Easy Ways to Keep Everyone Cool at an Outdoor Summer Wedding

Planning an outdoor wedding in Tennessee sounds like a wonderful idea, but the heat can sometimes reach a point that makes being outside uncomfortable. There are plenty of ways to keep everyone cool at a mid-summer ceremony so that you can still have your dream wedding among the outdoor scenic, Smoky Mountain charm of Country Jewell. Here are a few easy ideas to add to your wedding plans.  

Fans
Both small handheld fans and large electric fans can be placed strategically around the wedding so that your guests don't feel like they are melting in the heat of a Tennessee summer day. There are lots of kits available so that you can turn handheld fans into wedding programs, allowing them to serve two purposes at once plus add a very nice touch to the overall look of your wedding. Larger fans can be rented to keep a refreshing breeze blowing for all to enjoy. Just make sure that you place them so that the wind is not too strong on any one particular area.  

Shade
If a large part of your wedding will be held outdoors, you may want to add a pretty canopy off to the side so that it is easy for guests to find some shade nearby if they want to get out of the sun. You could also find some lovely parasols to pass out to guests so that they can shade themselves, and these are a unique option to have the bridesmaids carry instead of bouquets. 

Luckily, here at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville, there are already plenty of spots to find some shade around the venue. Your reception will most likely take place inside our spacious wedding barn so your guests won't have to be out in the sun for too long.    

Ice-Cold Drinks
It is extremely important to keep everyone at your wedding hydrated on a hot day. Make sure that there is water readily available at all times. You could set up a table with beverage dispensers off to the side, and you could even offer fruit-infused varieties of water for guests to enjoy. Another idea is to have coolers filled with ice and water bottles, and you pitchers or carafes of water placed on each reception table is a nice touch too. 

As for the other beverages that you will be serving, having bottles or cans available for guests to grab from some type of cooler helps to avoid anyone having to wait in a long line for a drink. Some drinks could also be placed inside self-serve drink dispensers on the table next to the water. Frozen fruit or reusable ice cubes will keep the containers cold without watering down the drinks inside. 

Iced Down Washcloths
This may sound strange, but the result is magical on a hot day! Fill a cooler full of ice water and then place washcloths inside of it. If you want to stay on-theme, use washcloths in your wedding colors. When anyone at your wedding feels overheated, they can place one of the washcloths on their neck and they will instantly feel refreshed. Your wedding party will especially appreciate this "cool" trick. 

Frozen Treats
Last, but certainly not least, plan to serve a few ice-cold treats along with the wedding cake for dessert. Ice cream pairs deliciously with cake, and you could even add to the fun of eating it by setting out toppings and letting guests build their own sundaes. You know those popsicles that start as a liquid in a plastic tube that you place in the freezer to set? They are inexpensive and can be placed in buckets of ice for guests to easily grab. Another fun cold dessert is sno-cones. Machines can be rented to make the ice, and you could even offer adult versions from the bar.   

Our scenic outdoor wedding venue near Knoxville is a beautiful place to say "I do" and if you use some of the ideas above, tying the knot on a hot day won't be a problem for you or your guests. Plus, with the shady areas and indoor options available to you at Country Jewell in Heiskell, there are plenty of ways to get out of the sun when you need to. Come by soon and see the place for yourself. You're going to love it! 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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10 Great Ideas For Those Leftover Mason Jars From Your Wedding

Last week's blog offered 10 ways to cleverly use mason jars at your wedding at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville. Unless you choose to give them away as favors to guests, you are going to end up with a lot of mason jars after the wedding to take home. 

You could try to resell them to another bride planning a rustic wedding of her own, but there are plenty of great things you can do with the jars you decide to keep. Country Jewell has a few of those ideas for you here today.  

1. Snack Holders
Line your kitchen counter or cabinets with jars full of small snack items. It makes a pretty display in your kitchen and your snacks can be grabbed quickly when you get the munchies. These jars work perfectly for holding treats for your pets too. 

Mason jars also work well for packing lunch items. Salads can be layered in a way so that the dressing doesn't soak everything else before you eat it. At lunchtime, all you have to do is shake it up and pour it out onto a plate, or you can even eat it right out of the jar. As long as the lid has a good, tight seal, it makes a great soup container too. 

