cashiers Tag

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January 23, 2017

Wedding Season

Now that it is winter and another wedding season that has come and gone, we thought now would be an apt time to thank our brides and grooms for choosing Lonesome Valley to celebrate their marital unions.

Throughout the transitional months between spring and summer, and summer and winter, we hosted a range of wedding rehearsal dinners, ceremonies and receptions. For each of these celebrations Lonesome Valley is the backdrop to the memories that are now living in the minds of families and their chosen guests.

Although all of the couples chose Lonesome Valley as the setting, each wedding celebration was entirely unique. Looking back, it seemed as if each wedding used our event space as a canvas and built a special home for themselves and their guests to celebrate in. On any given wedding day Canyon Kitchen and the surrounding meadow area would be transformed with walls of flowers, candles, and organic garland draping across the tables. We see each wedding that we host as a special experience and we love having the opportunity to work with couples and their families to create the event of their lifetimes.

This year, with a satisfied smile, we are saying, “see you soon” to our wedding checklists and getting some much needed rest until our spring wedding season is upon us. We cannot wait until the smell of spring blooms and we get to host more wedding celebrations.

November 23, 2016

Canyon’s End Estate

View Home Plan

For more information, call Thomas Bates (828-743-7696) or Brien Peterkin (828-421-2636).

The Canyon’s End Estate overlooks the preserved acres of Canyon’s End, a greenspace park located below the towering cliffs of Laurel Knob, the tallest granite face in the Eastern United States. The singular estate homesite is perfectly complemented by this rustically elegant home and carriage house designed by Mountainworks of Cashiers.

The home features a spaciously open floor plan with spectacular views to streams, forests and the full majesty of Laurel Knob. The main home includes a large kitchen, dining and living areas, 4 bedrooms and 4.5 baths, three masonry Rumford fireplaces, a large screened side porch with built-in grill, and an additional entertainment room and wine cellar on the lower level.  A “dog-trot-bridge” connects the main house to the Carriage House with its own private bedroom, full bathroom, efficiency kitchen, laundry and covered balcony porch.  This home is being offered fully furnished and is currently available for $2,595,000.

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luxury wedding venue cashiers nc
April 1, 2016

What it means to have a destination wedding

Destination weddings are hugely popular.  It is a wonderful way to embrace a location that has been meaningful to a couple or family and celebrate it.  Hosting a destination mountain wedding can be daunting to plan but the rewards are great.  The weddings we host here at Lonesome Valley are almost exclusively classified as “destination.”  Even if the couple or parents are local then the majority of the guests are coming from out of town or even from other countries.  Most often, everyone is coming from afar. 

Hosting a wedding in this part of the world breeds a different wedding experience.  By being surrounded by the serenity of nature, guests get a chance to decompress.  They are more relaxed therefore the family, and ultimately the couple, are more relaxed with them.  It gives folks from bigger cities the chance to look up at the stars or enjoy time around a bonfire, throw on some hiking boots and get lost for a few hours.  For good or bad, cellphone coverage is pretty spotty around here so people are forced to detach from their devices and enjoy their surroundings.  

Destination weddings have morphed in to mini adventure vacations. It is a great time to bring your friends and family to a part of the world that they may have never explored before.  Outdoor activities like hiking, fishing and kayaking are natural ways to keep guests entertained.  I often hear from clients that they chose Western North Carolina for their destination wedding in hopes of keeping their guest count down, but in my experience, people are so intrigued with this area that not only do they check “yes” on their RSVP but they will likely be staying a few extra days to really soak it in.

 

September 7, 2015

Charlsey + Justin

Charlsey and Justin were married on a picture perfect June day.  Charlsey’s family owns a home just over the ridge from Lonesome Valley and have always been huge supporters of what we do here.  We are thrilled that they chose to celebrate their special day with us and thankful that they brought along Verge Events for the fun. Anna Kirby Photography provided all of the beautiful imagery from the day and Studio Flora Diva worked their magic with the floral design.  Top it off with the A-Town, A-List and it was a party!!

 

June 29, 2015

An Artist’s View

It is always a pleasure to see how artists depict the spectacular views we have here at Lonesome Valley. Recently, many of our events have included commissioned artwork for the invitations with a majority using watercolor as their chosen medium.  

Water color wedding invitation. NC Mountain reception venue watercolor wedding invitation. NC mountain reception venue watercolor wedding invitation. same sex reception venue in NC mountainsIn addition, live art during the reception can be a creative way to provide a unique experience for you and your guests.

Live art wedding reception North Carolina mountain venue

Sunday Grant Photography

Custom artwork can we a wonderful way to personalize your event.  Use our views as your inspiration.

Artwork provided by: Shannon Berrey, Sable & Gray, Sara King, Rylan and Howard Sian

 

September 10, 2014

A Summer Remembered

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It is hard to believe that summer 2014 has come and gone.  It was a busy one around the Valley with wonderful new additions and traditions.

