5 Tips For Hosting a Wonderful Engagement Party

Although we tend to focus mainly on the Country Jewell weddings that happen here, that's not the only type of celebration that you can host at our rustic event venue near Knoxville. We've been the site of reunions, anniversaries, birthday parties, holiday parties, business retreats, and much more. 

We are also the perfect size for an intimate engagement party. Your guests will be tickled to find out that the actual wedding will take place on the very spot where they are celebrating your engagement. Today we've got a few helpful tips that will ensure your engagement party is a hit. 

Decide Who Will Host
Traditionally the bride's parents host the engagement party, but today anyone is free to host this celebration. It can be parents, other relatives, friends, or even the couple themselves. In some cases where the bride and groom have family or friends that live far away from each other, more than one party may even take place. Whoever ends up playing host will most likely take charge of the majority of the party planning, but they will need your input on many things so that it works well with your wedding plans. 

Make a Guest List
You should only invite guests to your engagement party that will also be invited to the actual ceremony and reception. It is very likely that you may not have an entire wedding guest list made up this early in the planning stages. That's okay because this event doesn't need to be as large as your wedding. You can keep it small for just your closest family and friends that you are positive will be on the main guest list. This party is in your honor, so in this case, the guests are yours to choose, not the person hosting the event.    

Pick a Date
This type of party should be held within the first few months of the engagement. You will need time to create the guest list and plan the party, but you don't want to wait too long after the proposal that the newness has worn off. Also, give your guests plenty of notice so that they have enough time to make plans to join you. 

Set the Scene
This is an event celebrating your upcoming wedding, but it doesn't have to match the plans you are making for the big day. When you host it at our scenic event venue near Knoxville, you really don't need to plan for a lot of additional decorations at all. We have already set a charming, rustic scene in our event barn that looks festive, yet still works well with a variety of decorating styles. If you need some advice on how to get the venue ready, our talented staff can offer some wonderful suggestions. 

Decide What You'll Wear
You will be the center of attention all day long and the subject of many photos, so you will want to find something special to wear. It doesn't need to be as fancy as what you will wear at the wedding, of course. Stick to your personal style and what you enjoy wearing. Once again, the day is all about the two of you, so just be yourselves. The formality of the party you and the host decide on will give you a good idea about the type of clothing you will want to shop for.   

When you do hold your engagement party at Country Jewell, you will be able to use everything that our event barn comes with, which will save you from renting tables and chairs and also allow you to prepare your own food if you don't want to hire a caterer. The venue rental includes the use of:

• 20 folding tables
• 100 folding chairs
• warming/serving kitchen with a refrigerator, oven, and microwave

Give us a call at 865-494-0552 soon and make an appointment to take a look at our charming event venue near Knoxville. Not only will you find that it is the perfect place to hold your wedding, but it's also an excellent spot for many of the other celebrations in your life.       

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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7 Wedding Invitation Tips You Don't Want To Overlook (Part 2)

Last week's blog covered the first 3 of 7 Wedding Invitation Tips You Don't Want To Overlook, and this week Country Jewell is completing the list with the final 4. Make sure to consider all of this information when you are preparing our own wedding invitations for your ceremony and reception at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville.  

Information to Include
Invitations really only need to cover the basics. These include:

• Ceremony date, time, and location,
• Names of the hosts (be it the couple or their parents,)
• Names of the bride and groom
• RSVP information. 

If you want the RSVPs mailed back to you, that information will be on a separate enclosure card with a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Reception information can be included on the invitation if you are trying to avoid additional inserts, or it can be printed on a separate enclosure. If directions are included, they need to be printed separately, and gift registry information should never be included with the invitation. Etiquette dictates that this information is given another way, like on a wedding website or through word of mouth.  

Addressing Invitations
Wedding invitations are a bit more formal than regular cards or invitations you might send. It looks best if the addresses are handwritten, but this is time-consuming. You might consider hiring a professional to address your invites if you don't feel you have the time or if you don't necessarily love the look of your own penmanship. If you do decide to use a printer to put the addresses either directly on the envelopes or on sticker labels, there are a lot of beautiful fonts that you can find online that mimic the look of real handwriting nicely. 

