Top 5 Best Wedding Locations in Manitoba
If you live in or have ever lived in Manitoba, then you know that summers here are both a blessing and a curse: it's frequently GORGEOUS out, with long, sunny days and warm evenings. It's also frequently bug season: flies, mosquitoes, ticks. So when it comes to planning an outdoor wedding in Manitoba, we frequently choose a completely outdoor ceremony with an indoor or partially indoor reception. So, here's my list of the best wedding locations in Manitoba, which all combine the outdoors with the in!
Cielo's Garden
Photos by Keila Marie Photography
This one should come as no surprise to you. I work at Cielo's Garden all the time, and it's definitely one of my favourite places for a wedding. The little stone chapel in the woods is remarkably romantic, and the clear top tent itself is a blank canvas that you can do so much with.
Whitetail Meadow
Photos by Esther Funk Photography
Whitetail Meadow is a new venue just outside of Niverville that is going to top everyone's lists very quickly. I recently designed all the florals for their grand opening/open house and couldn't believe what a great job they did! The venue is a converted barn, which has been completely re-built on the interior. It features a gorgeous stone fireplace (which would be the perfect backdrop for a winter wedding ceremony and also is the dream place to put flowers!), a sweet loft space, and at least 3 different outdoor spaces where you could host a wedding ceremony, depending on what type of vibe you'd like: forest setting, the veranda with the stone fireplace in the background, or the grassy meadow with a creek in the background!
I can't wait to share more with you from this open house soon - the photos are gorgeous!
Hawthorn Estates
Renderings from Hawthorn Estates / Wedding Photos by Brittany Mahood
After a tragic fire in December 2016, Hawthorn Estates is re-building and is soon to be better than ever. I seriously CANNOT WAIT for the grand unveiling of the all-new barn venue just about 25 minutes north east of Winnipeg. This rendering of the new exterior shows you some of the focal points: a gorgeous green space (including a lovely area for wedding ceremonies), and tons of windows. Indoors, they're planning for rough-hewn timbers from BC and a large fireplace.
Stay up to date with their re-build progress on their Instagram! I drove past it just before Christmas and it was looking incredible. They're now booking for 2018 and 2019 weddings.
Clear Lake - Elkhorn and Danceland
Photos by Esther Funk Photography
I've only been up to Clear Lake once, and it was this past summer for a wedding that was awesome. The ceremony was outdoors, at Elkhorn Manor (just off the golf course) and then the reception was right in the downtown of the Clear Lake village at Dance Land. Truth be told, the directions to get the Elkhorn Manor were a little confusing, but the location was wonderful for a ceremony: it was peaceful, quiet, overlooking the water in the background with lush green grounds all around. Dance Land is just a couple of minutes away. It's a really neat wood building (unfortunately, pretty much no natural light) with a cool history.
See more from that summer wedding here!
Pineridge Hollow
Photos by Megan Steen
Pineridge Hollow has to be included on this list! It's highly recommended, features an incredible menu, and has plenty of charm wrapped up into this simple tent venue in the heart of Birds Hill Park. Pineridge Hollow offers several different outdoor ceremony locations (including this clearing in the woods, as seen below), and the seating in the tent can be configured in several different ways for your reception, with your choice of long rectangular tables or round tables. They also offer a great selection of decor rentals - cute candle holders, table numbers, backdrops or seating charts, and so on.
I've loved being able to personalize the decor at Pineridge Hollow - one of my favourites featured a greenery installation hanging above the guests from the tent ceiling.
Hire a talented wedding floral and event designer for your wedding in Winnipeg.
Along with designing florals, Stone House Creative also offers full event design to a limited number of wedding clients each year. If you want your wedding to really look and feel like you while creating a unique ambiance unlike what your friends have had at their weddings, then reach out to me today!
Chelsea and Jason's Romantic Outdoorsy Wedding
When Chelsea first came to me, she told me that she and Jason wanted to have an outdoorsy, laid-back wedding but still have some feminine, romantic touches to it. Pineridge Hollow was totally the perfect place to host their wedding, and the flowers and colour palette really brought everything to life.
