the "IT" in L.A.

Mr. UB & I made a jaunt out to Malibu on Saturday, to check out a lead on a possible venue for our big non-reception party in L.A. Unfortunately, it was the 1st sunny Saturday of the year (please don't hate us if you live in colder climes -- it's really the only thing we have going for us) and it took twice as long as planned to get there. Fortunately, the lovely Ms. M. who manages the venue was as laid-back as can be.

It's waaay out in the far end of Malibu, which is a city that's 27 miles long and 10 feet wide. So it really does feel like a "destination" setting, without leaving the city. I forget sometimes that L.A. is hiding gems like this. See, we (especially me) live on the east side of town, where we specialize in making grungy look "hip". East Side Bride does this far better than I could ever hope to ... but at any rate, I sometimes forget how much prettiness lies to our immediate west.

So this is what greeted us upon arrival. A great big room, complete with dance floor, paper lanterns & drapey fabric stuff. We (especially me) are happy. (It turns out you have to arrange the decor-y stuff with a decor vendor lady. But her site gives us hope that she's not out of our price range. We're calling her first thing in the a.m.)
This is the alcove off the main room. Table spill-over & buffet stuff could go back here.

Mr. UB wisely thought to test out the dance floor before we signed anything. Also, I need to officially admit that, even in light of the evidence above, I am the goofy one in this relationship. The man has the patience of Job, really.

(I'm going to marry him. /giggle)

Outside, there's a great big patio. They do ceremonies here at sunset, and/or set up an outside bar. Oh, and the view doesn't suck:
The best part is that this place includes tables, chairs, the dance floor and clean-up in its rental fee. It's also zoned for live music until midnight. Oh, and if you rent it on a weeknight (Mon. - Thurs.) you get it for 50%. Which could be quite easy to pull off in mid-August.

No, I'm not telling you where it is until we book it, so no one snakes our date. Then I promise to sing its praises to the moon.

Also, in the course of composing this entry, I think I've decided that our 1st dance together needs to be to something by Ray LaMontagne. Which doesn't narrow it down, really, since I love everything by him. Please go to iTunes immediately if you don't know his stuff.