Titles are very important for a formal invitation. Be clear about who is a Ms., Mrs., Dr., etc... Also, all words for the street address should be spelled out rather than abbreviated. Make it extremely clear exactly who is invited to the wedding when you address it. If children are not invited, do not add "and Family" after a couple's name. The inner envelope is the place where you can get specific and list each person's name individually. Also, your single guests should only expect to bring a "plus 1" if you have included "and Guest" after their name.  

Postage
When you set the initial budget, many couples forget to include the price of postage for mailing the invitations into their final figure. Unusually shaped or large-sized invites will require more postage to mail, and if you have a lot of extra enclosures included, the heavier weight will up the cost too. Don't forget to add money to your budget for extra stamps for RSVPs being returned by mail also. A great way to save money here is to skip the inserts that contain additional information and instead let your guests know to visit your wedding website for those details. If they RSVP online too, that is even more money saved for you. 

Order Extra
Mistakes happen, invites get lost in the mail, and every once in a while couples think of "one more person" that they need to invite. For this reason, it is very important to have a few extra invitations handy. The cost to reprint only a couple of extra invitations after your initial order will be pricey and take time. It's also nice to have an extra or two left over after the wedding for keepsakes. 

You want to make sure that the information that you send to your guests in your wedding invitations is clear and concise so that your family and friends know exactly what's going on and are sure to make it to your special day at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville. A Country Jewell wedding is a wonderful celebration that no one will want to miss. 

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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7 Wedding Invitation Tips You Don't Want To Overlook (Part 1)

The wedding invitation isn't one of the first tasks that you will need to handle when you begin planning your ceremony and reception at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville, but it will need to be taken care of at a specific time on your wedding planning timeline. You will want to put a little extra thought into getting your invitations just right because there are many factors that are often overlooked and not noticed until it is too late. Country Jewell has gathered a few tips for you to make sure all of your bases get covered. Today features the first 3 of 7, and we'll continue next week with the final 4.  

Timing
Ordering and sending out your invitations are both very time-sensitive tasks. They will need to be ordered 4-5 months before the wedding date. This should give you plenty of time to get them all addressed at a leisurely pace. They need to be in the mail 6-8 weeks before the wedding date. This gives your guests plenty of time to respond but not too much time so that it slips their minds. (If your guests will be needing notice farther in advance, you might want to use the tips in last week's blog about Creative Save-the-Date Card Ideas.) 

Proofreading
Since you'll be ordering your invitations 4-5 months out, you will, of course, need to begin deciding on a design sooner than that. Once you find a style you love and get the wording set in a way that you are happy with, you will need to double-check, and then triple-check, and then possibly check it one more time for any mistakes! 

Believe it or not, sometimes it's the most obvious information, the day, date, or time, that gets left off. Having to reprint your invitations due to a simple oversight like this can double the price you end up paying and throw a huge wrench into your budgeting plan. Don't do the proofreading all on your own. Have a few different people take a look before placing your final order.   

RSVP Confusion
To get a proper guest count, the RSVP information needs to be extremely clear and easy for your guests to understand. Make sure that the date you expect them returned by is obvious. You will need time to get a final headcount to your caterer, and if you are making an assigned seating chart for guests, this will also figure into how early you need to know who is coming. 

If there is a choice of menu options for dinner, it needs to be included on your RSVP. It is also very important to know who each RSVP is coming from. It is very common for guests to check the "yes" or "no" box, but completely forget to put their name on the card! Numbering each RSVP discreetly in a corner or on the back can help you out in the case that this happens. If you don't want to bother with RSVPs coming through the mail, you can have guests do it online through a wedding website or request that they call you with their information instead.   

Next week we'll continue this topic with 4 more things that brides and grooms easily overlook while designing and sending out their wedding invitations. You want everything that has to do with your special day to be as perfect as possible, and Country Jewell is here to help you in any way that we can. 

