Traverse City Archives - Detroit Duchess

Day three of our Traverse City trip, was the day of the wedding. The girls had to be up early for hair and makeup. We weren’t that impressed with the salon that we went to and our bride wasn’t very happy with her wedding day makeup. She asked me if I wouldn’t mind doing her makeup and I was so honored! Wedding makeup is a big deal and I wanted to make sure and do a good job.

I was glad I had an extra pair of lashes and brought the good stuff, whew!

She looked SO beautiful and I got a little emotional (shocker to anyone who knows me, ha!):

The wedding was on the beach and so much fun. Their vows were so sweet and I couldn’t be happier for my friend! This picture is of the bridesmaids watching Tracy walk down the aisle:

This is a picture of all of us with Tracy:

John and I had such an amazing time in Traverse City! I think John’s favorite part was the Moomer’s ice cream sandwiches they had at the hotel (they were pretty amazing):

So ladies and gentleman, that concludes Weddingpalooza 2014! We had such a blast and are so happy for all of our friends.

If you missed the first and second day recap, click here.

I know it was about a month ago, but I wanted to recap my fourth and final wedding of the season. It was a great way to kick off the summer and we had a blast. I’ve mentioned my friend Tracy on the blog before and I was so honored to be part of her special day. If you’ve never been to Traverse City before, hopefully this will convince you to take the trip.

On Thursday, Tracy and her fiance (now husband) treated the bridal party and their dates to a wine tour around Traverse City. We went to some of our favorites and a few places I hadn’t been before. Traverse City is special because the wineries fall on the 45th parallel, which is the halfway point between the Equator and the North Pole.

John and I started our trip with breakfast and a mimosa (because there’s always time for a mimosa).

We started our tour at Blackstar Farms, which has its own inn and winery. If you like sweet wines, this is the place for you. I didn’t find a ton of wines that I liked, because I usually prefer wines that aren’t so sweet anymore. I ended up settling on the 2011 Isidor’s Choice Pinot Noir. If you’ve been following my wines you will probably laugh because I am a sucker for a good Pinot Noir. As I was reading the tasting notes I noticed that this wine will age well for 5-10 years, so I will have to get this in the wine fridge.

Our next stop was 45 North, where I am a wine club member. We set it up to pick up our wine shipment while we were there and I couldn’t help but get more of the Unwooded Chardonnay. They don’t even have this one on the website, so I wonder if it is already sold out. It was definitely my favorite and I would share a picture, but I already drank both bottles.

Our third stop was at Blustone Vineyards, which was a new one for me. The tasting room was beautiful and very open with lots of glass walls. I chose the Pinot Noir Rose, which our host told me they nicknamed the “porch pounder.” I also got some of the 2012 Naked Chardonnay. I am a huge fan of these unoaked and unwooded chardonnays that are popular right now. This is a picture of us outside of the tasting room:

Our next stop was at L. Mawby, which I’ve featured before here. Their tasting room is a ton of fun and the presentation is great! You get to pick what wines you want to try and they give you a tasting plate. I tried the Jadore and Domaine and got them both – so good!