The Writer's Journal: Hallowedding

Hello Darling,

I am still whirling from the year that 2019 was. Between launching the blog (then neglecting it) and diving into wedding planning, with a full time-all the time- job, it’s been difficult to find my roots in writing.

The Venue

The Boydville Inn

We picked an 1800’s Georgian Mansion that sat in the middle of Martinsburg, WV. The Boydville Inn was once home to a lawyer. For weddings, they give you access to the beautiful mansion and the old law office that sits off to the right of the property, dubbed the Men’s Quarters.

It was the perfect location.

To enter, you drive up a gravel driveway with lush green lawns and scattered trees flanking you. If you hadn’t just driven through it, you wouldn’t realize you’re in the middle of town.

A breath taking view of the house trickles into sight straight down the drive. As you approach the circular patch of grass and bushes, you’re given a Y direction, either way led to parking. The front lawn was split by a delicate brick walkway, with two giant black lamp posts. The large front porch was grand, but welcoming.

(For the history, and more information about the Boydville Inn, click here)

The owners have been spending the past four years repairing and restoring the mansion to it’s old beauty. Many of the historic touches are still there, including the unique interior walls. When you enter inside the original double doors at the front of the house, you stand in a grand foyer. Two parlors sit on either side, and you can look down a hall next to the grand staircase towards the back of the house.

In the left parlor, we had our caricature artist setup and opposite, we had a gifts and Polaroid cameras for everyone to use.

There was a formal dining room adjacent the left parlor. There were built in shelves which displayed fine china. We setup the kids’ pumpkin craft table here. We had a handful of medium sized white pumpkins and washable markers for the children to use and color with.

Just beyond the staircase, tucked away, was a beautiful library. One wall was floor to ceiling book shelves filled with old law books, dating back to the 1800’s. There was a stunning portrait on one wall, that was said to be the same design as a wall that was custom painted in the White House. This room connected to a secluded bathroom that was open to the guests.

The back room, which took up most of the back of the house was open and used as the buffet area. The single fireplace that sat off on one wall was the backdrop to our cake table. Another wall was filled with candy and candy bags for everyone to take.

Continuing to the back yard, there sits a large tent off to the right of the yard. We held dinner and dancing under the tent.

Getting Ready:

My bridesmaids and myself got ready upstairs in the mansion as the men prepped in the Men’s Quarters. Our main photographer was running late, but the assistant was there taking our hair and makeup photos.

My parents were also behind schedule, and my mom missed me getting ready. It was the one moment of anxiety that I felt, the fear that my mom was going to miss seeing me before anyone else. For whatever the reason, that suddenly waved over me the most more than the worries of rain, or who else was there. I just wanted to see my mom.

The Ceremony:

Everyone was preparing to use our Plan B weather option, but I was determined to have the ceremony under the massive oak tree that was near the house. The groomsmen and ushers lined the benches in preparation. It was sprinkling rain as guests arrived and the venue owner was worried we would need to use the porch instead, so they cleared off the furniture. As we were keeping our fingers crossed that the weather would hold, we were rushing to finish group photos before beginning the ceremony. I spent most of my time waiting, unable to see anyone else other than the wedding party.

It stopped raining just minutes before the music began and the bridesmaids and groomsmen began their walk down the isle. As Moon River, an instrumental version, began playing, my dad ushered me out of those historic double doors on the front of the mansion and down the porch. We walked up to the ceremony site, with guests dressed in their Halloween costumes filling benches on both sides. The isle was covered in red and orange fall leaves, and pumpkins lined each row of benches. Our officiant was dressed in her Mickey Mouse Wizard cloak and hat, with wand in hand. Joe was grinning ear to ear, with a makeshift noose around his neck. It was everything we dreamed of and more.

As we said our vows and the ribbons were being tied (we had a hand fasting ceremony), the sun broke through the clouds and shined down on us. Wind blew lightly, keeping us all cool in the humid weather.

Everything swirled quickly, and we were back to taking photos. It seems like no matter how much time you spend on photos, you never get everything on camera. I spent too much time changing, and missed some guests who weren’t able to stay for dinner. All the while, our caterer had broken down and the food had not yet arrived. But the alcohol was there, and no one noticed the missing food. By the time the food arrived, we were all ready to eat, drink and dance.

The Reception:

It seemed like once the reception began, the rain picked back up and my memory blurs. Our upside down four tier cake was delicious, and eye catching. Our baker ( Sarah, owner of The Cake Boutique) did a fantastic job capturing our vision. We were lucky to save the top layer for ourselves, there wasn’t any left over cake at the end of the night, which I was sourly disappointed to miss out on. We had our first dance to Frank Sinatra’s Witchcraft.

After our little games and a few hours past dinner, the tent flooded briefly during a heavy rain spout, but most of everyone still there was a little past drink four, and didn’t realize the miniature flood occurring while dancing.

I was tired, and most of all, happy to have it over with at the end of the night. The planning and execution was exhausting, but I cherish that time we had together with our family and friends celebrating our marriage. I try to go back and do justice to the small details of each moment and each part of that beautiful place, but it all jumps into one happy memory.

Until Next Time,

M.E.

A special thank you to Aesthetic Life Studio Photography