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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5 Creative Save-the-Date Ideas for Your Wedding

The time between Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day (aka "Engagement Season") greatly increased the number of couples that are now ready to start planning a wedding. If you want to give guests early notice about your ceremony and reception, you will need to send out Save-the-Dates. Country Jewell has a few creative ideas to impress your guests.   

Postcard
A wedding invitation is the formal invite to your special day, so you don't want to spend too much of your budget on the save-the-dates. Postcards are less expensive to mail than a card with an envelope (35 cents vs. 50 cents each.) You can get creative with the front of the postcard by using a photo of the two of you, or possibly a calendar with the date cleverly shown on the front. If you are planning a destination wedding, you might want to use postcards from the city where you will be getting married. Adding a short, handwritten message on the back is a nice, personalized touch.    

Magnet
Putting your save-the-date information on a magnet allows your guests to immediately stick it on the refrigerator, keeping it in plain sight so that your wedding excitement stays fresh in their minds. The front of the magnet can be done similar to the postcard ideas above, but this one will have to be put into an envelope to mail out.  

Mini-Calendar
There are lots of cute min-calendars available online that can be personalized, but a plain calendar will do the trick too. When you place it into the envelope, have it open to your wedding month and either circle the date with a heart or place a heart sticker on the date. You should also include a short note or letter cluing them in to what the calendar is all about, in case they don't get the idea right away.  

Photo Stickers
Most places that print photos can also put your pictures on small stickers, and there are many places online that you can order them from too. Send the stickers, with the backs still on them, attached to a paper save-the-date that instructs your guests to place the stickers on your future wedding date on their own calendar at home. 

Email
Another option is to send an email save-the-date. These don't have to cost you anything but a little time to create them, or you can spend a little bit and use a website that will allow you to personalize an animated email card. It can include a link to save your wedding date directly to their online calendar plus a link to your wedding website if you will be creating one.

Information to Include
Wedding save-the-dates only need to have very basic information for your guests. They are exactly what the name implies, a notice to save the date so that they have a chance to make plans to attend. You should include:

• Your names (obviously!) 
• Wedding date (or dates if it's an entire weekend)
• Location (the city for sure, the venue if you already have it booked)
• Notice that a formal invitation will follow

If you have a wedding website, this information can also be included on your save-the-dates. These should be mailed out about 6 months before the wedding to allow your guests plenty of time to make travel arrangements. 

Our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville is an excellent location for a destination wedding. Country Jewell itself seems to be set apart from the rest of the world, allowing you and your guests to enjoy a completely private experience on your wedding day, yet still located in a spot that is central to many options for your guests' entertainment and lodging needs. We are less than 10 minutes off of I-75, putting us near Knoxville, Norris Lake, Pigeon Forge, and Gatlinburg. We know both you and your guests will absolutely love it here. Let us know if you'd like for us to "save the date" for your wedding! 

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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Valentine's Day Romance for Everyday Life and Your Wedding

February is a very romantic month. Not only does it contain Valentine's Day, but it is also labeled "Creative Romance Month" and "National Weddings Month." This seems like the perfect time for Country Jewell to highlight a few creatively romantic ideas that can both be incorporated into your wedding at our beautiful rustic wedding venue near Knoxville and your daily life. (Valentine's Day is a great time to start making one or more of these a tradition for the two of you!) 

Love Letters
Handwritten love letters are rare for most people, so receiving one from your sweetheart is an extra special treat. It is a lovely tradition for couples to write love letters to each other to be delivered on the wedding day while each is getting ready for the ceremony. You can also do this for other romantic occasions, or simply "just because" any time you feel like writing down your feelings and making your special someone smile. 

Don't stop there. While a handwritten love note is the ultimate, go a step further. Occasionally leave little notes around the house for them to find on post-its or other small scraps of paper. The occasional text full of sweet nothings is sure to make them very, very happy and keep that romance alive too. For the big occasions though, put pen to paper and seal it with a kiss! 