Also, a strange side note: when I met with Chelsea, I knew I recognized her. I just couldn't quite put my finger on where I knew her from. She didn't recognize me, but that tends to happen to me. I remember every face and no one ever remembers me (truth). Then it suddenly hit me out of nowhere: we played basketball against each other in junior high. HA! I felt like such a champ for remembering. She still didn't remember me ;)
Megan Steen Photography ~ Pineridge Hollow ~ BHLDN ~ EPH Apparel
One of the best parts of Chelsea's bouquets was that almost everything was locally grown. Just a bit of the greenery and the roses came from outside of Manitoba!
Bridal Bouquet Ingredients: lisianthus, foxglove, delphinium, phlox, nigella, roses, feverfew, and several varieties of greenery.
I LOVE the colours and the dresses chosen for the bridesmaids. This is mix-matched bridesmaids done right: a light floral pattern, lace, tulle, soft pink and seafoam green. Isn't it a gorgeous combination? They look incredible!
OH. And Chelsea's dress? INCREDIBLE! I couldn't find the exact one but here are a couple of similar gowns - this one in a glamorous ivory/silver combination and this one has a little more casual, feminine feel.
So, then we get to the outdoor ceremony! This clearing in the woods at Pineridge Hollow is a dreamy space for a ceremony with a natural feel. They have this great 4 post birch arbor, and Chelsea asked me to make some sort of floral piece for it. I really went for it! Using cream and blush roses, light blue delphinium, and soft, sage-toned greenery, this asymmetrical floral piece was installed onto the arch for the ceremony and then re-used on the head table afterwards.
We kept things pretty simple at the reception with greenery garlands and plenty of candlelight. The tent there is so white, so my favourite things to do there are either 1) keep it really simple - aka, lots of green and white and warm neutrals or 2) go for it with a lot of colour so that the white allows it all to pop!
I've rounded up some of my favourite weddings at Pineridge Hollow, so if you're getting married there, check these out for some more ideas!
Bold and colourful for Lauda and Jeremy
Gwen and Shane's elegant, simple wedding
Rich fall wedding with a deep colour palette
Looking for a wedding florist in Winnipeg?
Getting married in Manitoba? I might be biased, but flowers are the best way to make a statement at your wedding. Whether you already have a specific vision or want me to dream up something custom just for you, reach out to Stone House Creative for stunning bridal bouquets, truly unique ceremony backdrops, and beautiful floral centrepieces to create the perfect ambiance for your wedding!
2018's Top Wedding Colours
Trying to narrow down your wedding colour palette? Maybe you've got an idea of one main tone you like or what colour you want your bridesmaids to wear, but can't decide on accent colours. Well, I'm here to help with my predictions for the top wedding colours of 2018.
Forget ultra-violet (to be honest, I don't usually like the "colour of the year" that Pantone chooses). The top wedding colours for 2018 will be all in the dusty tones. Dusty rose, mauve, cornflower blue, even a butter yellow. Here are some of my favourite go-to dusty toned flowers!
Dusty Rose
Dusty rose is probably the most commonly requested colour I'm seeing for 2018 weddings. It's a bit deeper than the blush palettes of the past few wedding seasons, but still very much in line with the romantic trends we've been working with. The good news? For those of you want dusty rose, there are PLENTY of really good floral options.
Above, we've got cafe latte roses (not easy to get here in Winnipeg, but the perfect unique rose gold tone when we can get them!), faith roses, and rice flower. Below, a combination of quicksand roses, rice flower, earl grey roses, and astrantia. And at the bottom, an antique toned hydrangea with a classic blush ranunculus.
Mauve
I am seeing a LOT of mauve being used an accent colour for 2018 weddings, and my favourite go-to is the amnesia rose. It's unique and has a really one-of-a-kind colour. I can't think of anything better for mauve!
You can also see the amnesia rose in action below on the left - it pairs gorgeously with those soft peach roses and fresh green buds on the white ranunculus. And on the right, we have fritillaria. It's a very unique shape and bloom, and to be honest, kind of smells like skunk, but they're pretty cool nonetheless!
Cornflower Blue
Cornflower blue (aka dusty light blue) is another great tone that is a beautiful accent. There aren't a lot of naturally blue flowers, so if you're wanting a lot of blues at your wedding, then I would suggest choosing a dusty blue linen to play centre stage at your reception while tucking in some of these flowers into your bouquets! On the left, we've got muscari, which is a personal favourite of mine. It's got a short stem and a small bloom so this is definitely an accent flowers, but seriously, can you get any cuter? And then in the middle, delphinium - one of my favourite natural blue flowers. You can see it working its magic in the bouquet on the right!
