The Refinery

SHARE, COMMENT or TAG someone on this post and be entered to WIN a $50 Chipotle Gift Card for a *wink, wink* private moment with your lover. Winner announced July 2. WEDDING WEDNESDAY || HOW TO BUILD-IN PRIVATE MOMENTS THROUGHOUT YOUR WEDDING DAY TO HELP YOU STAY ROOTED AND REMEMBER THE DAY The day goes by so. fast. If you’re not careful, you’ll look back and not remember a single thing. Do your best to be intentional about setting aside time for you and your spouse throughout the day to just sit and enjoy your newly-wedded bliss. The best way to do this is to pair it with all of the times you need to eat! 1. As SOON as ceremony is done, walk back down that aisle and lock yourselves into a room, just the two of you. No cameras. No planners. No bridal party. You both just committed your lives to each other and that’s a BIG moment. Take 5 minutes to soak it in and talk about what the ceremony was like. Ask your planner to have apps and drinks waiting in there for you so that you can fuel up for the oncoming photo hour. 2. Plan a private dinner! We cannot emphasize the importance of this enough. When you choose to have dinner with all of your guests, you never actually get to eat because guests are constantly coming up to you for photos or hugs or dinging their champagne glasses in your direction. If you take the time, right after your long photo hour, to tuck away and eat dinner, this allows you to get some sustenance in your body but it also allows you time to be with your spouse again and recharge with just them before you’re whisked away again to smile and wave at the reception. The bonus: as soon as you get into your reception, you can start mixing and mingling with guests—all with a full stomach. They’ll be happier and so will you.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || WHAT IT’S LIKE TOURING OTHER VENUES VS. THE REFINERY We are surrounded by some pretty amazing venues but beyond that…in the Wild, Wild West, we’ve heard tale of some really bizarre things that venues are requiring, charging and even hiding. We’re not saying it’s all doom and gloom out there but we are saying to make sure that the venue you choose aligns with what you really need your venue to do for you. And that they don’t charge extra for it. Don’t compromise on your core needs just because a space is pretty. Your whole wedding will feel the effects of it. Tell us in the comments something funny/weird/alarming that you’ve heard about in a venue tour. Serve the tea 🫖. And as always, please share. You guys are what makes our little small business world spin ‘round. DISCLAIMER : WE LOVE CAMRY DRIVERS

SHARE our GRWM video and be entered in for a chance to WIN a Refinery mug (rendering in stories) and a $50 gift card to the coffee spot of your choice to help you wake up and get ready for the week. ——— Wake up and GET READY WITH US in a very unconventional way. In our vendor feature spotlight this week, we have our favorite vendor—ourselves. Our days here at The Refinery are filled with weird and wonderful things prepping for your wedding weekends, private parties and overnight stays. We do everything that we can to make sure your event + stay here is the best and most of the time, it’s Julie doing a lot of this stuff by herself (three cheers for Julie!). Share this video so that it can go viral and our girl can get a raise. Winner announced 6/17.

Y’all really hitting the next level with these showers. One of our favorites to date.