2. Gift Jars
There are lots of gift-giving opportunities throughout the year, so having a stash of mason jars for "gift boxes" is be a good thing. You can give away mini "spas" in a jar by filling it with nail polish, emery boards, lotions, bath gels, etc... They are perfect for filling with tasty treats too, and no one can resist getting food as a gift! There are also lots of tutorials online for filling mason jars with the dry ingredients for a recipe, all layered in an attractive way with the recipe tied to the lid.    

3. Herb Garden
These handy jars are nice containers to line your kitchen window with also. Fill them with a bit of dirt and plant your favorite herbs inside. Then you will have fresh herbs for cooking anytime that you need them. 

4. Kitchen Containers
Foods like pasta and rice often come in a bag that is not resealable. Any leftover dried goods that you have can be stored nicely in mason jars. Baking ingredients, such as flour and sugar, can be kept in these jars too. You know how those Parmesan cheese containers from the store have a lid with holes you can shake the cheese out of? That same lid fits most mason jars perfectly! 

5. Baking "Pans"
Glass can go into an oven, which means filling a mason jar with cake batter, bread dough, or muffin mix will result in fresh and hot treats you can serve straight out of their baking container. We have even seen some recipes that allow you to bake a wonderful single-serving pie in them. 

6. Desk Containers
Getting out of the kitchen and into other rooms in your home, mason jars are excellent at containing all sorts of household items. You can leave them plain so that the things inside are clearly visible, or you can get crafty and decorate them with paint, ribbons, or lace. On your desk, long items like pens, pencils, and scissors can be stored in an open jar, and smaller things such as paper clips, staples, and thumbtacks can be contained by adding the lid.  

7. Bathroom Containers
Just like on your desk, there are lots of things in the bathroom that can be kept neatly in a mason jar. Q-tips, cotton balls, makeup sponges, brushes, combs, bath salts... all sorts of things! 

8. Liquid Dispensers
The next time that you empty a shampoo or lotion bottle with a pump on top, save it. You can find lots of fairly easy tutorials online that instruct you on how to add a pump to the lid of a mason jar. Once that is done, you will have a reusable dispenser for soaps, lotions, and more. 

9. Waterproof Containers
If you like to go camping, use your jars to store matches so that they stay nice and dry. They are also great for keeping the scents from aromatic foods locked away so that animals aren't tempted to visit and examine what you're eating. 

10. Vases or Candle Holders 
You can also use your leftover mason jars all around your home in the same ways you used them at your wedding, filling them with candles or fresh flowers. As an added bonus, every time that you see one in a room, it will remind you of your very special wedding day!

We love seeing all of the creative things that people do with mason jars at our rustic wedding and event venue in Tennessee. If you've come up with some cool things to do with the extra mason jars after your own wedding at Country Jewell, we'd love to see those too. We bet you've got a few more great ideas that we didn't even think of. 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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10 Ways to Cleverly Use Mason Jars at Your Wedding

If you are in the process of planning a rustic wedding in Tennessee, it is very likely that mason jars are on your shopping list. They are a staple for rustic wedding decor, and the perfect item to use for a variety of different ideas. Country Jewell has seen this done successfully in many different ways. Here are 10 that you may want to use for your own wedding. 

1. Flower Vases
This is probably the most common use for mason jars at weddings. They make excellent vases for holding floral arrangments for reception table centerpieces. You can also place a few empty ones on the head table to hold the bride's and bridesmaids' bouquets during the reception. 

2. Candle Holders
Another item commonly used inside mason jars for centerpieces is candles. They contain the wax from melting votives nicely, and you can also put water inside them for floating candles. If you're into DIY candle-making, mason jars can be filled with wicks and wax in your wedding colors, making the entire item the candle rather than just a candle holder.   

3. Aisle Decorations
Mason jars can also be filled with flowers or flameless candles and placed on the ground on either side of the aisle that the bride will be walking down. If you wrap a pretty ribbon or string around the top, these decorations can also be hung from shepherd's hooks or the outside of the chairs on either side of the aisle.  