Relive A Memory
Every year, be it on your anniversary, Valentine's Day, or some other important date, recreate something that is special to the two of you. Pick a restaurant or a particular meal to enjoy only on that date each year, or possibly drink one certain type of wine you don't drink on a regular basis, making it unique to that romantic moment. You could even recreate your first date every year. You can begin this tradition at your wedding, or if you already have something in mind from your time dating, incorporate it into your wedding day. 

Make A New Memory
If you're the adventurous type of couple that prefers to try something new and different together every chance that you get, promise to pick out a new adventure to share with each other every year. It doesn't particularly have to be romantic. As long as it is something you can experience together, it is bound to bring you closer together, which is always wonderful for romance. 

You can bring this idea of trying something new into your wedding planning by searching for a unique unity ceremony to share or by learning a choreographed dance to perform at your reception. If it's something you haven't done before, give it a try!    

Take An Annual Photo
This is an excellent way to watch the progression of your love and life together over the years. Strike the same post every year and take a photo to add to a collection. If the picture can also be taken in the same place annually, even better, or go the opposite direction and make sure you find a brand new location each year. If you have not yet gotten married, make sure that you take this photo on your wedding day, and for already married couples, pick one of your wedding photos to inspire your recreated pose. 

Renew Your Vows 
This can be done in a big way like getting married all over again, or simply by going back over the vows that you made to each other in private. If this is something that you might want to do, have your wedding vows framed or saved on paper in a special place to keep them safe until you want to get them back out again. Another option is to watch the video from your wedding or flip through the album of photos from that amazing day.  

There are two main themes throughout the ideas suggested above. One is togetherness, and the other is reminding your loved one of how special they are to you. For those of you yet to get married, start some traditions that can be incorporated into your big day at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville, and for everyone that has already tied the knot, start a tradition now, possibly pulling inspiration from your own wedding day. From all of us here at Country Jewell, have a wonderfully romantic Valentine's Day full of love! 

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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7 Things You Should Do After You Get Engaged

Congratulations, you're engaged! Once the initial excitement of the moment dies down enough for you to concentrate, you will probably wonder what your next steps should be. You may want to immediately start planning that fabulous wedding you will have at our scenic wedding venue near Knoxville, but there are a few other tasks you will want to tackle first. Country Jewell in Heiskell has come up with a list of the important ones for you. 

Enjoy the Moment! 
Even though you may be tempted to start shouting it from the rooftops right away, it doesn't hurt to keep this magical moment between just the two of you for a little while. Privately take this time to celebrate together before sharing the news with your family and friends. 

Get Your Nails Done
Once you start spreading the news, people are going to start asking to see your beautiful new engagement ring. Your left hand will be the center of attention, so getting a manicure will guarantee that it is looking its best. No one wants a dingy fingernail taking attention away from that brand new ring. 

Share the Good News
Don't make a post on social media to the general public before you've had a chance to share this special news with your family and closest friends. Telling them in person is best, but if that's not possible, maybe you can set up a video chat to let them know. Once all of the important people have been told, go ahead and share it with the world! 

You might even consider throwing an engagement party to tell everyone at once. Our rustic event venue near Knoxville is a wonderful setting for this. Throwing that party here is excellent practice for getting ready to host a ceremony and reception at Country Jewell too! 

Think About Ring Insurance
Hopefully, nothing bad will ever happen to your engagement ring, but it's always better to be safe than sorry with an important item like that. Jewelers will often appraise a ring for free for the insurance company if it was purchased at their store.

Start the Guest List
You don't have to decide on the final guest list right away, but you do need to get an idea about the size of the wedding that you will be planning. Small weddings are a lot easier to plan for, and celebrations with 100 or fewer guests are the perfect size for a Country Jewell wedding. 

Book Your Wedding Venue
If you want to ensure that another couple won't book your desired date before you get the chance, you'll want to call Country Jewell as soon as you are sure about the wedding day. If you are a bit more flexible and don't have a specific date in mind, the dates that are still open on our calendar can help you to narrow down the special day. Once that's set, you can move on to other wedding planning tasks, like deciding on a budget and picking your wedding party. 

Schedule Engagement Photos
The earlier you can get these done, the better. That way you will have lots of gorgeous photos of the two of you to use for things like announcements or save-the-date cards. It's best if you find the photographer that you want to shoot your wedding first because many of them will offer engagement photos as a part of your wedding package. 

