Our Wedding Blog

Keswick 9/16/22 Keswick 9/16/22

My Officer & A Gentleman Wedding

Where do I even start with Katie & Mike? I guess when Katie toured Keswick Vineyards. The two of us immediately hit it off. It felt like Katie & I were old friends being reunited. I just loved hearing about her love story with Mike who was unable to accompany her that day. I was so excited to hear that Mike was in the Air Force and was a pilot. He is the real, “Top Gun”! I told Katie that Mike had to wear his uniform and do the sword thing at the end of their ceremony because I am such a fan of that. She said she wasn’t sure about him doing this, but I kept telling her he had to (for meJ) When Mike came later to see the venue Katie had chosen, he was all smiles. I told him that my favorite movie is An Officer and a Gentleman, and my favorite scene is at that end when Richard Gere carries Debra Winger off for their happy ever ending. I told him that was another thing I needed on their wedding day (I guess I was asking for a lot. I mean, it is their wedding day).

Fast forward to a month before their wedding day, September 16th. Katie & Mike came to Keswick Vineyards to bury their bourbon! When they toured, I had told them about that Southern tradition. They went to Ironclad Distillery in Newport News, that sold a bury bourbon package. It was so cute! It had a bottle of whiskey in a box that also contained a little shovel, a flag to mark your spot and a little write up on the Southern tradition.

Fast forward another month and it’s their wedding day, September 16th. Lets start by saying the Southern tradition worked!!! They had the most perfect weather! They made sure to wait until their ceremony was over before unearthing the bourbon which they enjoyed drinking and sharing with their wedding party afterwards.

Katie looked AMAZING!!!! She had such a classic, elegant, timeless look. And Mike, well, he looked as handsome as ever in his dress blues. Thank you so much for wearing them!!! Mike and his groomsmen added a little bling to their shirts by having the sleeves be different. You will see what I’m talking about in their dancing photos. The two of them together, simply perfection. Magazine cover, gorgeous couple! And lets not forget their wedding party that looked amazing in their terracotta dresses and blue suits with terracotta ties to match.

For Katie & Mike’s ceremony, they chose to have the Keswick Vineyards viognier vineyard as their backdrop. With harvest already started, the vines were at their peak! And to my delight, they did the arch sword thing at the end of the ceremony to welcome Katie into the military family!

Now, look at their décor. I am in love with the large, 4-sided rattan colored bar they had for cocktail hour. Great way for everyone to be served quickly and then on each corner were self-served non-alcoholic containers with water, ice tea, etc. And just take a look at their cocktail napkins. They had several versions of fun facts about the two of them printed on them. And I can’t forget to mention how their escort cards were displayed. Katie spent a lot of time making them with our corks and she did an AMAZING job!

The tent, well just look at it. They kept it pretty simple to not compete with the natural beauty of Keswick Vineyards but to enhance it by carrying that greenery look and feel to under the tent. I also like how they rented rectangular king tables and mixed them with our round tables to give the tent a more spacious feel. Gorgeous! Guests had so much fun dancing the night away with these two.

And finally, thank you Katie & Mike for doing my last request of my Officer and a Gentleman pictureJ Love you both!!!!

None of this would be possible without the hard work of the following vendors:

Courtney Hildebrand as their wedding coordinator

The Catering Outfit

DJ Andy Wilfong of Party Masters

The Mullins photography

Videographer TLIC

Foxtail Cottage Florals

Hair & Makeup by Lou Stevens

Quick’s Buses for transportation

Photobooth of Charlottesville

Rentals by MS Events and Paisley & Jade

Keswick 9/10/22 Keswick 9/10/22

Mother Nature and her Moods

Congratulations to Ria & Jordan who were married at Keswick Vineyards on Saturday, September 10th. Although the weather was at a comfortable, cooler temperature, Mother Nature couldn’t make up her mind if she wanted to mist or not. No problem at Keswick Vineyards because we have a wonderful rain plan and are very flexible on when to make that call. So, while Mother Nature tried to figure out what she was doing, Ria & Jordan and the rest of their wedding party and family took advantage of the nice, cooler, clear weather and spent the afternoon taking most of their photos.

This is a perfect example why I highly recommend doing a first look when you are doing an outside ceremony/wedding. Because Ria and Jordan did a first look, it allowed them to take advantage of the beautiful weather to get their photos done. Had they waited until after the ceremony, their photos would have had a “misting” look to them.

