Our Wedding Blog

Keswick 10/20/18 Keswick 10/20/18

A Grand Entrance | Kati & Russ

Kati and Russ’ wedding on October 20, 2018 had the most heartfelt ceremony that we’ve ever experienced at Keswick Vineyards. While we’ve seen a range of ceremonies that varied in religions, time, and style, we thought that Kati and Russ’ ceremony was, by far, the best one for a number of reasons. In other words, their ceremony absolutely made their wedding!

The commencement of the ceremony was, particularly, breathtaking! Kati arrived with her father in a vintage car up Keswick Vineyards’ main driveway. While guests waited for the wedding to commence in their seats, you could hear the crunching of the gravel while Kati and her father drove up. As soon as she got out of the car, a horn was played to signify the Bride’s arrival. If you’ve never experienced a grand entrance before, this was it!

What made the ceremony the most meaningful, though, was the fact that Russ’ professor, Dr. Kevin, in a way, “officiated” the wedding. Knowing that it was going to be a long ceremony, he asked the wedding party to take a seat, while he and Kati and Russ remained standing. In a “classroom-like” way, he asked his “students” questions about the significance of marriage to which they each answered correctly to his questions.

Dr. Kevin also went into the background of Kati and Russ and, with Kati and her family being from Bulgaria, touched on how they immigrated to the United States. Kati’s father moved to the United States seven years prior to the remainder of his family moving in order to create a better life for their family. We thought it was sweet to hear that the way that Kati learned English was by reading a personal favorite, Harry Potter, and translating the words as she read through the book.

If Kati’s family never moved to the United States, then Kati and Russ would never have met and began this beautiful love story! When touring Keswick Vineyards, Kati and Russ gave us a little insight to the start of their relationship. While at a bar in Washington D.C., Kati slipped Russ a note on the back of a receipt that said, “I just saw you and I know this is crazy but here is my number so call me maybe? -K.” I’m sure that everyone could guess what their song was played based upon this story! Not only was that incorporated into the night, but they also had the note framed on their gift table for guests to see while signing their guest book.

The wedding was such a beautiful one and we were so elated to host Kati and Russ’ beautiful wedding at Keswick Vineyards. Congratulations to you two! We hope that you enjoy Paris!

Thank you to the following vendors for all of their hard work:

Event Planner: Logan Powell with Blue Ridge AV and Lighting, Officiant: Reverend Dr. Kendra Dean and Dr. Kevin, Caterer: Pumpernickel Pickle, Desserts: Commonwealth Cakes, DJ: Andy Wilfong with Party Masters, Photographer: Bethany Snyder, Hair and Makeup: Glo-Out Glamour Bar, Florist: Proper Petal, Transportation: James Limousine and Albemarle Limousine, Rentals: MS Events, Lighting: Skyline Tent Company.

Keswick 10/14/18 Keswick 10/14/18

Soulmates | Taylor & Garrett

Taylor and Garrett knew that it was meant to be from the very beginning! After only dating for a few months, Garrett decided that Taylor was going to be his life-long love and decided to propose to her at The Haven, which is located right in Charlottesville. With The Haven playing such an important part in their love story, they decided to have their ceremony there on October 14, 2018, and then afterwards, departed to Keswick Vineyards to kick off the night!

As Taylor and Garrett arrived at Keswick Vineyards as a married couple in their vintage car, guests also arrived to partake in their celebration! With the silk beige linens, lanterns, hints of blush and burgundy, and the candles that were placed throughout the tent, the reception couldn’t be more charming! We also loved the seating chart, which were white, calligraphed window panels. Everything was decorated so beautifully, and guests were in such “awe” of the romantic wedding.

Guests also couldn’t get enough of the “Mr.” and “Mrs.” game that their DJ played with the couple. While the couple faces back-to-back on the center of the dance floor, the DJ asks the couple a series of questions. The couple has to either raise their shoe or their partner’s shoe to state who relates to the question more. Amongst these questions are ones, such as, “who is the messiest person,” or “who said I love you first.” It was hilarious seeing everyone’s reactions and even more fun seeing the couple’s answers to the questions.

For the remainder of the night, guests were able to “dance the night away” and enjoy the beautiful cake and cupcakes that Taylor’s Aunt made for the couple’s wedding day. It was, truly, the perfect night.

Congratulations, Taylor and Garrett! We hope you enjoy your life as a married couple!

