Weddings in North Carolina

I had been under the impression that fondant icing is on the way “out” but not at this bridal event! In fact just about every cake I saw was decorated with fondant. These, from Lynn’s Traditions in Raleigh NC, for instance:

And these next two pictures are cakes from Miel Bon Bons in Carrboro:

Here are more cakes from Miel in Carrboro, NC:

I was enchanted with this tiered cupcake stand with, not wedding cupcakes, but wedding cake “shooters” (that’s what the vender, Sugarland, called them).

You make them by cutting rounds of wedding cake and then layering them with piping of ganache and frosting – they were served with cute little plastic paddles. I think they were very pretty and much less messy than cupcakes.

I went to the Bridal Fair in Chapel Hill today – it was postponed from last weekend because of snow. Here are some of the cakes I saw there…

I’ll be featuring these “cake shooters” (above) in the next post. And here’s detail on Sugarland’s adorable Indian bride and groom:

A friend sent me this, she knows I’m fascinated by unusual wedding cakes. I’m not sure I’d eat this but I sure like looking at it!

I drove by Spruce Pine Lodge on the way to the wedding I did at Elodie Farms last weekend and dropped in to take these two pictures. There is a nice, long driveway leading up to the spot, and it’s very quiet, as you’d expect of a place so far out in the country.
Spruce Pine Lodge is part of the Durham Parks and Recreation Department – it’s relatively inexpensive as venues go and when the weather’s good it’s a perfect place for a wedding.

Of course, sometimes it rains. The lodge itself is big enough for more than a hundred people and has a wood floor good for dancing. It’s a little dark but I think the view makes up for it. Some people say it’s a little bit hard to get the details of a reservation worked out.

We played a wedding at Elodie Farms in Rougemont, NC last week (near Bahama). It was a small wedding, only about 35 guests. We played English country dance music and swing tunes at the bride’s request.

Even though it’s November, they got married outside. We set up on the porch just above them so everybody could hear quite well.
It was a very quiet spot with lots of pretty grassy yard – the kids had room to play, and pet the goats and laugh at the donkey.

When the ceremony was over we moved inside and set up in the alcove at the far end of this room. We played swing tunes during the early dinner, and after dinner a caller taught folks how to do English Country Dances, the kind you see in Masterpiece Theater Jane Austen balls.
This is what you see when you come in the front door. They set up the desserts – three cakes and some pie – and two big heated containers of soup and casserole and salad on this buffet table.

This is one of the several tiny rooms on the first floor where tables were set up for the sit down dinner. Everybody had room to eat comfortably in these several rooms and they could all hear us even though we were alone in that front room until the dancing started!

I know our bride got a good deal on her rental because November is the off season. If you really trusted the weather – or if you had big tents – I suppose you could hold a big wedding here outside, but the place was bursting at the seams with fewer than forty.

Elodie Farms is only five minutes away from Spruce Pine Lodge in Bahama NC, the first location the bride chose, but they were so odd about returning her contract she decided to move down the road.

Spruce Pine Lodge is better if you hope a lot of people will dance, but Elodie Farms is an exceptionally lovely old-fashioned farmhouse with a gorgeous view.

The goat cheese they make at Elodie Farms is spectacular! They served some at lunch.
Elodie Farms
(919) 479-4606
9522 Hampton Road
Rougemont, NC 27572

My daughter turned me on to the “Wedding Bee” forums where I discovered that via many polls the brides have discovered that their guests’ favorite favors are edible, specifically: chocolate presents.

So today when a friend took me to Matthew’s Chocolates cute little storefront shop on Churton Street in Hillsborough NC I immediately thought: wow, these chocolates would make the BEST wedding favors! He makes them right in the back of the store, you can’t get more local than that.

Can’t you see how awful this is? Photographers, just say no!

I recently had a very yummy lunch at the Croasdaile Country Club, and the room is absolutely lovely, bright and sunny (well, in the daytime anyway) and fresh looking. The service was excellent and the manager, John Sluck, goes out of his way to be pleasant and accommodating. He’s very efficient.

There are several rooms available for rehearsal dinners and receptions, and in fact you could have your wedding ceremony in one of the rooms while another was being prepared for the after-party! I believe it’s also possible to marry outside on their lovely grounds.

It used to be that only members of the Country Club could book the rooms there, but the rule has recently been relaxed. In view of the troubled economy and bridal party wishes to be frugal, room rental charges are waived under certain circumstances.

There’s plenty of parking and it’s easy to get to. You can contact Mr. Sluck at 919-383-1591 extension 239 to get his very comprehensive price and options package. Or email him at jsluck@croasdailecountryclub.com.

Here’s the website: Croasdaile Country Club.

My daughter’s getting married at noon on a Sunday. She decided she wanted people to be able to get together the night before, as well, because out of towners will probably arrive on Saturday.

So she’s throwing a party for a hundred people at the new Torero’s location on Chapel Hill Boulevard, in Oak Creek Village shopping center on 15-501 business, across from Toyota. This is a big building that’s been empty for a long time and they’ve painted it – it looks grand now – and it’s all beautifully painted with rich, lively colors inside. There’s a back room with seating for about 80 or 100 people.