Y’all really going to another level with these bridal showers. One of our favorite set ups to date. TALK ABOUT DETAILS.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || HOW TO NOT LOOK AWKWARD IN PICTURES Today, we find out tips and tricks from one of our favorites @kaylafletcherphotography on how to look natural in front of the camera and enjoy your time together as newlyweds! 1. Trust the photographer and their poses. Any good photographer will be prepared to pose you and tell you how to move. If you need direction, ask for it. 2. RELAX. The more you can be at ease, the easier the photos will be. 3. When in doubt, keep it simple. Don’t go over the top with poses. 4. Don’t fake smile. It’s hard to do when you’re taking hundreds of photos back to back. If you need to, ask for a little one minute break to let your face muscles relax. 5. It’s okay to NOT smile. You can go for blue steel, calm, cool and collected or straight up resting b—whatever feels the most natural. 6. ENJOY THE TIME. Those first few minutes as newlyweds are some of the sweetest. Don’t get so wrapped up in the perfect shot that you forget why you’re taking pics.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || HOW TO KEEP THAT BAR LINE SNAPPY Nobody likes waiting for their alcohol. Do your guests a favor and keep the bar line moving with these tips from master mixologist and the BEST cupcake chef @boozyaloha 1. Only have a few signature drinks that are crowd pleasers 2. Batch those puppies 3. Make sure your bartender has a barback or second bartender if your guest count is over 75 Stay tuned until the end to hear Val rip on Joy and to see Julie’s reaction.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || FLORISTS QUESTIONS 1. When deciding if you’re going to DIY or hire a florist, ask your prospective florist what all comes with their services. Florals fairies do all of the ordering, processing, rentals, set up, break down and everything in between. Make sure you’re really up for the whole job. Because it’s a lot. Otherwise, like Amy suggested, do a la carte. But as always, we suggest hiring a full service florist so that you can be the greatest extent of hands off and let the floral fairies do their work. 2. Seasonality. What is actually IN season during your wedding will determine your overall cost and look. Make sure your florist is knowledgeable in what flowers are sprouting when and what can be used on your big day to help cut down on costs and still achieve the look you want. Thank you Amy from @drivebyflowers for coming out and filling in for our precious Julie. She can’t be replaced but if she ever goes missing, we know who to call for help—our local Lone Ranger, Drive By Amy.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || THE IMPORTANCE OF HIRING A DJ Follow along over the next few weeks as we interview vendors of all types, starting with one of the most important—THE DJ. Why are they at the top, you might be asking yourself? 1. They can read a room better than anyone else. They’re literally paid to do that. They know what song is gonna hit and what song would absolutely crush (in a sad way) the dance party. Good DJs can have grandma and your best friend’s from college all throwing down to the same songs until midnight. 2. The announcements at a wedding are ENDLESS and can be awkward if not done correctly. An emcee (MC, DJ) gives proper flow to your event. They steer your proverbial wedding ship with saying the right things at the right time and keeping everyone abreast of the wedding situation. To inquire with Mike at @oneanddoneevents about being your DJ/MC, officiant or photobooth, you can dm him or email him at [email protected]

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || 🚨 🚨 HOT SEAT 🚨 🚨 As always, please share, like, comment—pledge your love in some capacity. Find out a little bit more about all of the things you probably don’t need to know about…behind the scenes of weddings, Joy’s talents, Julie’s wedding dreams and maybe a little bit of wedding tea. It’s just a regular wild and weird day at The Refinery.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || 2024 TOP FAN ANNOUNCEMENT Wow, what a wild time. Although there were a few handfuls of you all that were neck and neck, we’re millennials and we believe that not everybody gets a trophy. So we let the wheel of Instagram fortune decide and it chose…..drumroll please….OUR 2024 TOP FANS AND FOREVER KNOWN AS REFINERY QUEENS @allyannephotography and @valleighannphotos. BUT—some of y’all really showed up and showed out and for that, you still DO get a prize. The wheel selected 3 bonus winners for mugs and sweatshirts and those winners are @marypflowers @mell_mc_g and @westparkgardens. Thank you to everyone for supporting our small business. The vigor you showed this month is what we need EVERY month to carry us through until next year’s Top Fan selection (sorry Julie). 🖤 you all.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || Pull out your dancing shoes and practice that first dance. We know that most people don’t love the spotlight on them. We also know that some of y’all have never even tapped your foot to the song you’re about to do your first dance to (we’re lookin’ at you, Jaimee). So here’s our list of suggestions: 1. Practice. Doesn’t have to be 50 times but it should at least be several. You don’t need it to be choreographed but you also don’t want to look like a walrus. 2. Create a gameplan. Know what fun little moves you’ll toss in, how your hands should go, MOVE YOUR BODIES. 3. Change up your positions. Don’t be little statues. Be a photographer’s dream and have a few different vibes you’re putting out. Also, congrats to our @distinguished_engagements cake winner @annagreysonphoto . You get an 8” cake for any occasion or to just eat alone in bed as you rewatch all of our wedding Wednesdays. Dealer’s choice. ONE MORE WEEK OF TOP FANDOM COMPETITION. LIKE, FOLLOW, COMMENT, SHARE, ASK QUESTIONS, NAME YOUR FIRSTBORN AFTER US. We don’t care. Just engage and win the title.

