It has been a little over 6 months since Chris surprised me with the most special proposal and we have some exciting news to share…WE BOOKED A VENUE!!!  If you follow me on Instagram you may have already seen a little sneak peek at the end of May when I shared some stories about our venue and some photos of us there over the years.  Yes, the venue is somewhere we know and love which made it easy for us to decide on celebrating our special day there.  So where did we pick?

Wiens Family Cellars!!!

Yes, our favorite Temecula winery will be the backdrop to the day we become husband and wife and our closest family and friends celebrate with us.

So a little back story on how we made our decision…

When we first started discussing venue ideas and locations Chris and I both agreed we loved the idea of a winery and having the entire celebration outdoors, including the reception.  Last Summer we spent some time on the Central Coast (San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria, Los Olivos) and we started discussing a wedding at a winery in that region.  I was honestly convinced that I would be getting married in the area that I spent my teenage years (I moved to Santa Maria when I was 13 and left when I went away to college) and was excited to spend time this Summer venue searching.  One afternoon we sat down and started researching locations that fit our aesthetic (rustic, chic, romantic, casual) and our budget (not huge) with not a lot of success.  Chris (smartly) suggested that we look at two hotels in Santa Barbara that are part of his company and that we consider Wiens since it has so many elements we loved and it was closer to home (75 minutes as opposed to 4-5 hours) which would make planning so much less stressful.

We tabled the discussion on venues later that day since we both agreed we wouldn’t start planning until the Summer.  As April rolled around we were taking Chris’s daughter back to San Diego after a visit and decided to book an appointment at Wiens on our way so we knew what the set up and pricing would be.  We met with Jaime on a very overcast and rainy morning and she could not have been sweeter as she showed us the ceremony and reception locations and discussed options with us.  As I mentioned, we have spent PLENTY of time at Wiens over the years and have been wine club members forever so we know the property well but seeing it through the lens of possibly having my (our, sorry Chris) wedding there I saw it in such a different light.  Even on that rainy morning, in my jeans and jacket I got a little emotional looking at the ceremony site and thinking about walking down that exact aisle and saying “I Do”.  We finished our tour and went to lunch talking about the possibility of Wiens as our venue.  After a few weeks of (very) loosely discussing Wiens we decided it was the spot, it was where we both wanted to start the next chapter of our lives!  We called Jaime and she sent the contract over for us and we officially booked our date, Fall of 2021! Fun Fact: This is the only venue we looked at and I wouldn’t have it any other way!

Since Wiens only books one wedding per day (I love that!) we will be using one of the outdoor locations for our ceremony and the cocktail hour.  Once the cocktail hour concludes our guests will move to the other outdoor location for our dinner and a night of dancing and celebrating under the stars…exactly how we wanted it!

I am so excited to continue sharing the planning process with all of you over the next 2 years!

XO, Niki