Here’s their catering menu. Ruben, the owner, is going to cordon off the back for us and serve a buffet of various Mexican foods: rice and beans, enchiladas, tacos, burritos, chips and salsa, etc. with soft drinks, tea, sangria, and beer. The buffet (not including alcohol) will be around $11 per person, and considering that we don’t have to pay extra for the room, this seems like a spectacular deal. He’s a great local vendor, well worth supporting. I eat at Toreros often and it feels like home.

Yesterday my daughter and I met with Brian Allen at the Officina Briani letterpress studio in Raleigh NC. Brian is a very intelligent and very patient man; we spent more than an hour looking through his samples, picking colors and typefaces for my daughter’s wedding invitations, and he has a wonderful sense of what will look great.

Letterpress in my opinion is one of the wedding luxuries that’s absolutely worth the money – it isn’t often in this day and age that you can hold such a lovely, handmade article in your hand. It’s like a gift to everybody who receives it.

Looking at letterpress on the internet does not do it justice. The glory is its texture and the way the deeply indented, crisp-edged letters catch light and shadow; the gorgeous colors on the thick, textured paper…

I truly believe in supporting local artists and Brian is a wonderful guy. My daughter approved a design and color scheme and we can’t wait to see the results…

Now that my daughter has signed a contract with Nawwaf Said of Jazmin middle eastern restaurant and our day is secure, I’m willing to tell you: after all the weddings I’ve played at, I think the catering from Jazmin restaurant is the best in the Triangle. We met with Nawwaf today and now I’m impressed, not just with his great food, but with his professionalism, courtesy, and intelligence. He really has a handle on how the flow of guests and servers and rental agencies and food must work together for maximum efficiency – and fun.

My daugher’s getting married at Duke Gardens and they make new vendors jump through a lot of hoops to sign up, so we’re glad Nawwaf was willing to go through the process. Duke also has lists of approved rental people – there are no chairs or tables on site, we must rent them all – and Nawwaf is going to help us coordinate that.

We’re getting a very nice spread of Near Eastern food – pita and hummus and grape leaves and salads and lots of stuff including chicken and steak kebobs and felafel – and a range of soft drinks and teas etc. – with an appetizer course outside (to keep guests happy while pictures are being taken) and a buffet luncheon inside – for $28 per person. He will take care of hiring servers for us who will do set-up and break-down; we are going to provide the wine and beer but Nawwaf’s people will serve it. His people are going to cost $25/hour and it takes quite a few of them.

Anyway, I wanted to give this experience, so far, my heartiest recommendation. I first met Nawwaf when Mappamundi was playing at the wedding of a very picky bride. I told him at the time it was the best food I’d had at a wedding and asked, “Has the bride called you as often as she’s called me?” He smiled. He made her happy, so I’m sure he can make you happy too.

Jazmin now has two locations: 2430 Hillsborough Road in Raleigh, the food court in the Cary Towne Mall, and the one where we met him today, the newest, at 1624 Walnut Street in Cary, right at the highway exit. Go have a meal, you’ll like it!

My wordpress blogs were hacked, and while I’m trying to put them back together unexpected things are happening. Hopefully soon I’ll have them back together and be able to resume posting.

Just a warning from personal experience – my daughter had selected the Mediterranean Deli in Chapel Hill as her wedding caterer. They had negotiated and all, and they sent her a contract, but she wasn’t completely satisfied because the contract was very vague, so she waited before sending it back to them, trying to decide how to feel more comfortable about it. (They had given her a “per person” price, but did not specify what items, exactly, would be provided at that price.)

By the time she sent it back, it turned out they had booked another wedding on her day (without telling her) so she is back to square one in the caterers’ department.

Don’t let it happen to you!

Bob Vasile, my partner in the Pratie Heads wedding ensemble (well, we do a lot of other concerts etc too), had an opportunity to do a photo shoot with Jim Shaw, a very well-known, friendly, and relaxed photographer who’s been shooting weddings in the area for decades.

Jim was a good sport and let me take this picture of him, surrounded by some of his equipment.

We spent an hour there and will go back on Thursday to have a look at the results. I’ll let you know how it went! But we liked him a lot, he was peaceful and easy to be around.

Sorry about the unprofessional videography. Do not hire me to shoot your wedding…

I made this for my daughter, but I may as well share it!

At a recent event I snapped a picture of this driver, who works with the Bull City Carriage Company and Limousine Service. What a beautiful horse! She stood peacefully for an hour and a half. I don’t know how economical an option this is as far as transportation goes, but it certainly is beautiful. And I believe in supporting the old ways…

I recently got a chance to take some pictures at this lovely outdoor venue, near the Triad and the Triangle, on 138 acres with a 7 acre lake.

Here you see the chairs in place for an outdoor wedding that weekend. It would be lovely if the weather were good. If it’s hot – there’s no shade. If it rains – you’re a long way from a roof. Just saying.

The Pavilion is a giant tent, open to a back patio.

The patio overlooks the lake.

It looks nice inside, all set up.

It costs $3125-$4175 to rent the pavilion, which is 60 feet square. Catering tent, tables, 200 chairs, and dance floor are included. For more information: PineLakePavilion.com.

They call this an “Advantage Portable Restroom Coach.” I call it a trailer and as there are stairs to get in, I don’t see how it’s handicapped accessible. Maybe they have a system.