So, while Mother Nature tried to figure out what she was going to do, Keswick and the other vendors prepared for both an inside and outside ceremony. You can see by the photos, if they had to do their ceremony inside, it still would have been beautiful under our bright and airy reception tent. But Mother Nature decided to end her mist and allowed Ria and Jordan to have their dream ceremony outside amongst the vineyard! Thank you, Mother Nature!

The rest of the evening was picture perfect with delicious food from Goodrich Gourmet, desserts that were devoured as quickly as they could replace them and non-stop dancing with DJ Fit at the controls. Thank you to all the vendors:

Wedding Planner Meghan Farrar of Forever After Events

Catering by Goodrich Gourmet

DJ Fit = Nathan May

Photographer Amanda Gilly

Videographer Val Cinema Weddings

Desserts by Sugar on Top Cake & Sweets

Sweet Pea Florist

Hair by Lou Stevens

Make-up by Meg Ryan

Albemarle Limousine for transportation

Keswick 9/4/22 Keswick 9/4/22

CLASSIC BLACK & WHITE WEDDING

Erika & Evan’s black and white wedding didn’t disappoint anyone attending on September 4th, 2022. With Evan being from Michigan, they had a lot of guests visiting from there which made this wedding even more fun for me being a fellow Michigander!

Being their planner, it was hard for me to get photos of how Erika & Evan chose to do the processional. They chose to have all the groomsmen and fathers wait at the back of the aisle along the last row of chairs. Each lady would begin walking out solo and then be escorted down the aisle with their male escort. Even Erika started off walking by herself and met her father at the back of the aisle. This was a first here at Keswick Vineyards and I have to say, I liked it!

Another “first” here at Keswick Vineyards was their introduction into the reception. Typically, the dj announces each bridesmaid and groomsmen, one at a time, and then finally the couple. Oh no, Erika & Evan had a different vision. Instead, they wanted to do the flip cup game. So, all the groomsmen entered first carrying the table followed by the bridesmaids carrying filled cups and then Erika & Evan. It was girls against the guys, and I was told the girls would win because it was no secret that Evan is not that good at this game, but he proved everyone wrong. The men clinched it!

Seeing the couple enter with that kind of energy set the tone for the rest of the evening. Everyone had a great time dancing and enjoying all those homemade desserts from Pennsylvania to create such a dessert bar. And what better way to end the night then with a sparkler departure.

Congratulations Erika & Evan! Thank you again for allowing us at Keswick Vineyards to be part of your special day and special thanks to the following vendors:

Event Panner – Keswick Vineyards

Goodrich Gourmet Catering

DJ Fit – Nathan May

Casey Smith Photography

Monarch Floral Farms for florals

Hair by Andre Ribera

Makeup by Hayley Joan

MS Events Rentals

Keswick 9/3/22 Keswick 9/3/22

3 Times a Lady

There is nothing I love more than a couple that has style and fun as their wedding priorities and that is exactly what Sarah & David had for their September 3rd wedding at the beautiful Keswick Vineyards. David chose to wear an ivory-colored suit which is a first for us here at Keswick Vineyards. We are on our 13 year of doing weddings so it is hard to be the first at anything but David did with that choice. He stood out amongst his groomsmen.

Sarah, beautiful Sarah. How I just love a bride that chooses not to have one, not two, but three dresses!!! I’m not sure which one was my favorite because she looked radiant in all three. I know which one she had the most fun in, her 2nd dress. She wore this fringe flapper style dress for their first dance which again, went against the typical slow song. Sarah and David strutted their moves on the dance floor and had everyone cheering them on.

Being an early September wedding, the weather was a bit humid, so Sarah and David chose our “shaded” ceremony location. That, along with some handheld fans, kept guests comfortable. I love how they had a large, framed chalkboard sign that gave the history of dates that were significant to their relationship. And who doesn’t love a bubble machine for your exit?

Thank you, Sarah & David, who chose to get married at Keswick Vineyards without ever physically visiting, to be the special place to say their I do’s. I hope it was everything you dreamed of!

Special thanks to the following vendors:

Grace and Lace Events

Southern Inn Catering

DJ Fit (Nathan May)

Amy Smith Photography

Lacy’s Florist

Officiant Kathleen Ayers

Hair & Makeup by Nicole Laughlin

Easy Rider Bus Company & James Limousine