Thank you to the following vendors for all of their hard work:

Event Planner: Barb Wired, Caterer: L’etoile, Desserts: Susan Haisley, DJ: TD Layman, Photographer: Jeff Gleason, Videographer: Stephen Stonestreet, Hair and Makeup Artist: Jeanne Cusick, Florist: Mary Henry, Transportation: Albemarle Limousine and Camryn Limousine, Rentals: MS Events, Lighting: Skyline Tent Company, Nannies: The Nanny Network.

Keswick 10/7/18 Keswick 10/7/18

An Explosive Love | Phelicia & Dan

With being in the wedding industry, we hear of many different types of weddings, such as, shotgun weddings. Have you ever heard of a cannonball wedding, though? Phelicia and Dan, who got married at Keswick Vineyards on Sunday, October 7, 2018, put on quite the show for their guests. Both Phelicia and Dan are Civil War reenactors and decided to incorporate that into their wedding by having a canon go off when they kissed and then again when they lit it together as husband and wife. Even their cake was decorated with two figurines of them lighting a canon. The little touches that couples incorporate into their weddings always make a huge difference.

Another aspect of the wedding that we particularly loved was the welcome board, made of wine corks and sunflowers (their signature flower) and pictures of the entire wedding party. It had a picture of either Phelicia or Dan with their friend in the wedding party, as well as, a label that stated how long they had known that friend for. This is a great way for guests to know more about each individual in the wedding party and their special connection to the bride & groom.

With weddings also comes alcohol. For those that had a little too much to drink, Phelicia and Dan had “hangover recovery kit” mason jars filled with whatever someone needs to combat a day of headaches and sickness. It was a fun idea, but we hope that not too many of their guests really needed it!

Congratulations to you two, Phelicia and Dan. We hope that your “explosive love” never ends!

Thank you to the following vendors for all of their hard work:

Event Planner: Francesca Weiner, Officiant: John Yesko, Caterer: Goodrich Gourmet, Desserts: Delectable Desserts, DJ: Bob Mednikov, Photographer: Melissa Batman, Hair & Makeup: Jeanne Cusick, Florist: Colonial Florist, Transportation: Blue Ridge Tours, Camryn Limousine, and Albemarle Limousine, Lighting: Skyline Tent Company.

Keswick 10/6/18 Keswick 10/6/18

"Falling for Alexis and Geoff" | Alexis & Geoff

With great big open arms, Keswick Vineyards welcomed the fall season with the marriage of Alexis and Geoff on Saturday, October 6th, 2018. With the cooler air and crispness of fallen leaves, mixed with the burgundy, gold, and navy colors, it was a beautiful way to start our fall wedding season. We could not be more excited to have Alexis and Geoff’s wedding kick off our fall season!

What is fall without sports? Alexis and Geoff are HUGE Capitals fans and they decided to surprise each other with Capitals memorabilia. We love when couples gift each other something, along with a letter that shows their affection for one another. Geoff’s gift to Alexis was a Capitals jersey, which is so different than the typical jewelry that brides receive from their groom. We absolutely loved it! As for Geoff, Alexis surprised him with a Capitals cake that was placed amongst the rest of their scrumptious desserts. I don’t think that we have ever had such big Capitals fans at Keswick Vineyards!

Another unique item that we loved was the guest sign-in book that had a “G” for their last name. The wood matched perfectly with the fall theme that the wedding possessed. What’s more special than placing this in your house after your wedding for years to come?

A huge hit that we’ve seen this year is the large head table for either the wedding party or the family of the bride and groom. While every head table’s decorations are unique (this one had burgundy drapery that ran down the middle of the table with pillar candles of various sizes), it’s a great way to add a little more decoration to the tent and place the spotlight on the most important people of the wedding. With the dance floor placed directly in the middle of the tent, it’s perfect to have the head table at the top of it so that the Bride and Groom can partake in the fun of the night and have the best seat in the house!

Congratulations, Alexis and Geoff! We hope that you enjoy your lives together just as you enjoyed your wedding!

Thank you to the following vendors for all of their hard work:

Event Planner: Tess Lohr, Officiant: Doug Tanner, Caterer: Goodrich Gourmet, Desserts: Duck Donuts, Wegmans, and Commonwealth Cake Company, DJ: Greg Tutwiler, Photographer: Heather Dodge, Videographer: Pretty Elektrik, Photobooth: Lisa Killham, Hair and Makeup: Ahead of Hair, Florist: Foxtail Cottage, Transportation: Camryn Limousine, Rentals: Bride and Joy and MS Events, Lighting: Skyline Tent Company.