Blog Archives

Top 5 venues in vermont to get married at

1/22/2021

In this guide we will cover our top 5 favorite venues, why we love them and why you will fall in love with them too! We will be honest, it was so hard to pick out our top 5 favorite venues. However, these are all places we have worked at and could totally see ourselves getting married at! Let us know which venues are your favorites or which venue you plan to marry at!

The Barn at Smugglers' Notch

Some of our favorite weddings from both friends and clients have been at The Barn at Smugglers' Notch. From the white shiplap walls, to the gorgeous chandeliers, there is not a square inch of this barn that has not been thought about. Owners Steve and Jennifer take extreme pride in their venue and it shows!

One of our favorite ways to dress up the venue is to add greenery to the chandeliers and staircase. We often find wedding couples opting for greenery garlands to run down the farmhouse tables as centerpieces. Adding the greenery to the chandeliers above helps to bring out the cozy vibe and adds a touch of color. It's a great, fairly affordable option to really dress up the venue and keep your guests talking about your special day.

The location of the barn is another thing we feel we should note. It is tucked into the hills of Jeffersonville and offers a stunning mountain backdrop for your ceremony. While the fields around offer beautiful wildflowers in the summer, the venue truly comes alive in the fall. The foliage here in the fall is out of this world.

Photography by: Ellen Sargent Photography & Coryn Kiefer Photography

The Maquam Barn and Winery

The Maquam Barn and Winery is a new venue on the scene! It offers a beautiful vineyard view and a stunning view of the Cobble Hill and Arrowhead Mountain. One of our favorite features of the venue is the arbor. The arbor was custom built for the venue with old beams from the adjacent farmhouse. This big bold arbor is something you won’t forget.

Much like the Barn at Smuggs, this venue also offers gorgeous chandeliers and a grand staircase. While you can’t quite put greenery on the chandeliers you can dawn the entire staircase in greenery as well as the wall behind your sweetheart table. The floral options are endless at this venue.

The barn is painted a classic red but has a really neat wooden silo attached. The silo offers panoramic views. We were incredibly lucky to be part of the first mini‑mony at the barn this past Summer. Since then the barn and it’s vineyard views have not left our head. We cannot wait to work here again in 2021 and beyond.

Photography by: Ellen Sargent Photography

Vermont Swiss and Bloom Farm

The Vermont Swiss and Bloom Farm is a dreamy barn located in Enosburg Falls. This 1850’s hand‑crafted timber frame barn is surrounded by beautiful gardens of lush blooming hydrangeas. Once you open the doors to the interior of the barn you will immediately fall in love with the character and unique features the barn offers. Our favorite feature (besides that grand staircase) are the chandeliers and vintage couches!

The farm also offers a large farmhouse for you and your wedding party to stay at. With 7 bedrooms this house holds a ton of people and is the perfect spot to get ready for your wedding. This venue also offers a fire pit! Talk about the perfect wind down to the perfect evening.

While this hasn’t been done at the barn yet, we dream of doing greenery dripping from all the exposed beams and a lush floral install that frames the vintage couches. Thinking of having your wedding here and wanting to create a floral magic moment to wow your guests? We’re happy to do an onsite consultation to show you the endless options that can be done!

Photography by: Great Impression Portrait Studio

Lake Bomoseen Lodge

The Lake Bomoseen Lodge and Taproom combine all our favorite features into one venue. This lodge is nestled in among the shores of Lake Bomoseen. If the greenery chandeliers are your thing this is another venue to check out! The main dining room offers two large chandleries as well as exposed beams. Once again, we will preach how incredibly beautiful and how much of a statement piece these items can be when dressed up a little with greenery.

The Lake Bomoseen Lodge has many ceremony spots to choose from as well. From the private island in Lake Bomoseen to the shores of the lake and even a cool hillside spot with a stunning view. We also find that couples love the Lake Bomoseen lodge because it has onsite lodging for their guests. This helps save both guest’s time and worry as well as the couple's money since there is no shuttling from a hotel to the venue.

