{Montana Bride Featured Wedding} Antonia + Rance

We kicked off our wedding weekend with our closest friends and family in from all around the country with a Yellowstone National Tour. Most people had never been to Montana, so they were blown away at the beauty. We had two large sprinters and spilt up the guys and girls. There were a lot of laughs and the scenery was amazing. Thursday night, we did our welcoming party at Bucks with an amazing dinner capped off with and incredible double rainbow. Saturday morning was so special. We kicked of the day with an intimate yoga class, taught by my sister/maid of honor for about 25 people in the Spa room of Rainbow Ranch followed by a group breakfast.  We had the entire lodge booked, so it was so nice running into our friends & family, and by Saturday everyone knew each other.

 

 I was worried about the weather because it had been raining on and off each day. and our ceremony, and our pictures,  were outside. We had a backup plan, but it was less than ideal.  As I was walking to my room to put my dress on it was still raining.  With just 156 minutes before we were scheduled to start our pictures, we walked out to go to our destination and the sun came out!  After pictures and a little champagne,  the clouds were back and it was looking a little dicey. However,  with just 30 minutes until the ceremony, we decided to just go with it!  It wasn’t raining as the bridal party started down the aisle, but it was still cloudy.  I started my walk with my mother.  As I crossed the bridge and faced our guests, the sun came shining down. Rance was emotional, the setting was so beautiful…it was perfect!  

 

 

Timothy Tate, our officiant,  asked everyone to be present and began with his opening which was so heartfelt and touching. The violinist and classical guitarist started “Bitter Sweet Symphony”, and as we stood there looking at each other and then the most magical thing happened…it began to lightly mist onto us. It wasn’t enough to be even  be concerned about .  It was so surreal. Then it stopped and the rest of the day was sunny. We proceeded with our vows and as we kissed, our dogs came together from each side (they were in the wedding) and apparently kissed each other too! After the ceremony, everyone was coming up and saying it was the most beautiful ceremony they have ever attended.  

 

 The night continued with a fun cocktail hour, amazing food and desserts and an off the charts 13 person band that got everyone out of their seats. We even had guys joining the band, including my husband. It ended with people on the dance floor until 2am and people sitting around the fire pit-roasting s’mores. It was so special and so much more than I could ever imagine.

 

Advice to Future Montana Brides

Just relax and enjoy it all! Montana is so laid back, which makes it easy to do!

The Vendors

Photographer: Larry Stanley

Rehearsal Dinner: Buck’s T4 (Welcoming Party)

Ceremony Venue: Rainbow Ranch

Reception Venue: Rainbow Ranch

Florist: Avant Floral

Catering: Rainbow Ranch

Cakes & Desserts: Rainbow Ranch

Bar Service: Rainbow Ranch

Band: Groove Merchants

DJ: Groove Merchants

Sound & Lighting:

Rentals: Montana Party Rentals

Hair & Makeup: Theory & Indulgence

Wedding Dress-Designer: Lian Carlo

Invitations: Laura Cook Designs

Lodging: Rainbow Ranch

Transportation: Big Sky Taxi

Cinematorgrapher: Scenic Route Films

Officiant: Timothy Tate

{From the Pros} What's for Dinner …. Plated vs Buffet

There are a number of big decisions in planning a wedding, but right up there near the top is “what’s on the menu”.  We’ve worked with a lot of couples and for most, making the choices about what to serve is one of the most perplexing.   Your menu ultimately boils down to preference and budget.  One of the most common questions we get about catering is buffet or plated. There are a number of factors to consider when making your final choice, but rest assured that most professional caterers are comfortable with either option and will serve a beautiful meal either way.

Budget:  As far as the actual cost involved, it’s pretty much a wash.  With a plated dinner the caterer is better able to control your food portions and thereby your costs,  But you will have to hire more wait staff to serve the meal.  By serving buffet style, the labor costs will be lower but most caterers recommend 15% to 20% more food since there will be no portion control and people may come back through the line more than once. (Caterers want to insure they will not ever run out of food!)   Many couples like to offer several selections for guests with the standard being 2 proteins and a vegetarian option.  With a plated dinner, the guests would make choices prior to the event and be served the selected option.  With buffets, a majority of guests will serve themselves all 3 options.

The Experience:  The budget may be a wash, but plated and buffet style dinners offer to very different experiences for your guests.  A plated dinner is going to have a more formal and cohesive feel.  Once the dinner service starts, the plates will come out so your guests are all dining together.   Your guests will also be presented the food as the caterer, intended it to be presented.  Watch any cooking show and you will see presentation plays an important role in the dining experience.  All in all, a plated dinner will present itself as a calmer room experience.  Because the staff is not having to focus on keeping the buffet stocked, they are better able to focus on seeing to your guests dining needs.  If you have offered your guests protein choices, you will need to have assigned seating or ‘markers’ so the wait staff knows who gets which options.  Assigned seating means more planning and setup time.  Not only do you have to decide who sits where ( and sometimes more importantly, with whom they will be sitting), you will also have make and organize a seating chart or cards. 

