Monday, February 16, 2009

the venue

After the hiatus I am back to thinking a bit about wedding planning. We are a little closer to figuring out our honeymoon but haven't reached a final decision yet. As for the planning, I want to keep lots of details as a surprise until the big day, but thought I'd at least share some information and photos about our venue.

We're so excited about where we chose! It will look much different once we put our own style into the decorating, but the photos I have are good to get an idea of it. It's neat to be planning a wedding at a historic site of Fairfax County, especially because our hometown(s) are so rich in history. Below are some descriptions of the venue that I took from some documents the venue coordinator sent! We can't wait (but obviously have to).

Located 4 miles south of Alexandria, Hollin Hall is a gracious Georgian manor house surrounded by mature boxwood gardens. Events can spread out onto the lovely wisteria-arbored terrace in the back of Hollin Hall next to our boxwood maze. Hollin Hall is an historic property that is listed on the Fairfax County Inventory of Historic Sites. This also serves as the grounds for Mount Vernon Unitarian Church.



The site of our grounds, the highest point in southern Fairfax County, was once part of a 2,000-acre plantation owned by Revolutionary War patriot George Mason. George Mason's son, Thomson Mason, built the original Hollin Hall home which burned in 1824. In 1916, industrialist Harley Wilson built an elegant new Hollin Hall. Many prominent Americans, including Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Carl Sandburg, visited the home and its brick-walled gardens.



The Meeting House is a spacious, contemporary site for larger weddings and receptions. With clean, simple lines, warm hardwood floors and a soaring ceiling, this is a wonderful reception location for dining, music and dancing. The Meeting House can accommodate 175 people seated with an ample dance floor. A lovely slate terrace, adjoining the Meeting House and facing the walled boxwood garden, provides an outdoor space for cocktail hour.





A beautiful curved brick wall surrounds our romantic, 3-tiered boxwood garden that is the perfect site for wedding ceremonies. Photographic opportunities abound in the garden and throughout our grounds. The boxwood garden is rented in combination with the chapel in case of inclement weather.



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