Eleven round tables, which will seat up to 10 each, filled the reception space. The groom’s parents and grandparents and other family members were seated at the table in the foreground.
WHEN THE BRIDE AND GROOM, my eldest daughter and her new husband, envisioned a reception venue, they pictured a warehouse type space.
The couple arrives at the reception venue in the Bachrach Building in historic downtown Faribault. The social hour was held in the first floor Atrium and the reception in the second floor The Loft. The exterior floral pieces were created by my floral designer sister, Lanae Feser of Waseca Floral. Photo by and courtesy of Rochelle Louise Photography of Minneapolis.
Marc specifically wanted exposed brick walls. Initially, I could not think of any place in Faribault fitting their vision. And then I remembered The Loft (probably Faribault’s best kept secret) in the historic Bachrach Building and invited the engaged couple to drive down from the metro to view the venue.
The couple looks at The Loft space with the bride’s dad earlier this year.
The minute they walked into the second floor Loft, I knew they had found the perfect place to celebrate their marriage.
Beautiful natural light filters in through west facing windows as the newlyweds settle in at their sweetheart table.
And celebrate we did in this room of exposed brick and limestone walls, a wooden floor upon which to dance and a bank of western windows flooding the room with natural light. Professional photographers Rochelle and Tom Muellenberg of Minneapolis based Rochelle Louise Photography raved about the beautiful lighting.
The bride’s sister and maid of honor, Miranda, speaks and toasts the couple.
As the sun set, we laughed and dined and talked and danced and raised our glasses thrice to toast the newlyweds.
BONUS RECEPTION PHOTOS:
One of my favorite photos, converted to black and white to avoid the distraction of color. I love the emotions caught in this image.
The groom walks past the bride’s parents’ table, left.
The bride was beautiful, from all sides, in her stunning vintage replica dress.
Just look at how the natural light plays upon the brick walls and faces as the Rev. Robert Snyder, retired pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, leads the group in prayer.
Faribault based Arna Farmer Catering & Cakes catered the meal of chicken breast in white wine sauce, roasted sweet potatoes, a mixed vegetable medley and bread (which is not shown here because I seldom eat bread). Dessert of apple crisp and bars was served later. There was no wedding cake. The food was outstanding. I’d recommend Arna and crew for the food and service anytime. Excellent.
The father of the bride, my husband Randy, starts his speech. He asked me to help write the speech since I am, um, yes, a writer. It was a hit with a mix of memories, humor and seriousness. Our daughter and her husband watch from their corner sweetheart table.
My husband and I agreed that he should use several props to make his speech memorable. Here he pulls out Amber’s favorite childhood doll, Sal, whom she dragged everywhere. Randy introduced the groom to Sal before handing over Amber’s treasured doll. We also gave Amber a complete set of the Fox easy reader chapter books, including “Fox in Love,” by the Marshall brothers. They were among her favorites as a little girl. The DJ, per our request, also played a snippet of a Spice Girls song. That all-female band was one of Amber’s favorites as a teen. Randy concluded his speech by focusing on a parent’s love and welcoming Marc to our family.
The obliging DJ, Taylor from metro based Taylor Made Tunes.
The Kletscher cousins (my side of the family) and spouses/significant others minus my daughter (who was out decorating the wedding car) and minus my niece Hillary, who’d already left. That’s my son, Caleb, third from the left in the white shirt in the back row. He was an usher.
Meet the Schmidts: Jon Eric, the groom’s brother and best man, left; the bride, Amber; the groom, Marc; and Jon Eric’s wife, Stephani. Photo courtesy of Jon Eric Schmidt. Jon Eric and Stephani were married earlier this year in their native California.
The single ladies celebrate after one of them catches the bouquet. Much to my relief, there was no garter toss.
The celebration ended shortly after the couple left at 9:30 p.m. That’s Sal peeking out of the cloth bag carried by the bride.
You will find more information about Arna Farmer Catering & Cakes by clicking here.
For info about Rochelle Louise Photography, click here. And to view Rochelle’s blog post about Amber and Marc’s wedding, click here.
To learn more about Waseca Floral, click here.
To view earlier wedding posts, check Minnesota Prairie Roots archives from the past week.
© Copyright 2013 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Photo by Rochelle Louise Photography is copyrighted and used here with permission.
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Just perfect. most of all just love the dress she is wearing, she is so happy though, she would look beautiful in a sack.. (a fitted sack of course) … c
I am laughing. But I agree. Amber and Marc are so happy.
The second-hand dress from Andrea’s Vintage Bridal was a perfect fit for my daughter’s style and personality.
Sweet, sweet, sweet!!! Another lovely post of a lovely day. So happy that it was a picture perfect day.
Thanks. Tomorrow is my last wedding post, so as not to lose readers over my wedding day photo obsession. Imagine if I could have carted my camera in to the ceremony.
What a great venue for the reception – simply gorgeous. Great wedding photography and the food looks de-lish!
Oh, Dan, thank you. I agree about the venue. We loved the space. It’s perfect from mood to light to ambiance. Just needs a finished kitchen.
And the food…Arna Farmer does a great job. She comes highly recommended by others and now by my family.
As for the photos, I had to limit myself since I was the mother-of-the-bride. I would have taken way more shots (as if I haven’t already shown you enough, right?), but my second daughter reminded me that professional photographers were there to cover the event. Apparently she doesn’t understand the photography addiction…
Your hubbie went all out for the speech – how special and SWEET!!! Love that she has her doll in the last photo:) What a Great Reception space and looks like everyone had a BLAST Celebrating – thanks so much for sharing. Happy Tuesday:)
You can only imagine how excited we were when we discovered that rag doll stashed away along with a collection of other stuffed animals belonging to our three kids. That doll, Sal, is so incredibly grubby because Amber would never allow her out of her grasp so she could be washed. Sal was so loved.
Randy received many compliments on his memorable and touching speech. I think the visuals held everyone’s attention. Writing it was a joint effort between the two of us.
Lovely. Thanks for sharing your special day with us!
You are welcome. One more wedding photo story to come and I am done.
It seems like just ‘yesterday’ that you mentioned this upcoming event……way in the future!……and, now, beautiful memories. We all wish, sometimes, that we could put “time in a bottle” to relive and cherish again such moments. No need to explain or apologize for “one more wedding story to come” as our rejoicing continues with yours. Hugs…….
Time in a bottle…love that Jim Croce song. Yes, moments like this are bottled in our memories, in photos…to treasure forever.
Thank you for telling me it’s OK if I published one more wedding story.
What an unbelievable time, Audrey, so emotional. It looks like the wedding couldn’t have been more wonderful, harmonious and everything the bride and groom wanted. You must all be still on a high xx
Yes, Charlie, after months of planning and the last-minute efforts and the marriage and celebration, it does take awhile for the feet to touch the ground. I’m sharing one more wedding post tomorrow and then onward to other topics.
Meant to say congratulations (to you and your daughter) about this eons ago. Looks like a splendid event full of oh so much love. Happiness! 🙂
Thank you, Emily. It was a splendid and love-filled celebration.