This venue is also great because they have the option to do winter weddings here. We can totally see lighting up the room in a warm glow with fresh cut christmas trees. Small fir tips at each place setting with a hot cocoa bar as you enter the lodge. The Lake Bomoseen Lodge has endless possibilities to dress it up and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for us there.

Photos from Google and Wedding Wire

The Inn at Burklyn

The Inn at Burklyn is a sprawling estate on 86 acres of lush grounds surrounded by beautiful mountain views. This luxurious mansion is located in East Burke, Vermont but it is totally worth the drive! The mansion itself houses 14 ensuite bedrooms for couples and guests to stay at. The Inn at Burklyn offers multiple ceremony sites with both our favorite being the intimate garden and greenhouse area.

One of the most notable features at Inn at Burklyn is the gorgeous greenhouse tucked off to the side of the inn. In the summer the greenhouse is crawling with beautiful green vines and blooms. We find that the greenhouse offers a beautiful spot to hang a floral chandelier. Other than the greenhouse, one of our other favorite spots to decorate with florals is the large porch.

The Inn at Burklyn is certainly a must see for couples who are looking for something a little different than the traditional Vermont barn wedding. We have near endless ideas of how to dress up this beautiful mansion and cannot wait to be back here designs soon.

Photography by: Coryn Kiefer Photography

Which venue could you see your self getting married at? Do you have any must see venues for us to check out? We love to hear from you all and cannot wait for our next adventure.

0 Comments

#AsktheExperts: Wedding Photographers

1/21/2021

0 Comments

Today we had the pleasure of speaking with a couple of amazing wedding photography pros! These pros are here to give us their best advice from selecting your wedding photographer to the must-have photos on your wedding day and beyond. Let's introduce these amazing wedding pros quickly before we jump into the fun stuff!

Amelia, the owner of Amelia Marie Photography, is based out of Burlington, Vermont but serves all of Vermont, New England, and beyond. Amelia is truly an adventurous soul and is not afraid to jump in headfirst for her couples. Amelia has that warm personality that just invites you in. You will truly leave any session with her feeling like you've made a new friend.

Ellen, the owner of Ellen Sargent Photography, is based out of Boston, MA but has some very strong ties to Vermont as she grew up on the shore of Lake Champlain. One of our favorite things about Ellen is that she has mastered the art of simultaneously streaming a Boston Bruins game while catching up on the most recent episode of The Bachelor. We have worked with Ellen numerous times on weddings and her talent has never ceased to amaze us. We were recently featured on Vermont Weddings with Ellen after she reached out to us for a Surprise Spring Mini-mony for some of her amazing clients. Check out the feature here!

We curated a list of questions for Amelia and Ellen and they so graciously answered them all in great detail.

Since wedding photographers are one of the most important vendors for couples to book, what is the single most important question that they ask you.

Both Ellen and Amelia agree, one of the most important questions is most easily the first question you should ask, "Are you available for our date?" Ellen says it's really important for her to hop on a call, zoom, or (pre-pandemic times) meet up for coffee with couples before they book. Ellen always tells her clients if you don't feel like we vibe, go with your gut instinct and choose someone you do vibe with. You should of course follow up with other more important questions like pricing and packages but keep it simple to start off. Amelia has a great blog called 15 Questions to Ask Your Wedding Photographer. We highly suggest you check out her blog after you're done here!

When does a couple typically book your services?

Amelia says, "At least a year in advance is a good rule of thumb. However, like most other wedding vendors, photographers have experienced many postponements and reschedulings in 2020 and 2021. So, keep in mind your dream photographer may be booked farther out than normal due to COVID." Ellen followed up to say, "I'm booking into September 2022 and beyond, which is the furthest out I've ever booked. With this pandemic wreaking havoc on the event industry, I think that any "rules" that existed before March 2020 are out the window!"

On the wedding day when do you typically arrive? Do you have a suggested number of hours to book?