We began the summer with the opening of our newest amenity, Canyon Spa.  Housed in the newly renovated Caretaker’s Cottage, the spa offers signature treatments using the farm fresh ingredients from Canyon Kitchen’s garden.  We were pleased to bring in Melanie Marshall as Spa Director and Tim O’Brien as her right hand man.  They are doing a great job!  We have received wonderful feedback about the Spa and hope you will schedule an appointment to try it out for yourself.  828-743-0006

 

It was another strong summer for Canyon Kitchen.  In addition to dinner service, the team hosted wine dinners featuring Kermit Lynch and Staglin Family Vineyard wines.  With the opening of John Fleer’s newest venture, Rhubarb, in Asheville, the home team of Mitch, Chelsea and Audra, successfully ran the day-to-day operations of Canyon Kitchen while John floated between “his city house and country house.”  John was featured prominently in the August issue of Garden and Gun for both Rhubarb and Canyon Kitchen.

 

The Canyon Kitchen garden grew too this year with the addition of the “three sisters”: corn, beans and squash that made a great complement to the existing garden.

 

The Sunday church service in the Barn continues to draw large crowds at the hands of resident priest, Steve Hines.  With nationally recognized speakers and local bluegrass gospel music, St. Frances Chapel has been a great success.

 

Once again, we had the pleasure of hosting some of the fantastic artists during the Plein Air Festival in the Valley.  LV members and guests of Canyon Kitchen were thrilled to share in the experience of the artists at work.

 

New traditions were started from old pastimes.  Lonesome Valley decided to take a page from the Jennings family history book and create an unforgettable 4th of July celebration.  Members enjoyed a beautiful night with games for kids and grownups alike and a wonderful meal by the culinary team at Canyon Kitchen.  After dark, the pyrotechnics display was described by several folks as “better than I’ve ever seen.”

 

Throughout the summer, members and guests have joined together to break bread and enjoy the scenery at the Farmhouse.  We have hosted Friday Friends dinners catered by Canyon Kitchen as well as pot luck meals that have shown the culinary talents of our membership.  However the food was prepared, it was a wonderful opportunity to spend time as a community, let the kids frolic and enjoy the view.

As the breeze gets cooler and the leaves begin to change, we will look back fondly at the wonderful summer shared at Lonesome Valley.

January 23, 2014

Looking back…and ahead

 

As we wrap up 2013 and begin 2014, we wanted to share our year in review.

Lonesome Valley continues to be attractive from a real estate perspective, selling a total of 15 homesites and 2 more contracts already in place this year. After several years of enduring a stagnant real estate market, we are beginning to see property values appreciate again, and we welcome the improvement. Our new members (including a pair of bald eagles!) are excited to be a part of Lonesome Valley and many are well underway with house plans.  In addition, a new “spec” cottage will soon to be completed on Long Lake.

To date, 60 owners have purchased 74 lots, and 25 houses are either built or are near completion. We are currently developing 18 spectacular new lots along the West Fork of Logan Creek for immediate release this spring/summer.  We currently have listed 5 resale lots and 2 resale homes. Our resale ratio is quite low compared to other communities, further evidence of the overall health and appeal of Lonesome Valley.

On the amenity side, we have begun the full renovation of the “Caretaker’s Cottage” which will open as the new Canyon Spa in May. The Spa will include three treatment rooms, a well appointed reception area and men’s and ladies’ changing areas.  In addition, we will continue to improve our fishing, trails, roadsides, signs, gates as well as the general landscaping and appearance of the community. In 2014 Lonesome Valley should look the best it ever has.

Canyon Kitchen enjoyed another outstanding year that featured a booming a la carte business in addition to many successful wine dinners and special events.  Along with John Fleer’s successful opening of his new restaurant, Rhubarb, in Asheville, his culinary staff at Canyon Kitchen has done a superb job.  John will be sharing his time between Cashiers and Asheville beginning this spring. We also commend Canyon Kitchen and our Special Events team for receiving the BizBash Event Style Award for Best Wedding Venue in North America for 2013!

We are planning more member gatherings this winter. Our goal is to continue to build our relationships as a community and have a healthy and prosperous 2014!

September 12, 2013

Dahlias in Bloom

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There is an extra pop of color in the valley during this time of year.  It is dahlia and zinnia season!  Our gardens are filled with vibrant hues of red, orange, pink and yellow.  Even the worst florists {ahem, yours truly} can make the most outstanding arrangements without much effort using these gorgeous flowers.

The excessive amounts of rain threatened our crop of flowers this year but our fantastic horticultural husband/wife team of John and Marcia McCarley worked their magic to keep these beauties flourishing.   I pick a new batch about once a week for my office but luckily the Farmhouse and Canyon Kitchen benefit from Marcia’s expert arrangements.

Photo by Roger Foley, Southern Living
March 14, 2013

Southern Living

Lonesome Valley and Canyon Kitchen have the honor of being featured in the April edition of Southern Living.  Both Chef John Fleer and garden designer John McCarley were highlighted in the article as they discuss how the garden is an extension of the restaurant.  Gorgeous pictures, huh?

Check it out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 5, 2013

Lauren + Ray

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Our good friend Alison Taylor from WNC Weddings & Events wrote about Lauren & Ray’s September wedding on Western Carolina Weddings Blog today.

It was a beautiful September day.  The zinnias were as big as my head and the bride and groom looked great.  The food was pretty tasty too!  Thanks to Yve Assad for the beautiful pictures of the happy couple.  Below are a few of my favorites.

Congratulations Lauren & Ray!!