4. Drink Glasses
There is no better cup to drink out of at a rustic wedding than a mason jar! It fits the theme beautifully and can hold quite a bit of the beverage of your choice. Many today even come with handles attached specifically for this purpose!  

5. Escort Cards 
Go one step further and put guests' names and table numbers on the mason jar drink glasses. When they get to the reception, they will be able to easily find their seat and grab a drink on the way. 

6. Utensil Holders
Another thing that can fit neatly inside a mason jar is most of each guest's place setting. Put a pretty napkin inside, then place the utensils, straw, and anything else they may need for dinner inside too. They can be placed on a table at the beginning of the buffet line for guests to pick up.   

7. Place Cards
You can also place the utensil-holding mason jars at each place setting. Then, all you have to do is add the guest's name that will be sitting there and you instantly have your place cards taken care of! They fill out the decor on the reception tables too, meaning your centerpieces can be simpler yet the table will look full and beautiful. 

8. Dessert
You can cook baked goods directly inside mason jars like cakes and pies, meaning you won't need extra plates on the dessert table. They are also wonderful for holding non-baked desserts that can be layered and could even double as ice cream sundae bowls.  

9. Wedding Party Gifts 
Mason jars can be used as pretty containers for thoughtful items that your wedding party can use. For the ladies, you can make a "spa in a jar" by filling it with sample-sized lotion bottles, face masks or creams, nail polish, emery boards, etc... For the gentleman, possibly things they may need before the ceremony like gum, mints, snacks, and items like that, or single-serving bottles of their favorite booze and mini cans of soda or other mixers. 

10. Favors
These incredible jars can also be used to hold favors for your wedding guests to take home with them. Attach a note thanking them for joining you on this special day and fill the jar with candies, homemade treats, or the ingredients and a recipe for your favorite cookies. 

Those are just a few very simple ideas for ways that you can incorporate mason jars into your decor at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville. Next week we'll have some great ideas for what you can do with all of those mason jar decorations after your Country Jewell wedding too! 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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Creative Ideas for a Unique Wedding Ceremony or Reception Entrance

You don't have to do anything out of the ordinary when you make your first appearance at the ceremony and reception at our beautiful wedding venue in Tennessee, but some couples prefer to surprise their guests with something unique. Your imagination can most likely come up with all kinds of creative ideas, but here are a few from Country Jewell to get you started. Some work better for a ceremony entrance, others are best for entering the reception, and many could be used for either one. 

Ride In Style
Each of you can be dropped off separately at the top of the ceremony aisle in a unique vehicle. The person walking the bride down the aisle could also be in the vehicle or just waiting at the top of the aisle. 

The transportation could be a horse-drawn carriage, vintage automobile, or even a bicycle, possibly one built for two. You could also look to your professions for inspiration, for example, if you're marrying a fireman or policeman, use a fire truck or police cruiser. This type of entrance would work equally as well for your reception entrance too.  

Enter As a Couple
The tradition of a father walking a bride down the aisle comes from a time when she went straight from her parents' home to one with her new husband. This meant the father was "giving her away" to the groom. Today, many couples are getting married after years of living on their own or even living together. If you don't feel like you want someone symbolically giving you away, you and your groom can walk each other down the aisle, entering your new life together as a unified force. 

Choreograph It
You've likely seen many videos of wedding parties entering both ceremonies and receptions with a choreographed dance. If you and your friends are the goofy, fun-loving type that would really get into a performance like this and enjoy it, go for it. Pick a song that sums you up as a couple and put on your dancing shoes!  

Start a Flash Mob
A variation on the choreographed entrance is to bring a few of the wedding guests in on the show too. This would be much more of a stand-out surprise at the ceremony, but it could work well at the reception too. Have the wedding party get the moves started, and just when everyone thinks that's the big surprise, slowly have some of your guests join in one at a time until a whole bunch of people are a part of the entertainment.

An Entryway
If you are getting married someplace with doors, keeping those closed until the big moment and then opening them for a grand entrance is simple. If your venue doesn't have doors, like our outdoor wedding gazebo near Knoxville, you can make your own. It could be an actual door decorated and set up for the bride or the couple to hide behind, or possibly an arch with a curtain to pull aside for the big reveal. 