This is a very exciting time in your life. Don't let the planning stress get to you, but instead remember to enjoy the moments as they happen. If you have any questions at all, our knowledgeable staff at Country Jewell may have the answers. We've seen many beautiful weddings over the years, and we can't wait to add yours to that list! 

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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7 Creative Ways To Make Your Wedding Unique

Your wedding guests will most likely be expecting a typical ceremony and reception when you invite them to join you at our rustic wedding venue near Knoxville. Traditional weddings are wonderful, but if you want to shake things up a little bit, Country Jewell has come up with some creative ways to incorporate some additional fun to surprise everyone with. 

#1- Serve refreshments before the ceremony.
You don't have to make your guests wait until after the "I do's" to grab a drink. Set up a drink station with refreshing flavored waters, tea, or lemonade so that they can pour a drink to enjoy during the ceremony. You could even schedule the cocktail hour to happen before the ceremony with drinks and a few small appetizers for everyone before you walk down the aisle. 

#2 - Keep everyone well-fed all day.
Instead of the traditional ceremony followed by a cocktail hour with appetizers and then dinner followed by cake, spread out the food. Start by using the advice from tip #1 to feed everyone a little bit before the ceremony, then have a few more appetizers before dinner. Serve a light meal at the reception, then go ahead and cut the cake for any guests that need to leave early. 

As for the rest of the guests that stay to dance the night away, serve a snack midway through dancing. It could be a surprise appearance by a food truck, a dessert table with cookies and cupcakes, or maybe even a popcorn bar. If you're going late into the evening, have a few pizzas delivered for everyone to munch on before heading home or send them away with edible favors to enjoy on the ride home or the next morning. 

#3- Relive memories with each guest.
Many couples like to display photos from their relationship leading up to the wedding day as a part of their decorations. Some also display pictures from the weddings of other family members. Why not add your friends to the mix too? Display photos of yourself with particular guests or handwritten memories you have of them at their reception table. It's a very sweet and personalized gesture. This is a lot easier to do with a small, intimate wedding rather than a large one with lots of guests.  

#4- Act like kids again.
Kids always seem to be happy and having a great time. Take a cue from them and do something child-like that will put a smile on everyone's face. Rent a bounce house, play some goofy games, serve cotton candy and ice cream... you get the idea. The kind of stuff that grown-ups don't normally let themselves enjoy. You'll all go home with incredible memories of having an amazing time. You can be a grown-up again the next day.   

#5- Surprise them with your first dance.
Your first dance as husband and wife is a romantic moment, but if the song goes on too long, guests may lose interest and you might start feeling awkward having everyone stare at you both for so long. One way to avoid this is to have the DJ cut the music after a verse or two to shorten the song. A fun way to fix this problem is to have the DJ merge your romantic slow song into a fast dance midway through. You could even invite your wedding party or the entire room to join you on the dance floor at this point. It's a very lively way to get the party started. 

#6- Arrange for unique entertainment.
In addition to just having a DJ or live band perform at your wedding reception, think outside the box. You could have a professional dance troupe come in to perform for your guests. An impersonator or hypnotist would be very entertaining. Another creative option could be a close-up magician wandering around the room or a caricature artist on-hand to draw favors for your guests. 

#7- Set aside an area to chill out.
If you have some wedding guests that don't like to dance a lot or some that dance so much you know they'll need a place to take a break, set up an area away from the dance floor where they can all chill out for a while. A few comfortable chairs set off to the side of the room will do the trick. Inside our beautiful event barn near Knoxville, you could host dancing upstairs in the hayloft and set up a relaxing area downstairs after the reception tables have been moved out of the way.

Those are just a few fun ideas that you might want to add to your wedding plans to make the celebration unique and add an extra element of fun. When you visit us at Country Jewell in Heiskell, we would love to hear what type of fun ideas you have in mind. Between the both of us, your wedding will be one that you and all of your guests will enjoy and remember fondly for years to come! 

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

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