SWF Vineyard:2009 Fall Harvest Video

Ask Esther

Yesterday at Saltwater Farm, JC & I met a bunch of great, newly engaged couples who have either booked or are considering booking (DO IT!) their weddings at the vineyard. I had some really nice conversations with the couples and even some parents about our experience and their visions for their own dream weddings. It made me remember just how overwhelming the whole planning process can be. JC & I planned every last detail by ourselves...searching online through hundreds of potential venues and then visiting over a dozen, many of which we realized in seconds were not right for us (but still drove 2 hours to see); spending hours on the phone with potential vendors, before scheduling face-to-face meetings with each of them...photographers, caterers, florists, justices-of-the-peace, and on and on........

We would have given our right arms (the left needs to sparkle with the ring J) for some advice or recommendations as to where we could start. Once we had agreed to work with some of our vendors, we were able to ask them for advice and it made the process so much easier. If you've followed our blog, you know that we hired DJ Doug from Power Posse Productions without even talking to him, let alone hearing/seeing his work!

I gave my email address and phone number to a bunch of couples because I am honestly more than happy to share our experience, offer inside info, and give recommendations for our awesome vendors. I mean, I spent a year researching and learning all about wedding planning and getting to know vendors in New England so it would be a shame to have all that new knowledge go to waste now! I understand why so many wedding planners get their start after their own weddings ;)

So if you've come across our blog in your search for some of the vendors we used, please feel free to contact me about our experience or ask any questions you like...the more random the better! For now, I'll tell you that we chose to work with each of our vendors because they were the most fun, the most flexible, the most creative, the easiest to work with, and the most excited about our vision. Tall order, if you ask me!

Venue: Saltwater Farm Vineyard - owners, Merrily & Michael Connery

Caterer: Gourmet Galley - owner & event planner, Anna Lathrop

Photographers: Justin Marantz Photography - owners & photographers, Justin & Mary Marantz

Videographer: Stillmotion - cinematographer, Patrick Moreau

Florist: It's So Ranunculus - owner & florist, Leah Miner

DJ: Power Posse Productions - owner & DJ, Doug Jastremski

Hair: Platinum of Norwich - stylist, Bobbie Camp

Makeup: Jennie Fresa Beauty Libray - owner & makeup artist, Jennie Fresa

Justice of the Peace: Chaz Zezulka

Best of luck and have fun!

Bride: Esther Tetreault

esthermary11@comcast.net

Full Circle

Today JC & I went down to Saltwater Farm Vineyard to help them harvest the last of their grapes for the season. I say help, but really we only got there in time to snip about a half an aisle before the rest of their efficient crew finished the job. We were so excited to be included because it was almost a year ago that we visited the vineyard for the first time and decided that there was no place else we wanted to get married. Funny how life comes full circle, right? JC & I are hoping to make this an annual post-anniversary trip!

Merrily and Michael, the heart and soul of Saltwater Farm, are two of the coolest people we

know. We love popping in to hang out with them! After the work was done in the morning, they hosted a fun wine & cheese party this afternoon complete with a solo guitarist. We always have such a great time when we visit and it's been exciting watching all the developments progress towards a gorgeous functioning winery. We can't wait until the Grand Opening! M & M are hoping for early 2010 so we'll keep you posted, because we will definitely be there!

Wedding Event

Yesterday JC & I went to a great wedding event that was actually hosted at Saltwater Farm Vineyard. There were close to 20 vendors there covering all aspects of wedding planning. It was really cool for us because a few of the vendors we've already booked were featured so we were able to see our own venue set up similar to how it might look for our wedding!

First, I have to say that every time JC & I visit SWF we see new, beautiful updates that make us fall even more in love with this venue. Even on a chilly, gray day with bare vines the vineyard is beautiful! We noticed freshly landscaped areas that are going to look even more amazing when the grounds are alive and green at the end of the summer. Merrily and Michael, the vineyard owners, have been working their tails off to get everything ready for their tasting room to open this summer. If you're in the area in July/August, stop in for a sneak preview! We'll keep you posted on the grand opening date.

By the way, JC is holding my shoes...isn't he sweet? :)

JC's parents came with us so they could see SWF for the first time. The first thing they said was, "Now we understand why the two of you chose this site. It's so "you!"

Anna, our favorite caterer, was featured at the event so we had planned to spend some time going over "fun" details like linen selection, table placement, and timeline flow. A couple strange blue beverages sure made this process easier! Even in the cold rain, Anna walked outside with me from start to finish (have I mentioned how much I love her??) so we could figure out where the welcoming beverages go, where JC & I will exit after the ceremony, where the harvest table should be...so many things to think about!! Once we started using 10th grade geometry to figure out how big the table cloths should be I knew we were done. (a2 + b2 = c2, right?)

This is a picture of the stone fireplace on the main floor. Doesn't it look beautiful with all the floating candles?

For those of you who love following blogs, particularly about wedding planning, Style Me Pretty is one of the best on the web. Abby Larson was one of the featured speakers at the event and many of my friends were a little jealous that I was going to meet this Style Guru in the flesh! If you're interested in reading a little more about what the event was all about, check out this link:

Saltwater Farm

Esther reminded me that we still haven't really posted much about our choice of venue for our wedding. It was quite the hefty endeavor...we narrowed a list down to eleven (!!!) places in the Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut area to visit over the course of a few weekends. We were feeling pretty good about one of the first places we visited earlier in the process, but once we walked in to Saltwater Farm Vineyard, we knew that we found what we were looking for. 

For us, its just a perfect blend of natural environs and bold, angular contemporary materials. The open design lends itself to a great flow, and everything is new. And best of all, they had a 'prime' wedding date available...the Sunday of Labor Day weekend. Most of the other venues were going to make us make a sacrifice on many things, the date being one of them. Before we found Saltwater Farm, we were contemplating a Friday wedding, golf courses (if you know us well, that is not us), and very limited food options. We had the option of working with a great caterer who would be very open to working with us on the menu (Thank you Anna!) and they were BOTH Ok with me brewing beer for the day. So cool. It really just all fell in to place once we met with Merrilee and Michael, the couple behind Saltwater Farm Vineyard.

We went to their first tasting a few weeks ago, and were quietly blown away by their estate grown 2006 Cabernet Franc. Yes...I know, but it is a complex and spicey aromatic but still very quaffable red, grown entirely by a new vineyard on the Connecticut coast. We hope to be able to serve some to you at the wedding. It should go nicely with some of the cocktail hour passed hors d'oevres and the artisan Cato Corner cheeses.

But, for now, I'll leave you with some pictures I snapped that will give you a sneak peak at what you can expect to see at Saltwater Farm (without giving too much away, of course).