A Sporty Entrance
For couples that are huge sports fans, consider entering like your favorite team. You could have the wedding party hold up a big banner announcing the new Mr. & Mrs. for the two of you to break through. Another idea is to have them form a tunnel and you can enter running underneath their arms. You could even have the maid of honor and best man hold up ends of a streamer for the two of you to run through, like a symbolical finish line. 

Romantic Silhouettes
Creative lighting and a projection screen can allow you to begin your entrance in silhouette before the grand entrance when you step out from behind it. For a silhouette reception entrance, consider starting your first dance in shadow, and when the music swells, twirl yourselves out into the spotlight. 

Mood Lighting
You can use specialty lighting to set the mood as you enter the room. Many DJs have special lighting equipment that can do all kinds of exciting things. You could have pictures displayed around the room, sayings, your names or a monogram. Another idea is to use a different colored light for the entrance of each member of the wedding party, leading up to multiple colors and flashing lights for the new Mr. & Mrs. 

A Festive Drop
Shower yourselves with something festive as you walk into the reception room. You could set up a balloon drop, or drop something smaller like confetti or a bunch of rose petals. It will all look amazing falling around you and will add to the decor for the rest of the evening.  

Parade In
In addition to the two of you and the wedding party, enter the reception parade-style with extra people. You could hire dancers to surround you or have a live singer lead you in like a grand marshall. For the bride's ceremony entrance, instead of just one flower girl dropping petals, use an entire group of them to parade in skipping and cascading flowers down the aisle. 

That should be plenty of different ideas to get your own creative juices flowing while you plan your entrance to our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville. We'd love to hear all about any additional possibilities you can come up with too! Now that we've got you into Country Jewell, next week's blog will be filled with ideas on how you can make a creative exit. 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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10 Things That Wedding Photographers Wish Couples Knew (#6-10)

Last week our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville shared the first half of our list of 10 things that wedding photographers wish couples knew (#1-5.) Today, we're continuing those tips with #6-10 so the wedding photos that you have taken at Country Jewell can be the best photos ever! 

#6
Lighting Makes A Big Difference
If your wedding will begin during the day and continue late into the evening, that gives you a lot of chances to take photos in a variety of different natural lighting situations. Your photographer should recognize the best opportunities, so be sure to listen to them if they want to pull you away for a moment because they see the possibility for a great shot. 

Professional photographers are skilled at making artificial light do some incredible things too. If they need to move you a little to get the right lighting, trust them. The pictures that come out of the suggestion will be well worth it.  

#7
Ask Guests To Unplug
Unplugged weddings are a wedding where guests are asked to put away their phones, cameras, and other mobile devices. A lot of wonderful wedding photos can be ruined because guests are in the photographer's way trying to get a picture of their own. Let the pros take the photos and convince your guests to just enjoy the moment. 

You can always request the "unplugged" treatment for the ceremony and let your guests take their own photos at the reception, as long as you remind them to stay out of the professional photographer's way. After all, you paid them to take pictures, so let them do their job.  

#8
Connect Your Vendors
This goes for most of your wedding vendors, not just the photographer. If you make sure that they all have the names and contact information for each other, it can be a lot easier for them to communicate and work together to make your wedding flow smoothly. Sometimes your photographer may need a certain person for a certain shot, and rather than running around the wedding venue to find them, they can instead reach out to other vendors for help.   

#9
Don't Wait To Order Prints
Even if you hire a photographer that gives you a digital copy of all of your wedding photos, don't put off ordering prints to frame, put in photo albums, and share with your family and friends. The longer you wait to get those wedding photos printed, the less likely you will ever get it done. They are going to be amazing, so pick out a  few to show off! 

#10
HAVE FUN
This advice is the most important! The planning is over, so relax and enjoy all of that hard work. The way you feel is going to show in all of the photos that are being taken. You deserve to have the best day ever, and when you do, your wedding photos are going to be unbelievably amazing! 