Ellen helps couples create a wedding day timeline that best suits their photography desires. Both Ellen and Amelia agree that 8 hours seems to be the sweet spot for coverage. Amelia says that her typical wedding day starts at noon to 1pm and end anywhere around 8-9pm in the evening. This allows your photographer time to get everything from those getting ready shots to those dirty dance floor shots. Ellen says she rarely stays to the end of the reception. She said those late-night photos are best shot on your iPhone.

What is your favorite photo to take on the wedding day?

Amelia says, "I love taking the opportunity to step away from the celebration with just my couple to snap a few portraits at golden hour. It gives the two of them a moment to really soak it all in, and I get to capture them in the most beautiful light of the day!" Ellen agrees but says, "Ohh, that’s so hard to answer! While I work hard to make everyone feel comfortable in front of my lens and assist with posing so there’s no excuse that my clients are “awkward in front of the camera”, my favorite images are often not from any of the posed portraits. I live for candid photos. The photos that freeze time forever and let my couples look back at the belly laughs they shared with some of their favorite people."

What about photos couples tend to overlook and then wish they had taken later on?

Both Ellen and Amelia agree that is it so important for couples to create a shot list so that they don't miss those must-have shots. Amelia noted though her style is very candid, authentic, and in-the-moment. However, she makes a point to still get those priceless photos of grandparents, dads, sisters, brothers, etc. Ellen says while she works incredibly hard in the planning phase to ensure it doesn't happen usually if it does it is due to things that are out of everyone's control(like the bus breaking down on the way to the wedding venue). Woof! Sounds like that has happened before.

As a wedding florist, we are a huge lover of detail shots. What are some items that couples should have on hand for those detail shots?

Both Ellen and Amelia recommend having some items on hand for detail shots but think it is a task best delegated to a wedding party member or family member. Ellen says some of the most common items to have on hand are: a full invitation suite, shoes, jewelry, rings (both bride’s and groom’s), any special heirlooms, veil, and dress are typically photographed. She suggests couples consider bringing an attractive hanger so we’re not left to use the one the dress was stored on or one from the hotel’s closet. Ellen says some couples opt to purchase a ring box from The Mrs Box to play on their color scheme and elevate their flat lay. Side note, we love when couples ask us for some styling blooms. Those tiny pops of florals also help add some dimension and interest to your detail shots.

Do you think it is important for couples to have an engagement shoot with you before the wedding?

Amelia and Ellen both feel so strongly about the importance of an engagement shoot before the wedding that they include it complimentary in their wedding packages. Amelia says, "It’s a great way for the couple to get to know their photographer and vice-versa, as well as have the opportunity to get comfortable in front of the camera and break the ice a bit before the wedding day so you know just what to expect." Ellen says she loves doing engagement shoots because if your portrait time on the wedding day gets cut short, we can still get a lot of awesome shots because the couple has already experienced a couples session and knows the posing, prompts, etc. You spend more time with your wedding photographer than anyone else on your wedding day so it is so important that you are comfortable with them.

If you could give couples any last advice when scoping out a wedding photographer what would it be?

We really resonated with Amelia when she said, "My biggest piece of advice would be to invest in a photographer that fits your personality and style." We could not agree more with that advice as it is something we often preach to our own couples who seek us out for wedding florals. Both Amelia and Ellen agree it is important to do your due diligence by not only looking at their social media but also asking for a full gallery of images so you can see what the finished product may look like. Ellen noted, "Do keep in mind that each galley is shot with the couple's vision in mind, so while it might not be exactly what you'd want, look through the lens of do you like the style, do you like the edits, and do you like the overall vibe?"

Thank you so much Ellen and Amelia for letting us #AskTheExperts and breakdown some photography questions. We have worked with Amelia and Ellen many times and a lot of photos in our portfolio actually belong to them. We highly suggest you check them out if you are in the market for a wedding photog. We will leave links to them below! Who do you want to see us chat with next? Venue Owners? Caters? Bakers? Let us know in the comments.

Ellen Sargent Photography
Amelia Marie Photography

0 Comments

Our Blog

Top 5 venues in vermont to get married at

#AsktheExperts: Wedding Photographers

Author

Archives

Categories