy and to be honest dark. After a death in the family and planning a funeral I decided to do a post that was fun, bright, and cheerful.  I got most of the ideas from hostesswiththemostess.com. Whoever runs this website does a awesome job with really creative ideas, that are easy to do and some are fairly inexpensive. I adore the candy buffets, they give a dull room some pop. Have a great week friends, it's a busy one for me, but I wanted to do at least one blog post this week.

Cheers

Jessica!