If you are still looking for a photographer, or any other wedding vendors, the staff at Country Jewell can make some helpful suggestions. We work with lots of incredible wedding vendors all of the time, and we're good at matching couples with talented wedding professionals they can be comfortable with. When we all work as a team, your ceremony and reception at our beautiful wedding venue near Knoxville can be the one you've always dreamed of. 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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10 Things That Wedding Photographers Wish Couples Knew (#1-5)

May is National Photography Month, which seems like an excellent time to talk about all of those wonderful photos that you will be taking at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville. Those photographs will contain sentimental wedding memories, so you want to make sure that you have every chance to capture those moments in the best way possible. 

Country Jewell has a list of 10 things that most wedding photographers wish all of their clients knew before the wedding. We'll cover the first half of that list today and continue this discussion in next week's blog. Going into your special day with this advice will help you to take the most gorgeous wedding photos possible. 

#1
You Get What You Pay For
If wedding photographs are at the top of your "important wedding items" list, make sure that you set a big chunk of your budget aside especially for a quality photographer. It's a lot more than pointing and clicking. You need someone with the proper equipment, a full knowledge of weddings, the skills to know correct angles and lighting, and the ability to spend hours editing the multitude of photos that will be taken. 

A friend of the family may have a nice camera, but if they don't know how weddings work or get distracted because they are also a guest, they could miss some very important shots. Sometimes you can get lucky and find a photography student who is willing to work for cheap to build their portfolio, but your safest bet for pictures that you can be proud of is to stick with a pro.  

#2
Hire Someone You "Click" With
Photos look best when you are comfortable and happy in them. Choosing a photographer that you get along with well will make it much easier to be yourself, and that will show in your pictures. It makes your photographer's job a lot easier too when you are all comfortable with each other. This also means that you are much less likely to notice the photographer during intimate moments, which allows them to capture those special shots without interrupting them. 

#3
Have a List To Discuss With Them
You will probably have a list of "must have" photos that you want, and this can only happen if your photographer is aware that you want them. Don't overdo it and come up with a list too long to ever accomplish, but do include family photos that you want to have. This includes the names of who needs to be in which picture, and it's always nice to warn your photographer of any issues or family drama that may surface when these people get together. 

Also, let your photographer know if there are any wedding items that you made yourself or that have a special meaning to you so they can make sure to get a few photos of those things. Make them aware of any surprises you have planned too, such as a specially choreographed dance, so they don't miss capturing it. It's not your photographer's job to create your wedding day timeline, but their experience allows them to be a great resource for fitting everything in as long as they know what needs to fit in.     

#4
Trust Your Photographer
They are the experts, so trust your photographer's suggestions. They know how to make the lighting work in your favor and what types of things look great on film. If you have a long list of photos that you found on Pinterest but they say that shot isn't going to work in this situation, they usually know best.

Your input is needed to give them an idea of what you are wanting, but they need to have the freedom to create. You hired them because you loved the photographs from their portfolio, so you need to trust that they will do the same amazing work for your wedding too. With that in mind, if you are uncomfortable with a photo or a pose feels unnatural, speak up and your photographer will create another shot that you can be happier with.   

#5
Be Yourself
Just because it's a wedding, you don't have to do traditional "wedding poses" for your photos. Be goofy it that's your personality, and be willing to be photographed getting a little silly. Incorporate some props that show off a favorite hobby, pastime, or favorite thing. 

Also, if you don't normally wear a lot of makeup, there's no reason that you need to pile it on for your wedding day. You'll end up with pictures of a person you don't recognize. Stay true to your own style and personality and you'll get some fantastic photos that you love. 

These first 5 tips are a great place to start, and next week our Country Jewell blog will have 5 more tips to help your wedding photos turn out incredible. Our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville makes a gorgeous backdrop for your photographs, and these 10 tips combined with the love that will be emanating from the two fo you are going to make wedding magic together! 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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What To Expect From Your Wedding Party

The wonderful staff at our wedding venue near Knoxville, as well as the many excellent wedding professionals that we can steer you toward, are all here to help you throw the most amazing ceremony and reception possible. A few other people that can help you take care of some successful wedding planning are the members of your wedding party. They are a fantastic support team, and Country Jewell has compiled a list of the duties most often associated with each position. 

Maid/Matron of Honor
This wonderful woman is the bride's "2nd-in-command." (After the groom, of course!) She is the person you can call with questions, bounce ideas off of, and spill all of your wedding planning frustrations to. This is most likely one of the people that knows you best, so she should be able to convey and carry out your wishes to others when you can't. Your maid/matron of honor is also the "leader" of the rest of your bridesmaids. 

