Venue #3 - Twin Lakes Golf Course - Oakland, MI

We went to visit Twin Lakes back in November based on a friend's recommendation. Even in the dark winter we drove up to the golf course club house and fell in love with the scenery. You have to drive down a long, winding road to get to the course and it's surrounded by trees.

The coordinator we met with was fantastic and we clicked with her instantly. The ballroom itself was nice - it was clean, updated, and simple with neutral decor. One of the ballrooms had windows on two sides that overlooked that woods and golf course. They also had a pool area where you could have your cocktail ceremony. We thought this was sort of cool and different!

You may be asking why we didn't book this place right away - unfortunately, it's a little bit over our budget. Plus, they require a much larger deposit than other places we've looked at. With the current economic situation in Michigan, we don't feel comfortable putting down large sums of money when there's the possibility some places just might survive until next year!

I haven't completely been able to take this place off my list since we both liked it so much. We'll see how our visits to the other venues go!

Here's a photo to get an idea of what the outdoor ceremony space looks like:

And here is a shot of what the indoor space looks like:

Venue #2 - Gull Lake Country Club - Richland, MI

Gull Lake CC is located directly on Gull Lake out in Richland - approximatelly 25 minutes east of Kalamazoo. It's not a venue I was originally considering, since I thought that you had to be a member to get married there. I learned that's not the case and have recently fallen in love with the venue through other people's reviews and wedding photos.

I love how it looks the room has a wall of windows that look out over Gull Lake. It looks like they have a huge patio overlooking the lake as well, which is perfect for the cocktail hour!

Additionally, we'd be able to hold a reception outside by the water (we'd just have to pray it doesn't rain!)

We haven't officially visited the space yet and neither of us has attended any weddings there. We're hoping to drive home the weekend of Feb. 28th so we can arrange a tour and consultation. Hopefully we'll have a better idea after that weekend!

Here's a photo of what the room looks like set-up:

*Photo courtesy of theknot.com - was featured in a Knot "Real Wedding"

Venue #1 - Cityscape Events - Kalamazoo, MI

This is one of the first venues we wanted to look at. Fiance and I attended a wedding here a few years ago when they first opened and fell in love with the space!! Cityscape is located in the old Gilmore Building on the Kalamazoo Mall, and is ironically located above and shares a kitchen with The Union Restaurant and Bar. That's where we went on our first date.

The space is beautiful - it's lofty and modern. It's also very neutral and can be dressed up in a variety of ways. The food is wonderful too.


The only downfall - there's no outdoor space and it's downtown. That's not a dealbreaker for us, but I always envisioned some portion of the wedding outside.

A cocktail hour by the lake or a nice view - something. It's still in the running but I need to explore a few outdoor options as well......

First Post

The fiance and I live in the city (Chicago) and are working on planning our homestate wedding. We work in the event industry and are in the process of finalizing the details - so many decisions to make!