Barr Mansion is USDA Certified Organic

Archive for February, 2010

February Open House

Posted on: February 22nd, 2010 by admin No Comments

Barr Mansion hosted a beautiful open house on February 11th. It turned out to be an extremely cold and rainy evening, and for the few that braved the weather… it was worth it. Guests enjoyed passed appetizers, appetizer stations, cake, truffles, drinks and a signature cocktail. Andrew Sigler provided lovely ambient music throughout the evening.

Being so close to Valentine’s Day, we couldn’t help ourselves… we had a field day with a romantic Valentine’s Day theme. Pink and red roses, romantic words on the cake, truffles, shockingly pink hummus dip… all very fitting to the occasion and time of the year.
In addition to the hummus with cracker shards, guests enjoyed winter greens pizza, baby rueben burgers, a crab cocktail station, and passed prosciutto wraps.

As the evening went on and the sun went down, the candles began to flicker and the ballroom transformed into a candlelit twinkling affair. A vase in the middle of the bar with submerged white cymbidium orchids were lit up from the bottom of the vase by LED lights covered in crystals, letting the orchid centerpiece stand out from across the room.
A good time was had by those who came. Many, many thanks to the wonderful Lisa Shepard of aimage photography for braving the weather with us and providing these beautiful images!

Stephanie and Brian

Posted on: February 22nd, 2010 by admin No Comments

Stephanie and Brian had a beautiful winter wedding in January. They were married in the Artisan Ballroom in front of the glass wall with candles lining the aisle and hanging from a wreath made out of grapevine twigs, and soft ivory fabric draped across the beams over them. Stephanie was escorted down the aisle by her sons and then the couple shared a beautiful family unity candle lighting ceremony with all their children.

The bouquets consisted of pink and red roses with pittosporum greenery. The flower girl wore a halo of pittosporum greenery and red spray roses.
Guests enjoyed a cocktail hour in a heated tent connected to the ballroom while the room was switched to a dinner setting. Elaborate centerpieces of roses and orchids adorned the tables, which were named after cities the couple had traveled to. Hundreds of candles placed around the room created a warm ambiance. A band played as guests entered back into the ballroom for dinner and dancing.
Guests were treated to passed appetizers of white bean and olive crostini and Mount Tam bruschetta with beets. A plated meal followed with a first course of spinach salad with olives and a second course of beef tenderloin with lemon mashed potatoes. The vegetarian selection was polenta with sautéed mushrooms and greens, and the kids enjoyed good ol’ mac and cheese.
The bride’s cake was a gorgeous three-tiered cake covered in roses. The groom’s cake was a chocolate cake covered in swirls of dark chocolate.
Guest favors were golf balls as the guests headed out to the front of the Mansion to send off the bride and groom in a shower of sparklers.
Thanks to Anthology Photography for all the lovely photographs!!

Kelly and Eric

Posted on: February 8th, 2010 by admin No Comments

Kelly and Eric were married this past November at the arch, which was covered in greenery and fall colored roses at the end of a pathway of fall colored petals.
Awaiting the ceremony to begin, Kelly was captured in some great shots as she was getting ready inside the Mansion in the bridal sweet.
Barton Strings trio began to play as guests took their seats. It was a gorgeous Fall day for a ceremony, as the wedding party took their places.

The bride walked down the aisle with a beautiful bouquet filled with red cox comb, blue thistle, green buttons, green and red hypericum berries, white stephanotis, creamy ranunculus, yellow yarrow, pink riceflower, scabiosa pods, and seeded euchalyptus. A wonderful combination of a variety of flowers, it turned out perfect! The groom’s boutonniere featured a green cymbidium orchid with a tiny accent of red and green hypericum berries and seeded euchalyptus.
The evening went on to a beautiful reception, where guests enjoyed beef tenderloin served table-side, sweet potato and russet potato home fries, salad with Texas pecans and cranberry vinaigrette, halibut, pork burgers, mushroom, greens, and white bean cassoulet, and butternut squash soup served in small cups. The band, Alter Ego, kept people on the dance floor all evening.
The bride’s cake was a simple off-centered squared tiers with layered colors of ribbon. In lieu of a groom’s cake, the couple offered cupcakes that spelled out “Happy Birthday” to honor two of the bride’s cousins’ birthdays, which were also on the wedding day.

Many thanks to Svetlana Photography for these gorgeous images!!

January Open House

Posted on: February 1st, 2010 by admin No Comments

Barr Mansion hosted a beautiful open house on January 11th. The evening was chilly outside, but inside it was a warm winter wonderland with candles flickering, music playing, and a sampling of food and drinks. Hill Country Strings provided ambient music with their strings and sax quartets.
The ballroom was decorated with a winter theme. Tall snow-covered curly willow with hanging candles and crystals and soft, creamy-white roses adorned the tables. Candles were everywhere—hanging from the candle wreath chandelier, lining the pathways, on the steps of the stage, on the fountain ledges. It was definitely the Artisan Ballroom in it’s full glory.
Guests were treated to pear pizzas, baby rueben beef burgers, and a crab cocktail station. Waiters also passed delectable appetizers of gnocchi with fried sage leaves and herb goat cheese and greens wrapped in prosciutto.

A three-tiered lemon-raspberry cake covered in delicate swirls and swiss dot patterns in white buttercream with scattered clusters of cream roses and white alstroemeria was the featured dessert. The table was covered in cream rose petals and the cake itself was elevated on a silver plateau sitting on a bed of moss.

Michael Hooks, an amazing photographer, joined us to capture these beautiful images. Many thanks Michael for coming to our open house and sharing your work with us!
www.HookedPhoto.com