Before the wedding, she will make sure that plans are made for pre-wedding events, like a bridal shower and the bachelorette party. Her jobs on the wedding day include making sure that you have everything you need, getting you where you are supposed to be on time, holding your bouquet during the vows and photographs, and making sure your train is straightened after you come down the aisle. She may be asked to make a toast at the reception, possibly hold the groom's ring until you place it on his finger, and she will sign the marriage license as a witness. During the reception, your maid/matron of honor will be "on call" for anything that you may need. 

Bridesmaids
If your maid/matron of honor cannot get to a task, these ladies are there to jump in and help out. They will assist with the planning of the bridal shower and bachelorette party, usually sharing the costs of throwing them. They are your support team before and during the ceremony, and at the reception, they can take on a hostess role and guide guests to where they need to be. This is a good group to keep the crowd entertained and excited to spend the majority of the reception out on the dance floor.     

Best Man
This is the groom's "go-to guy." He can help your future husband with any wedding planning tasks he has agreed to take on. He is the head groomsman, so this is the man to make sure the rest of the groom's wedding party know what is expected of them, such as when to get fitted for suit rentals and knowing when to be where at what time. The best man is usually the one in charge of making the bachelor party happen. 

The best man makes sure that the groom gets to the wedding on time. He is often asked to hold the bride's ring until the ceremony, as well as the envelope containing the officiant's fee if it has not been collected before the wedding. He is the other witness to sign your marriage license, and you may ask him to give a toast at the reception. If the men's clothing is rented, the best man can be in charge of making sure that all returns are taken care of. 

Groomsmen
These gentlemen are "team groom," led by the best man. They will assist in planning the bachelor party, and they usually share the costs of throwing it. They are great for any heavy lifting that may be involved while setting up and decorating for the big day. If you need ushers and have not given anyone that title, the groomsmen can step in and take care of getting the guests seated, and they can help the bridesmaids keep everyone entertained at the reception.

You should make sure that each member of your wedding party knows what may be expected of them before they agree to be in the wedding. This includes paying for their own attire and hotel stays while they are in town, unless that will be part of your thank you gift to them. Most friends are happy to do the things listed above, plus more. 

When you choose to get married at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville, we're happy to help you with some of the preparations before and during the special day when we can. Your wedding party is there to help you with all of the rest. We see lots of successful celebrations take place here at Country Jewell, and the best ones involve a supportive team to make it all happen. 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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The Pros & Cons of DIY For Your Wedding (Part 2)

Last week's blog was all about a few of the Pros & Cons of DIY For Your Wedding at Country Jewell, and this week we've got a few more to add to the list. It's important to decide exactly how much you can take on before the wedding planning gets to be too much for you to handle. Hopefully, the tips we're sharing can help you make that decision in a few areas of the wedding. 

Hair & Makeup
Some brides believe that nobody can do their hair or makeup better than themselves. This is true in many cases, but if you are doing it on your own, you will need to start getting ready much earlier in the day to get everything done. The benefit of using a professional is that there is very little risk of a "bad hair day" because they do this for a living. Also, they have the experience to know exactly how much time will be needed to get you to the altar on time. While they are getting you ready, that's a great time to close your eyes, relax, and gather your thoughts for the excitement that's about to happen.  

Photography
You will cherish your wedding photos for years and years to come, unless the pictures are horrible! Even if you have a trusted friend that wants to take them for you, if they don't do wedding photography professionally, don't risk it. A professional knows how to get clear, high-quality images in every type of lighting, as well as all of the important shots to capture. If you have a very limited budget, you may be able to find a photography student that knows what they are doing and needs to build a portfolio, so the pricing will be very reasonable. 

Catering
Cooking for a big group of people is a lot different than making dinner at home. Also, if you want the food to be hot and fresh, you'll need someone else taking care of the cooking because you'll be busy getting married! This task can be handled by family members that are aces in the kitchen, but realize that they will miss a portion of your special day if they are preparing and setting out the food. At Country Jewell, some of our wedding packages include delicious catering, so there's no DIY necessary!

