Alex and Kelly's Wedding in Saugerties, New York

As a professional event planner, I was beyond excited to take on the task of planning our wedding. First on the list – find a venue! We knew we wanted an outdoor wedding with a peaceful environment surrounded by the beauty of nature, complimented with a rustic barn. We started our search in Pennsylvania, trying to find a mid-way point between Ohio and New York to accommodate our families. After countless venue visits, nothing grabbed our hearts, so we decided to look in New York, our home for over a decade.

One of the first venues that popped up in a ‘barn wedding’ google search was, Oz Farm. As a girl who grew up obsessed with the Wizard of Oz, later getting a tattoo of ruby slippers with the words 'There's no place like home' in her mother's handwriting... I immediately had chills. Breathtaking views, a charming barn, and a working horse farm (who doesn’t love animals!) it looked perfect.

Furthermore, we discovered that Oz Farm is located 20 minutes from Woodstock! This rocked us to our hippie core. The music of the 60's and 70's is our favorite and had we been alive at the time, we would have without a doubt joined the hippie movement and been at Woodstock '69 for 3 days of peace, love and music. It is no coincidence that Woodstock would make its way into our lives in another form. Our bridal party took over The Dylan Hotel for the weekend – a quaint bohemian hotel stocked with record players, photography from Woodstock, fire pits, endless s'mores and a VW bus. We built out a full weekend of events for our close friends and family in the Woodstock area gearing up for the big day.

September 15th, 2019: Wedding Day!

We could not have hoped for a more perfect day… the sun was shining, birds were chirping and it was a comfortable 75 degrees. I got ready in the house on property on the covered porch, surrounded by beautiful horses and mountainous landscapes while our guests enjoyed cocktails in the field. Finally, it was time for the main event. My dad and I waited patiently behind Auntie Em’s bar while the bridal party walked down the aisle to a live quartet playing ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon. Next up, our flower girl, June in a cream lace dress with sparkling ruby slippers and a flower crown. Escorted by my father, I walked down the aisle to ‘Something’ by the Beatles. The ceremony went off without a hitch and commenced with floral confetti and a beautiful rainbow over the field. A rainbow at Oz Farm post-ceremony is truly a surreal moment to endure!

The cocktail hour encompassed live music, a petting zoo of horses and ponies, signature cocktails and a Tin Man photo booth. The bridal party entered the reception to ‘September’ by Earth, Wind and Fire and kicked off a dance party before moving into the barn for dinner and speeches. The Barn was decorated with hanging greenery, string lights and gorgeous standing bouquets of dahlia's, roses, hydrangeas and eucalyptus.

DJ Natasha Diggs kept the dance floor alive for hours and as ‘Thriller’ came on, out came the scarecrow, lion, and tinman to join the party! Beyond shocked to see 3 of our groomsmen in full costume, the dance floor erupted in screams and laughter. My husband had pulled off the ultimate surprise.

Guests enjoyed a three-tiered cake comprised of Belgian Chocolate or Light Frangipani topped with Italian Merengue Butter Cream as well as a robust color coordinated candy buffet. As a send-off for the newlyweds, guests lit oversized sparklers outside the barn and surrounded the couple for one last dance. But there was one more surprise in-store… customized tie-dye tour t-shirts as a keepsake for all guests to remember the most magical weekend ever!