Piedmont Community Church • BAWN

Years ago I used to go hang out in Berkeley almost once a week. I know all of the fun spots like the 4th Street and College Ave. shopping districts. I used to go to the Crate and Barrel and Smith & Hawken outlet stores and to the numerous salvage yards where one can find all things shabby chic tucked away behind piles of almost anything and everything one can imagine.

Even though it's right next door I rarely went to Oakland so I'd never been to the Piedmont Community Church until a recent Bay Area Wedding Network meeting was held there.

The non-denominational church was built in 1916. The chapel seats 100 people and has a wonderful pipe organ that we were treated to that day.

And from the inside

The sanctuary flowers were by Ornamento, LLC.

The Fountain Courtyard can be used as an outdoor ceremony area or as a place to hold your cocktail hour between the ceremony and reception. The outdoor bar is where guests enjoyed yummy mango mimosas and other libations. Yes I had one! I asked the bartender to go heavy on the mango and light on the champagne though :)

This area is adjacent to the Chapel and housed a second bar.

One of my most favorite flowers are parrot tulips. Be sure to click on this image to view the close up. They were GORGEOUS!

A lounge area with furnishings by Blueprint Studios, Studio Collection

The Fountain

LOL it took more then a few tries to capture this image of one of our servers from The Party Staff Inc. as they brought out lunch. As soon as I sat down at the reception table I knew I would get a great shot with the Enhanced Lighting on the back wall and the Scharffen Berger Chocolate favors in the foreground.

Yum! Dagoba, artisan, organic chocolates.

The reception hall also has a stage for live bands to perform on. If you look closely you will see the Golden Gate Jazz Trio who performed throughout the lunch hour. They were wonderful. I particularly enjoyed their vocalist and would love to hear her perform again sometime. The tall centerpieces laden with fresh Dogwood blossoms were by Passiflora Designs.

The Cake by True Confections. Close up to come later...

It was a full house!

The lunch by Global Gourmet Catering was superb! We started with the Sweet Gem Lettuces, Pears, Crispy Shoe String Sweet Potatoes and Pancetta with Mint Julep Dressing.

Chilled Spring Pea and Fava Bean Soup with Tarragon Cream and Licorice Oil

The main course was phenomenal. The sauce, to die for. Seared Fulton Valley Farms Breast of Chicken, Rosemary Grapefruit Mojo, Avocado, Grapefruit and Endive Salad...

And a Goat Cheese Sweet Potato and Plantain Hash Cake. 

Here's the close up of the cake by True Confections. 

The outdoor centerpieces were by Sunshine Flowers.

I have to say that there is no downside to the church itself after it's recent multi-million dollar renovation. It and the grounds are gorgeous and it's easy to locate using online map directions. My only suggestion is to consider offering valet parking to your guests if your ceremony is at a time of day that might make parking challenging as there is no lot and street parking can be limited.

Thank you to Gwen Helbush and Marie Rios for another fantastic BAWN event. The industry so appreciates all of your efforts in bringing us together each quarter for an afternoon or evening showcase that allows us to view and enjoy the talents of many of our colleagues.

To view more photos of the event take a peek at Allure West Studio's Blog Post.