Music
Many couples choose to save money on music by creating a playlist of their own to be played throughout the evening, but you still need to have someone in charge of making sure the correct music is playing at the right times. If you have enough money in your budget, a DJ will have a much larger selection of music to choose from, but it is possible to handle this on your own for a small wedding. The Dazzling Country Diamond Package at Country Jewell comes with a DJ for 3 hours. 

Before you decide to take on any DIY projects for your wedding at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville, ask yourself these questions: 

#1 - Do I have enough time and skill to do this? 

#2 - Will it save any money to do it myself? 

When you hire wedding professionals, it allows you to benefit from their experience and expertise, plus it can save you from a lot of stress. On the other hand, DIY is an excellent way to put your personal touch on this very special day. 

It is up to you to decide how important each aspect of the wedding is to you and if you truly believe you or someone close to you can handle certain DIY tasks in a way that you will be happy with. Be objective, give yourself lots of time, and only take on as much as you know you can easily handle, and your Country Jewell wedding will be everything that you are dreaming it will be.   

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

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The Pros & Cons of DIY For Your Wedding (Part 1)

We have seen a lot of brides, and even a few grooms, get "DIY Fever" at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville. Adding DIY elements to your Country Jewell wedding is a marvelous idea that adds a wonderful, personal touch to the ceremony and reception. 

It's not always quite as simple as Pinterest makes it look though, and it will take a LOT of time to get projects finished alongside all of your other wedding planning tasks. The sooner you begin your DIY projects, and the more help you have to take them all on, the better. The thoughts in today's blog can help you decide if you should DIY a particular wedding element or if you should let the professionals take care of it. 

Stationery
If you are the type of person that pays extremely close attention to detail, is creative, and has a good grasp of grammar, then you can probably handle creating your own invitations, programs, menus, and other printed materials. You can find beautiful stationery that is ready-made to pop into your home printer, all you need to do is provide the desired wording. When you are planning a small wedding, you may even want to get crafty and hand-make the invitations from scratch. On the other hand, ordering invitations instead may give you more paper and ink options. 

Coordination
Extremely organized brides may be able to handle this before the wedding, during the planning, but on the wedding day you really need to have someone making sure everything that needs to happen is being done, and they will also keep the wedding day festivities running on time. A friend or family member may be organized enough to handle this, but it's harder for them to enjoy the wedding if they are "working" the entire time. Be sure to take that into consideration before asking someone.       

Centerpieces
Big, elaborate centerpieces look impressive when you walk into the reception, but after that initial "wow" factor, may not have much attention paid to them. Something simple can be just as beautiful and much easier to piece together yourself. A small vase with flowers and a few candles can be plenty, and a simple setup allows you to create it ahead of time and trust someone else to put it on the tables while you're busy getting ready on the wedding day. The same idea works for the decorations you use around the rest of the room too. 

Flowers
If you will be using artificial flowers and they can be put together weeks before the wedding day, so this may be a safe area for you to DIY. When you decide to use real flowers, it might be better to leave the floral design to a florist. Just like with the centerpieces, if you are doing something simple like putting some cut flowers in vases and you have help, you may be able to handle it. A good compromise could be to do some of the flowers on your own and hire a pro for the more difficult arrangements.  

Favors
Wedding favors aren't a necessity, but they are a nice additional touch if you have the time and budget for them. When you make these yourself, it's easy to personalize the favors for each guest. This is an item you can get started putting together a long time before the wedding day, unless it's edible, so you should be able to get them all done in plenty of time before they are needed. There are lots of favor kits available too, which allow you to add the DIY touch, but have some of the work already done for you. 

Next week we'll discuss a few more things that you may or may not want to DIY for your special day at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville. With lots of time and lots of help, a lot can be accomplished. The staff here at Country Jewell may be able to help you handle some of the wedding day tasks. Let us know what you need and we'll do our best to help you come up with a way to make it all happen. 

A delightfully quaint Knoxville wedding

& event venue.

6550 Hickory Valley Road

Heiskell, TN 37754

865-494-0552

Visit our website:  www.CountryJewell.com

Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on LinkedIn

Follow us on Google+