If you’re reading this, you likely have interest in a winter wedding at our Pines White venue, which is great! What we want is for that interest to stay consistent, not for it to decline due to not understanding how it would function. Your tour guide can explain “this” and describe “that”, but we get that sometimes it’s easier to have something right in front of you. We hope this eases any concern, confusion, or curiosity you might have; from ceremony to social hour to reception, the space and team are set up to keep the day moving seamlessly. Keep reading for a breakdown of what you can expect on a winter wedding day at Pines White, and why this could be the perfect route for you.
Pines White is a bright, modern wedding venue designed for couples who want a space that balances rustic and modern. With all of the natural light and an open layout, it provides the perfect starting point for a variety of differing florals, décor, and personal details. Along with the venue comes the Farmhouse, which is home to the groom and bridal suites. In regard to the ceremony, Pines White primarily hosts them outdoors with a seamless transition to an indoor option day of in the case of unfortunate weather, wind, and more.During the colder months, ceremonies are intentionally planned indoors from the start rather than treated as a backup option. Pines couples have unlimited consultations with our Client Relations Manager, and in these meetings you will agree on a ceremony, dinner, and dance layout that your day-of venue manager will be in charge of flipping. This allows couples and vendors to plan confidently, knowing the timeline, layout, and guest flow are consistent and weather-proof.
A full-day wedding rental gives you a 15-hour time-span, so access to the venue and farmhouse begin at 9:00 am. You may decide to hire floral and decor vendors who will arrive at a reasonable time to set-up. Otherwise there is the DIY-option, where couples delegate tasks to friends and family members for decorating the reception space while the wedding party gets ready at the farmhouse.A venue manager is on-site right away in the morning to assist with logistics, direct vendors to assigned places, and ensure the venue is well-taken care of and running smoothly. During this time, photographers often capture detail photos, getting-ready photos at the Farmhouse, and reception space photos before guests arrive.
Between the times of 1:00–3:00 pm, couples typically do their first looks, wedding party photos, and family photos. Nearing the afternoon, your venue manager will likely adjust the space for the ceremony layout while photos continue elsewhere. After a reasonable amount of time that a couple’s wedding party has put towards photography, many have it in their timeline to include a day-of rehearsal around 2:00 or 3:00 pm.Many officiants prefer to run the rehearsal themselves, and in that case your venue manager will hang behind and assist where they are needed. Note that your venue manager is more than able to run the rehearsal, guide the wedding party and officiant through the processional and recessional, and conduct the ceremony as well. The rehearsal process will typically take 10-15 minutes and rarely go any longer than 20. After everyone is comfortable in their role, the wedding party can return to the Farmhouse to relax and reset before guest arrival.
Our venue typically prefers a 4:30 ceremony, we have found that this works well with guest arrival, vendors, and an efficient timeline. In the case of a 4:30 ceremony time, guests will likely begin arriving at 4:00. The venue manager will welcome your guests, direct them on where to go, and coordinate with the officiant and vendors. During this time your bartenders will also arrive, and whether or not the bar is open before the ceremony will be completely up to the couple. At 4:15, the venue manager will communicate to your guests that it is time to find their seats, and will then head to the farmhouse to give your wedding party a 10-minute warning. Ideally, your guests will be seated by 4:25 – in the case of slower travel due to safety, your venue manager will await a decent amount of guests to be in attendance for your ceremony. The reception doors will be closed and the venue manager will gather everyone that is apart of your processional in the lobby of the venue. If there is no first look, the bride will remain hidden in the lobby area to avoid being seen by the groom who will stay near the reception-entrance doors.The venue manager will then run the ceremony logistics, including lining up the wedding party, cueing music, and managing entrances and timing.
Winter ceremonies at Pines White use what is similar to a “theater-style” layout, with 4-5 rows of chairs arranged to be seated in front during the ceremony. The majority of your guests will be seated as they would be in the reception layout, that way your staff can keep the transitions between layouts seamless and time-efficient. After the ceremony, the wedding party will return to the Farmhouse while guests transition to the social hour.
Social hour often begins immediately after the ceremony around 5:00 pm. At this point the bar will be up and running which will draw your guests to gather near the front of the venue, giving your venue manager the capacity to adjust the venue for the reception layout. Your ceremony seating will then be flipped, the rows of chairs will be returned to their tables and shifted in place for dinner. Depending on guest count and decided layout, this can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes. Once tables are set and final décor adjustments are made, your venue manager will assist with the social hour bar rush. Due to our Farmhouse closing at 6:00 pm, nearing 5:45, the wedding party and family of the couple will need to make sure that their belongings are gathered and returned to either their vehicles or the storage closet in the venue. The wedding party will return with their grand entrance to signify the transition from social hour to reception.
Around 6:00 pm, dinner service will ideally begin. For buffet dinners, Chef’s Table-specific tables will be pulled out and covered with linen and dishes of food to self-serve. For plated dinners, staff will bring served dinners directly to guest tables. Around the evening nearing the end of dinner, timeline is much less strict – many may give few, short, or long speeches, and cake cutting may take place before the dance or even sometime further into the night. Around 7:30 or 7:45, your Pines staff will remove select tables to open up the floor for the first dances to take place, following this the dance floor officially opens. At this point, the venue manager will check-in with the bar, empty any full garbages, clean any food messes, and the night is handed off to the bartenders. Afterwards, the guests enjoy the party up until 12:00 am, and at the end of the night couples will have until 1:00 am and be responsible for gathering any décor and personal items before departing.
A winter wedding at Pines White can be beautiful, and although taking place in a venue originally designed for summer, it is structured and intentionally thought-out from start to finish. With a clear timeline, an on-site venue manager, and a flexible space that transitions with you throughout the evening, couples can focus on enjoying the day without worrying about winter weather or logistics. We hope that this information was helpful and we hope to plan, enjoy, and coordinate the best winter wedding possible for you and your partner at our Pines White venue. Cheers!
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Award-winning property near Fargo, ND, offering two luxury year-round venues with modern amenities: Pines Black & Pines White. Specializing in Elopements, Micro Weddings, Small Weddings, and Full-Day Weddings, The Pines combines elegance and functionality to create unforgettable celebrations. Our modern industrial barn-inspired and rustic chic venues are set against picturesque North Dakota landscapes, providing the perfect backdrop for every season.