 A buffet style dinner is going to be a much more casual feel.  Guests will be up and mingling and conversing.  With a buffet, you can have open seating since guests will be serving themselves.  You can ‘reserve’ the family and head tables, but other than that guests can sit with whomever they choose.   Be prepared for the dinner service to last longer, by as much as a half an hour.  Some guests may linger in conversation before going through the line.  You will also have the guests that go through the line first finishing dinner just as others are getting served. 

Family Style:  Family style is when large platters are brought to each table and is a great option for a smaller wedding (50 to 75 guests).  As far as budget, it will generally be more expensive because you will need the wait staff associated with a plated dinner, but also the larger food portions required by a buffet since caterers will want the platters to be full and bountiful.  You will also incur extra rental fees for the various platters and vessels required for this type of service.  When selecting the courses, keep in mind your guests will be required to pass the platters around the table which can be a little messy and interrupt conversation.

The Bullet Points!

• ·          Whenever possible, meet your caterer and taste their food.  If you are out of town and not able to meet, seek out references from other area vendors.  This is where the advice and recommendations from a professional wedding planner are worth their weight in gold.
• ·           If serving a plated dinner, consider the mixed grill.  Instead of guests picking an option, each guests will be served a smaller portion of each of the proteins you choose.  You should still have a vegetarian option.  This allows for open seating or assigned seating since each guest gets the same plate.
• ·          Consider the Venue.  If you want to serve a buffet, make sure the room can accommodate the actual buffet line as well as allow for comfortable traffic flow.
• ·        Leftovers.  Most caterers do not wrap leftovers due to safety concerns and the packaging required.  If you need a plate prepared for a guest that is arriving late or to make sure that your Dad actually gets dinner after chatting with everyone of your guests, inform your caterer prior to the service.
• ·          If you are throwing a wedding in a pristine meadow in the middle of nowhere with no running water or electricity, expect the catering to cost more.
• ·         Most caterers will require a 50% non-refundable deposit to secure the date.
• ·         Many caterers will assist in setting the tables and will bus the tables, clean and repackage the catering rentals, and haul food related garbage.  They do not set or break down the room.  That is to say, they don’t set up table and chairs or break them down.  They may offer it as an option, but there will be additional charges.  Be sure to ask where their services start and end. 
• ·         Which brings us to the most important piece of advice we can give about any vendor…Read The Contract.  Though we just said many caterers will assist in setting table, be sure!  It is essential you know exactly what services are and are not covered by the caterer.

Article by Montana Bride

Thank you to Emily Ryan from Food For Thought

{Montana Bride Feature Wedding} Kaleen + Dan

 

 

The Love Story

Dan and I met on AOL Instant Messenger when we were in 8^thGrade (back in the day before Myspace).  We finally decided to meet in person at the Mount Helena Music Festival.  Our "first date" must have gone well, because the next day Dan asked me to be his girlfriend, and we have been together ever since. Dan and I went to rival high schools in Helena, MT and then went to college together at Montana State University.  After I graduated from MSU, we moved to Los Angeles so Dan could pursue his music career and I could attend law school. 

 

The Proposal

Dan and I have always loved cruising, so we decided to spend our 10-year anniversary on a cruise to Mexico in 2012.  On the last day of the cruise, which was our anniversary, Dan took me up on the balcony to watch the last sunset where he got on one knee and popped the question.  

 

 

 

The Wedding

After moving to California, Dan and I began to appreciate the beauty Montana has to offer and couldn’t imagine getting married anywhere else. Both Dan and I’s moms were very involved with the wedding and all the decorations were handmade. It was truly a “Pinterest-worthy” wedding. The weather during the day started out beautifully, and about half hour before the ceremony, the clouds started rolling in. We almost had to move up the ceremony a half-hour earlier to avoid the rain, but I was not ready yet! We ended up having the ceremony at the planned time and right as I started walking down the aisle, the dark clouds quickly swept by us without a drop of rain! Once the fear of rain had gone and calmed our nerves, the rest of the night went without a hitch. Lucky for me, my dad owns the Lewis and Clark Brewing Company, so we had plenty of craft beer and even our own wedding beer brewed especially for us, Happily Ever After. We had our very good friends from the Clintons play and my (now) husband and his band surprised me with a compilation of love songs during the reception.

 

 

 

 

Advice to Future Montana Brides
 

Take your time! Dan and I were engaged for a little over two years, and I loved the engagement period! By the time the wedding came around, I did not feel stressed and I felt very comfortable with where we were at. I also suggest having a wedding at a venue that provides services/supplies like the dinner, tables, chairs, etc. Chico did a great job and it was so nice to not have to worry about renting things last minute or not having enough of something. Chico was also great at reminding you when to do the “cake-cutting” or the “dinner toasts,” because it’s very easy to lose track of time.

 The Vendors

Photography: Lauren Brown Photography
Rehearsal Dinner: Mountain View House, Chico Hot Springs
Ceremony: Field of Dreams, Chico Hot Springs
Reception: Chico Hot Springs
Florist: West Mont Flower & Trading Co.
Catering: Chico Hot Springs
Cakes & Desserts: Chico Hot Springs
Photo Booth: Big Sky Photobooth
Band & DJ: The Clintons
Wedding Dress Designer: Stella York
Gown Shop: Eskay Bridal
Tuxedo Rentals: Eskay Bridal
Lodging: Chico Hot Springs
Officiant: Larry Murphy