Still trying to figure out your wedding colour palette? Here are some more tips:
-I love the way that a few well-placed bold accent tones can enliven an otherwise neutral palette. Click that link to see some seriously gorgeous flowers!
-Looking for a way to modernize the traditional blush wedding palette? Pair it with peach and mauve for a modern, feminine take.
-Don't forget to take into account these 7 things you HAVE to think about when choosing your wedding colour palette.
-Finally, avoid making any of these mistakes that brides make when selecting their wedding palettes!
Work with a wedding event designer who loves creative colour palettes!
Along with floral design, Stone House Creative offers full Event Design Services to a limited number of wedding clients each year. This process allows me to go deeper with you, designing beyond the flowers, to help you create a celebration that truly looks and feels like you.
Cassy and Matt's Jewel Tone Wedding at the Fort Garry Hotel
I can't believe that it's January and Cassy and Matt's fun jewel tone wedding at the Fort Garry Hotel was in July! It feels like it was just weeks ago. I loved the opportunity to work with so much colour for an otherwise fairly traditional wedding - Cassy wanted rich jewel tones, and I was more than happy to oblige! Rich pinks, peaches, vibrant greens, berries, and a hint of light blue made for a delicious palette. I also got to work with Amanda Douglas Events (I love working with wedding planners!), who did a great job of tying together different aspects of Cassy and Matt's individual styles and dreams for the wedding - for example, Matt really wanted his favourite colour (lime green) to play a role, and Cassy's love for Disney needed to find a place as well (which was incorporated into cute sketches on the guest table numbers).
Amanda Douglas Events ~ Luckygirl Photography ~ Planned Perfectly ~ Two Chicks and a Bag of Makeup ~ Niakwa Golf Course ~ Fort Garry Hotel ~ Platinum Productions ~ Buttercream by Alareen
GUYS. I love love loved Cassy's bouquet, and making it. And holding it. And I may or may not have wanted to keep it! I loved this combination of jewel tones and textures, rich greens and unique touches.
Bridal bouquet ingredients: garden roses (several varieties), standard roses, spray roses, delphinium, sweet pea, and dahlias with several types of greenery.
The ceremony was held at Niakwa Country Club (which they normally only do when they have receptions at the club, so this worked out really well for Cassy and Matt!), and in the summertime, it is so vibrant and lush there that we didn't need to add any flowers. But, Cassy had this cute idea to add some light, airy floral garlands onto the sides of the wagon that the little kids were pulled down the aisle on. It was so cute and worked out so well!
Amanda from Amanda Douglas Events came up with a really beautiful, unique floor plan in the Provencher Room at the Fort Garry Hotel (for the record, it's my favourite ballroom in the city!). She combined both wide, rectangular tables with round tables to create an elegant space that was also effective at directing guests around the room. They chose these gorgeous cross-back chairs and lace overlays from Planned Perfectly, which formed the right kind of neutral base for the space - especially since Cassy wanted me to go vibrant with the flowers! For the long tables, the floral centrepieces were in a long wood box, and for the round tables, I used a short stone urn.
We re-purposed the floral garlands onto the sweets table and I love the way it turned out!
Sara and Brent's All-Greenery Wedding
When it comes to simple weddings, I don't think there's anything quite so simple and pretty as an all-greenery wedding. Sara and Brent's wedding was such a fun one to be a part of - it was an intimate wedding, without need for too terribly much floral decor, so Sara chose to go with tons of greenery and texture instead!
Wedding Planner: Amanda Douglas Events | Photos: Kamp Photography | Venue: St Norbert Arts Centre | Linens: Dream Day Decor | Lighting Backdrop: Event Light
I love the St Norbert Arts Centre. It is such a cool place for weddings! It's pretty small so it's ideal for intimate weddings like this one, and it's also such a neutral space that you can go really minimal OR you can go super bright and colourful. For Sara and Brent, we kept greenery on all the tables but alternated styles - half with a full garland and half with just really loose greenery laid down the length of the table, tucked in with candles.
We did a very simple sweetheart table design for them, with a greenery garland. The showstopper was definitely the cafe light string backdrop behind, from Event Light!
