You are naive to plan your own wedding, no matter how many weddings you've attended before, or how many times you've been a bridesmaid. As soon as the excitement of being engaged wears off “Where to start the wedding planning from?” is the first question that comes to mind. You would want to start making decisions with the end goal of having a wedding that reflects you as a couple. Here are the most important steps to planning a wedding that is as unique as you.

Just 20 miles from Downtown Chicago, sits The Carlisle that is known for hosting weddings and wedding-related events in its 25,000 square feet spacious indoors with impeccable services and highest quality cuisine. No wonder The Carlisle has bagged 10 Silver Platter awards in Food Industry News in the last three decades. The Carlisle is an elegant modern structure in the suburban village of Lombard, Illinois, which is perfect for a grand wedding. This premier award-winning venue in the Chicago suburb specializes in weddings and other special events with parties from less than 100 to 700 people. Here, couples and their wedding guests will be able to enjoy dedicated and exceptional services. No small detail is overlooked at The Carlisle wedding venue. The staff here goes above and beyond with everything that they do to make couples’ wedding dreams come true. Luxury and opulence abound at this premier estate invite guests to come in, have a seat, and be delighted in an extravagant occasion. 

The Carlisle can host events that range in size, allowing couples to use anywhere between one and three event spaces. If an event has a minimum capacity of 700 individuals, then it has the benefit of using the entire venue, exclusively. The ambiance in The Carlisle's elegant ballrooms will capture the awe and wonder of your entire wedding party, influencing an occasion that will be etched on the minds of your near and dear ones. And our Chicago suburbs wedding photographers will capture the awe of your guests in wonderful wedding photography.

You and your guests will be greeted by a charming fountain sitting under a gazebo-style structure, the moment you’ll step out of your car and make an entrance to this sophisticated freestanding building. The Carlisle offers a wide variety of event services to satisfy their couples' wants. The event services they can provide include wedding coordinators, event planners, wedding decor set-up, wedding cakes, lighting, sound, and shuttles. They can also provide valet service as well as guest parking areas. Should couples find it useful, they are able to use a get-ready suite throughout the event. Meals can be provided by their in-house executive chef. For those who enjoy wine, unlimited refills are available during dinner services.

The Carlisle’s recently remodeled facility boasting expansive ballrooms, dazzling chandeliers, delectable dining experience, and modern yet classic charm will make for a splendid venue for your big day. The entire ambiance looks dreamy and romantic under the golden glow dripping from the cosmic chandeliers and this pleasing sight not only makes your wedding photographs look spectacular but also leaves all your wedding guests spellbound! The classic yet modern setting of the ballrooms helps our Chicago wedding photographers make your wedding photos a cut above the rest and your wedding day the talk of the town. Whether big or small, your wedding at The Carlisle's banquets will not be forgotten any time soon. This ravishing Chicago ceremony site will offer you a perfect canvas so that you can freely and comfortably create the wedding of your dreams reflecting your style and tastes. From your romantic first look moment to your heart-warming ‘I do’ moment, every single scene of your wedding story will be captured in flawless frames by our Chicago wedding photographers amidst the breathtaking settings of this flawless wedding location crafted by you and your partner. Let’s have a look at the event spaces that this striking Chicago banquet wedding venue uses to weave magic on your special day to make it extra special:

Their three gorgeous single room ballrooms - Lombard Room, Butterfield Room, and Oak Brook Room are perfect for small and intimate weddings or parties including your 100-400 loved ones. While Lombard Room can seat your 75-175 guests in classroom-style and 75-325 guests in theater-style on its 3,713 square feet of space, the Butterfield Room with 3,713 square feet space can accommodate your 75-175 loved ones in classroom-style and 75-325 guests in classroom style. Their Oak Brook Room is kinda larger than the other two and is good enough for your long guest list with 75-400 (theater) or 75-200 (classroom) or 75-240 (rounds) near and dear ones. Each ballroom features  8′ drop from the bottom of the chandelier to the floor, 12′ 9″ lowest height of the ceiling, 14’+ in cloves, 30′ x 7′ stage dimensions without risers and 600 square foot dance floor.

For slightly bigger or grand weddings hosting about 700 people, double room ballrooms are the way to go. They have double rooms with 7,493 square feet space to accommodate your large guest lists of up to 725 (theater: 150-725/classroom: 150-375/rounds: 150-510 individuals). As guests mosey through their double rooms, they will be swept off their feet by the lovely ceiling (with 12′ 9″ lowest height) glittering with 8′ high chandeliers, 14’+ in cloves, 30′ x 7′ stage (without risers), 600 square foot dance floor, glistening marble floors, and carefully crafted table settings. 

And if the grandeur of your wedding reaches the guest count of 1,000, you can even rent the whole facility for the most magnificent setting. Whatever the number of your guests may be, rest assured that this tabular banquet hall wedding venue in Chicagoland will not disappoint you with its top-notch services and our wedding photographers in Chicago suburbs with the endless photo opportunities it offers to capture your wedding day in picture-perfect frames! Our professional team of Chicago suburban wedding photographers loves photographing rooms and all the minute details. Not only this whimsical space and awe-inspiring details, but our Downtown Chicago wedding photographers also love to capture the vision you made a reality! Our wedding photographers in Chicago and its suburban areas understand the heart and soul you put in adorning this place, and therefore, they seize every bit of your effort in the most gorgeous frames! 

