Wine Country Farm

I realized recently that I have never posted pictures of one of Yamhill County's lovliest wedding venues - Wine Country Farm. It sits high up on Breyman Orchard Road in the Dundee Hills and overlooks the beautiful Yamhill Valley - wine country! They have this picturesque spot to say your "I do's", as well as at least one other outdoor site: a charming well-established gazebo, covered most of the wedding season with a gorgeous blooming trumpet vine. There's also an indoor area for intimate ceremonies or receptions plus a great under-the-stars dance floor.

Joy, one of my 2011 brides told me she knew it was her site the moment she saw it.

Free Bridal Bouquet

The Garden Path has a deal for couples getting married in Oregon Wine Country in 2011 (or even later this year). Book your future wedding flowers with The Garden Path this month, our 15th birthday month, and you may get your bridal bouquet for free! If your flowers total more than $500 (and that's easy!), we'll provide a $100 wedding bouquet at no charge to you. It's an offer that doesn't come around often, but you need to complete your reservation by the end of August. That doesn't mean we need to finalize all the details. Just get your reservation in, and we can fill in the blanks - exact colors, number of corsages, etc. - later if you wish. Call us for a consultation time.

Networking at Youngberg Hill

How gorgeous is this as a place to get married? Youngberg Hill Vineyard and Inn is a working vineyard with eight guest rooms in the inn. And a wedding-day view you will never forget!

It was the site of our July meeting of Wine Country Wedding Professionals. Absolutely delicious tasty treats were provided by Virginia Murphy and staff of Cafe Uncorked. I could have made a full meal of the hazelnut custard topped with fresh local raspberries!

The flower arrangements were provided by The Garden Path. It was a fun and creative process. We pulled the containers from our personal collections of vases, and used only completely reusable mechanics (no wet foam!). All flowers were held in place by their own stems, or by glass frogs or metal pin holders. (Remember them?)
The flowers were "all local" - coming from within 15 miles of the venue. It was a trip back to my flower-arranging roots - back to the days when I used almost exclusively flowers from my own yard and gardens.
Many new contacts were made, and a wonderful afternoon was had by all.
Thank you, Continuum Photography, for the beautiful photos. There is nothing like pro shots to show off the site, food and flowers!

Wedding at Kelty Estate

Kelty Estate in the little town of Lafayette was the perfect setting for Rachel and Robert's vintage themed wedding. It is a lovely old home turned Bed and Breakfast, located in the heart of Oregon's Wine Country.

Rachel's favorite flower, the peony, was brought in from Holland. But the roses, sweet peas, succulents, Kent Beauty oregano - and even the baby's breath - came from nearby growers. You can imagine how wonderful it smelled! Take a look at the handkerchief detail in her bouquet











The estate's shady backyard garden served as the ceremony site, with vows being said under the iron arch.
Reception tables were set up on the front lawn with these cute little birdnests as the centerpieces. It was a beautiful day, and I hope everyone had a great time!

Wine Country Thanksgiving

We collaborated with No Ordinary Affair to provide a table display at Zenith Vineyard over the weekend. Thanksgiving weekend is one of two all-out wine tasting weekends here in Oregon Wine Country. (The other is Memorial Day.) Hundreds of wineries host open houses - even those whose tasting rooms are usually not open to the public. Although the wine tasting is a casual affair, Zenith uses the opportunity to showcase their beautiful wedding venue. We were happy to be included in the plans this year.

Networking

Last evening we were at the beautiful Mansion at the Bayou for a meeting of our wedding professionals networking group. Bayou owners Greg and Irmi Brown have done a wonderful job of restoring the historic mansion and gardens as a wedding and event site. Check it out - it's beautiful!



Becky from No Ordinary Affair coordinated the events of the evening and is the energy behind promoting this great group of wedding and event vendors. We all know that Oregon Wine Country has a lot to offer. It is our group's mission to spread the word throughout the area - and across the nation! Wine Country is fast becoming a choice wedding destination, and we want everyone to know that everything you need for a fabulous event is right here.


Delicious and hearty appetizers (dinner!) were prepared by Haagenson's Catering (aka Ribslayer). Indulgent and intensely flavored chocolates were presented by locally produced Majestic Chocolates. The evening culminated with a series of entertaining and artistically arranged video clips put together by Ryan Chaney of Focal Point Digital Media showcasing their extraordinary ability to capture the essence of a wedding experience on video. (Oregon Bride Magazine has just given Ryan the 2009 Wedding Videographer of the Year Award!) Altogether a fun evening, and a great opportunity to get better acquainted with fellow wedding professionals.

Red Roses . . . Beautiful Day!

It was a beautiful day for a wedding at Youngberg Hill Vineyards and Inn, one of Oregon wine country's best sites. The little buckets helped define the aisle, and were transferred to the tables for centerpieces later. Becky, the lovely wedding coordinator from No Ordinary Affair, added red rose petals under the buckets to outline the aisle just before the ceremony.

You get only a glimpse of the view in these photos, but it is enough to tantalize. If you're planning a wine country vacation, you'll definitely want to check out Youngberg Hill.

Lissa's bridal bouquet was a very clean and compact bouquet of just red roses. The other ladies carried smaller bouquets of cream roses. Everyone looked beautiful, and I know they had a great day.

Introducing The Garden Path Flower Shop

Thanks for dropping into the blog for The Garden Path Flower Shop. You'll find our physical store at 636 N.E. Baker Street in McMinnville, the heart of Oregon's wine country.

First and foremost - we're here because we love flowers! Have you ever seen anything more perfect than these sunflowers? They're field-grown about 10 miles from the shop. We are so lucky to live where we have access to such beauties.

Other local flowers we're using now include baby's breath, phlox, stock (love that fragrance!), dahlias, glads, lilies, hydrangeas - and more too numerous to mention!

I love that these flowers use minimal energy input to get to my shop. Why buy solidaster or sunflowers from South America when I can get them locally! They are fresher and prettier, last longer and make me feel better about my "carbon footprint".