GIVEAWAY ALERT + HOW TO CUT YOUR CAKE || Together with @distinguished_engagements, we bring you a FREE CAKE GIVEAWAY. From now until 4/24, you can enter to win a free 8” cake for any occasion. To enter: 1. Like this post. 2. Follow both businesses. 3. Share this post. And in case you’re thinking “wow, they’ve really stepped up their production quality with real props and new angles and such,” You’re not wrong. Anything to impress our billions of fans. Specifically our top fans. Time is ticking. Become a top fan AND win a free cake. What a time to be alive.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY || Reasons why you shouldn’t skip a seating chart Stay tuned for a surprise ending. The eclipse made somebody SPICY. 1. Everybody gets a seat and no groups get split up. The key to a great wedding is HAPPY guests who rave about it for years to come. Sit the right people together to guarantee no one has an awkward time. 2. Seating charts allow you to have control over who sits where. You can maintain the layout for funky family situations, weird friend blends or the one loner being at a table with the grandmas. TOP FANS: Tell us what you did/are doing for your reception.

TOP FANS, we’re watching. WEDDING WEDNESDAY: THE IMPORTANCE OF A COORDINATOR 1. You will absolutely not have time to do a single thing on wedding day. Between hair and make up, pictures and spending quality time with the pals, the morning will disappear and you’ll wish you had someone calling the shots other than you. Plus, navigating all of the logistics beforehand is a nightmare. 2. Don’t depend on family and friends for the most important day of your life. Let them enjoy the day WITH you and hire professionals that know what they’re doing to run the day. 3. Find room in the budget for a coordinator. It’s essential. Or you can kill two birds with one stone and find a venue like ours with included TOP NOTCH in-house coordination.

TOP FANS GIVEAWAY Starting now until the end of April, we will be watching to see who engages, likes, comments and shares The Refinery content with the most vigor. TWO people will be selected as top fans and the prize is EPIC. Only the best for our BESTIES. -Elite status as a Top Fan -$100 Visa Gift Card -Refinery Sweatshirt -One Night Stay in Our Overnight Suites To enter, you must start engaging with posts. It won’t necessarily go to the ones who engage the most but it will go to who shows the most Refinery Spirit. Make us believe that you love us. We will also accept forms of bribery such as @ravensnestcoffeehouse, kind reviews and homemade casseroles. As a small business, we only grow if you help us. THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO HELP US AND WIN AN AMAZING PRIZE IN RETURN. Anybody can win. We’ll be updating along the way. Let the Top Fan games begin.

THE GIRLS ARE BACK IN TOWN Jk we didn’t go anywhere. Life just took over and we forgot it was Wednesday. But for everyone sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for our re-debut….HERE IT IS WEDDING WEDNESDAY: WHEN TO CUT YOUR FIRST DANCE 1. Don’t pick a cut point. Go with your heart. 2. DO pick a signal to give to your DJ when you’re done—like a kiss or dip to give some finality to it. 3. Don’t do what Julie did and dance for six minutes straight without a plan in place.

Thank God our merch is cozy sweatsuits and not leather jumpsuits or this would’ve been much harder… WEDDING WEDNESDAY || Have a route planned for your photo circuit. Photo time is precious on wedding day so don’t waste it by lallygagging around. Make sure you scout the area around your venue before your big day for the most unique and creative spots. Ask the on-site staff for a couple of great options, stalk their Instagram and/or hire a photographer that has been to the venue before. There’s nothing worse than wandering around aimlessly with no real plan in place. At The Refinery, we take you on the “downtown circuit”, which is all of these spots, plus more, within a 5 minute walk of the venue. But why walk when you can run? We know you guys can’t tell, but this was exhausting. We’d like to say we can do a gentle jog for 10 minutes, but we now know this is not the case. Give us a like or share for the lengths we go to make OUR BELOVED VIEWERS a one minute video. Anything for the fanz. Also, someone please get Joy a lint roller and our cameraman, Julie, a raise.

There’s curse words and bud light….it must be a week for the BOYZ WEDDING WEDNESDAY: How to Get Your Fiancé to Willingly Help With Wedding Planning Don’t worry fellas, we’ve got you. 1. Have them buy the alcohol 2. Have them pick the music and coordinate with DJ 3. Have them plan the rehearsal dinner 4. Have them pick the tux/suit for them and their groomsmen Easy enough, involved enough, but without the doom and gloom of actually having to help with stuff they have no interest in. Everybody wins. Also, honorable mention to @budlight but not sponsored by them…yet.

WEDDING WEDNESDAY: BAR TIPS feat. Jes from @brideandjoyrentals and her…dad? ——BAR TIPS—— 1. Only do two main spirits and base your cocktails off of these. 2. Only do beer and wine during cocktail hour. 3. Make sure your bartenders use fresh ingredients and not some janky mixes.