Apart from elegant and classy indoors, The Carlisle also boasts an on-site bridal suite for you and your bridal party to get dressed up or do last-minute touch-ups before you walk down the aisle! While you are getting ready in your private dressing room, take out some time, and pose with your bridesmaids and family to create amazing getting-ready photos while sharing some adorable moments of your bachelorhood! The bridal suite could also give you lovely keepsakes in the form of beautiful mother-daughter photographs. Before you slip into that drop-dead gorgeous bridal gown, allow the Carlisle wedding photographers to snap some photos of your dress on its own while getting creative with hanger set-ups. This dressing room offers myriad photo ops to our wedding photographers from Chicago and its suburban areas to snapshot some incredible bridal portraits and bridal dress photographs! Wedding dress shots are some of our photographers’ favorite ones to take throughout the wedding day as they get the opportunity to showcase their artistic bit away from the hustle and bustle of the celebration. Just one stop and your wedding albums get numerous breathtaking shots of you, your bridal outfit, your bridal party, and your parents and siblings.

After you are done with your getting-ready sessions and other essential must-have photoshoots head to the ceremony hall where your loved ones are waiting for you to walk down the aisle and say the most precious wounds of your life to the person of your dreams waiting on the other side of the aisle. Imagine saying your vows and kissing each other as spouses under the grand chandeliers featured by the gorgeous ballroom showering liquid gold-like light on you two. Dreamy enough sight to behold! After all said and done and your guests are mingling over a glass of wine and filet mignon (their specialty) sneak away for a moment to pose for some romantic couple photography against the enchanting fountain at the entrance. Do not forget to have some sunset shots clicked near the fountain at the golden hour! 

We love venue spaces that are neutral and can be decorated wholly to the couple’s preference, and the Carlisle banquet halls are an amazing option. Altar and arches, audio equipment, tables, centerpieces, Chiavari chairs, indoor lighting, dance floor, furniture, decor, photobooth. Barware, glassware, China and flatware, linens, chocolate fountain, flowers, whatever you like, The Carlisle’s experienced wedding planners will closely work with you to fashion the whole place to your liking for your big day. Another great thing about The Carlisle wedding venue is that they are extremely flexible and generous with the contract you have with them. No matter what Wedding package they choose, the wedding coordinator here makes sure that the package (from the appetizers to the food to the liquor to the chair covers) is exactly perfect for your vision. This is one more aspect most couples who already have hosted their wedding at The Carlisle loved about them.

Your wedding experience with The Carlisle will be amazing from the moment you contact their coordinator to the moment you enter through their doors to the planning process to set up the decor. Their readiness to perk up the place with your own stuff (like table numbers, grandparents' photo table, wedding favors, place cards, guest book, card box, etc.) comes as a bonus that can save you huge time. You can even have them embellish the event spaces with the curtains or other drapery of your choice by paying a bit extra. The staff at The Carlisle banquet hall wedding venue will not only help you make the event room look absolutely beautiful on the day of your wedding but also will strive to make your wedding day very much yours. Their wedding coordinators with all their might, help couples with their wedding budget planning by suggesting comparable alternatives if need be. Chicago couples love this aspect too of The Carlisle.

You will find the whole staff by your side and attentive to your needs, even with tiniest details like the temperature of the room, cake distribution, gathering all of your personal items after the event is over. From bartender/s to DJs to wedding bands to wedding florists, every vendor is fabulous. Their scrumptious food is the biggest and most common compliment you will get throughout the night. From minestrone soup, Carlisle salad, chicken, steak, garlic mashed potatoes, green beans with red peppers to hot fudge sundaes, all your guests will not stop raving about everything. They take care of the guests with severe dietary restrictions by making sure that everyone has a meal that meets their needs. Psst… you can take home some food as well! Ah, and the wedding cake at The Carlisle is exceptional, you will forget your so-far favorite cake shop!

Having located in close vicinity to Downtown Chicago, the venue brings countless benefits to couples and their wedding photographers. Every photographer’s muse, our Windy City is a treasure trove of photogenic locations to have an extraordinary engagement photoshoot or pre-wedding photoshoot or post-wedding photography sessions at any time of the year. No other From Willis Tower to Chicago's murals and bridges to the Lakefront adorned with Chicago skyline, Chicago is a magic wand that can turn your wedding photos into something as beautiful as a fairytale movie. Witness Chicago weaving your love story using its most gorgeous backdrops in the world. In every picture captured by our wedding photographers in and around Chicago, you with your sweetheart would look like fall-out-of-a-magazine hot!!

With more than 30 years of experience of skillfully planning and flawlessly executing a variety of special occasions in its name, The Carlisle wedding venue makes sure that your wedding day goes by smoothly and you don’t have a single thing to worry about while celebrating the happiest day of your life with your near and dear ones. The Carlisle in Lombard is the perfect option if you are looking for a venue space with a terrific dining experience and the freedom to deck out the entire event space in your style reflecting your personality as a couple. You may explore their collection of themed events that are sure to make give you an unforgettable wedding experience in Chicago. Hand your wedding to The Carlisle, the ambassador to your deepest wedding desires, and enjoy every second of your once-in-a-lifetime event with your loved ones!