Faith like a Mustard Seed Farm LLC

! We couldn't have done it without the help of Patricia and her staff.

he Catoctin mountains, and endless options for gorgeous photos. The sunset hour is particularly stunning with golden lights, mountain views, and magnificent clouds. It is a working farm and there are adorable farm animals such as baby goats and Ferdinand the bull. Our guests had great fun going to see them and doing something unique at the wedding. There are also numerous options for where to hold the ceremony. We ended up having ours at the pond. We had our cocktail hour in the old farm store which was perfect! It has both outdoor and indoor options for everyone, and comfortable bathrooms that are handicap accessible. The reception was held in the barn which is a gorgeous space with an easy to access bar and room for our DJ. Their decor was wonderful, including beautiful ivory curtains, gorgeous farm tables for our wishing well and table assignments, and the dessert setup. We decided to use FLAMS as the caterer and the food was AMAZING. Our guests raved about the food, and Patricia made sure we ate immediately so that we could enjoy it also. The venue also had two great spaces for getting ready. The bridal suite is a cozy and adorable bed and breakfast that they have completely renovated, with a kitchen and seating area that is perfect to lounge in, and plenty of room for the makeup and hair stylists to do their work. Patricia even surprised us with a bottle of Prosecco. It was so sweet! The farm store was just right for the guys to relax in the lounge area and take some pics. The farm store is also where we stored our cake and brought our own brewed beer, liquor, and other items. We brought it all during the rehearsal the day before so we did not have to worry about any of it on our wedding day. Not only did we love the venue for a farm wedding, but we also just adored the family that owns the farm - Patricia, Karl, and Lauren. They made us feel like family with small gestures - teaching my nephew how to drive a tractor and taking my niece on a tour to see the farm animals. Just before the ceremony, Karl made our entrance so much fun with a bumpy and fast ride in the gator with my dad and maid of honor. We all laughed so hard at the entrance that all my nervous jitters were gone and I hopped out laughing and ready to celebrate. There are many more moments like this that demonstrate how much they love what they do. We are so grateful to them for making our wedding so special, fun, and the best day ever. We highly recommend FLAMS for a unique and joyous wedding day!

The food was amazing too!

rl are so kind, and even accommodated all of our special food needs (lactose intolerance, vegans, pescatarians, etc). Everyone raved about the food. The venue itself is breathtaking. We were married by the pond under the willow tree in late June. Our reception was in the barn with string lights all over the ceiling and the doors open on either side for a beautiful view and nice breeze. Our guests enjoyed walking around to take pictures with the turkey (Tom!), chickens, kittens, and cows. What makes this place so special is the people. Patricia and Carl are the kind of people who could star in a reality television show about hosting weddings, but instead spend their time making your wedding perfect. They are relaxed and knowledgeable. We felt much more relaxed knowing that they were taking care of us. Several of our friends have told us that our wedding was the wedding they wish they had had--relaxed, full of natural beauty, incredible food. We could never have pulled this off without Patricia and Carl!

y dish!

een our day-of coordinator. Unfortunately, the day-of coordinator is also the owner (Patricia). She told me I could tip her, I just haven't been able to recover well from that. We did not use their caterer as they already had a wedding booked for Sunday, and to ensure the quality of the catering coming from their business, they were not comfortable catering two weddings in one weekend. This worked out well for us because we already booked our caterer. We felt the owners were often on different pages, with one telling us one thing while the other is telling us something else. This was frustrating. Each individual topic felt like it was always discussed 3 times over. But then the topic would still manage to be forgotten. We had to discuss many things more than once in order to make sure it was in the itinerary. We felt Patricia was unable to handle the workload of all of the weddings they were hosting. I think this venue would be significantly improved if they would hire outside help. I can't blame her, I'm not sure I'd be able to handle 20 weddings a year, especially with more than one a weekend. But it's not my job, it is hers, so I do feel the need to honestly review what we paid for. I'm sure this isn't entirely unusual, but this venue also charged for every tiny little detail: tables, chairs, bonfire, hay ride, generator, drapes, bartender, ice... all extra. They were to be responsible for setting up the ceremony site, but around 3:00 (ceremony started at 4:00), nothing was done. We had an issue with the florist, caterer, and Patricia all knowing their roles in setting up the reception. I wasn't there, so I do not know exactly what happened, but I do know I felt stressed, unsupported, and frustrated. I just wanted someone to forget their pride or their paycheck and say "Let's just get it done!" Maybe that's naive. My bridesmaids ended up finding my decor list and running the show, to make sure everything was set up, including the ceremony site. My family was also responsible for packing up all decor THAT night and taking it with them immediately. My family didn't get home until 1:30AM because FLAMS was unable to offer space to keep our decor until the AM because there was a wedding the next day. When I called Patricia days later to give her feedback, I felt I was being talked over. I heard a lot of excuses. She placed blame on my parents, the other vendors, and ME for not getting the job done. In the end, I paid her a lot of money. All I wanted was to feel supported. She is my day-of coordinator, I expected her to be the glue that brought it all together. This just didn't quite happen. After our wedding weekend, they also decided they would not be hosting two weddings in one weekend again. I am frustrated it was our wedding weekend that brought them to this decision. I would have much appreciated being the only wedding that weekend, and we definitely experienced issues and shortcomings because we weren't the only wedding that weekend. In the end, our wedding day was gorgeous. We had a ton of fun. But I'm still in shock over all of the problems that occurred. I felt I was SO organized, so I'm unsure how these issues could have been avoided.

o accommodate our special requests. Patricia was the best day of coordinator, even keeping me from passing out with emergency potatoes! Our friends LOVED the food, loved the barn, and overall it was the best day. Highly recommend FLAMS to anyone looking for a fun, down to earth wedding.

as delicious! However, the tastiest thing we tried during the food tasting (wheatberry salad) came out very crunchy the night of the wedding. After letting Patricia know, she realized it must be because she changed vendors recently. The other part that they are working on is food management for the buffet. Our food was a bit on the colder side, so I think Patricia is working on getting some burners to keep things warm as they serve. One more suggestion would be to maybe have two buffet stations (I would have paid extra for this!) so that a guest list of 100-150 won't have to wait so long. They did make up for some of this by throwing in a yummy pork option the day of wedding. The meats, carrots, and potatoes were all well seasoned! Generally, I had a lot of fun planning for my wedding as Patricia is so easy going and accommodating. It is such a great venue!

On our wedding day, they made sure that we got a taste of the wine and charcuterie being served during cocktail hour while we were taking pictures. I've heard so many brides say that they never got to eat during the reception--trust me, you will not have that problem if your wedding is here! The food was phenomenal, and our guests loved it as well.

ever had. Patricia and Carl were wonderful to work with and gave us thoughtful, personal attention. We highly recommend them to others seeking to have a unique, personalized and beautiful wedding day!

nd very appreciated touch to the party.

re so appreciative to have been able to utilize this location.