Marianmade Farms

condition. We had the privilege of having our wedding at Marianmade Farm in late August of 2019, and I cannot say enough great things about this venue. The owner John is clear with his communications and understanding with any and all situations. Wendy, the wedding planner associated with the venue, is a godsend. Her, along with her wonderful daughter, do everything in their power to make your weekend perfect...down to the finest of details. Again, I don't how we could put our appreciation for everyone associated with Marianmade into words. They made our weekend perfect. We held both our rehearsal dinner and wedding ceremony/reception on the property, and everything went off without a hitch. Along with the property, you are provided a wonderful cottage to stay in that provides privacy and makes the weekend that much more special for the newlyweds. If you want an ideal, midcoast Maine wedding, I honestly don't know where else you would have it (trust me, I was dragged to every venue in a 100 mile radius...I know). John, Wendy - if you read these, thank you again, for everything. We wish you nothing but continued success in the future. We hope to be back up to Marianmade soon! - Greg and Jess

ecommended checked every box we were looking for. Being from Brooklyn, New York, Maine was not initially within our vision as a destination. But we fell in love with its beauty, small coastal towns, as well as the beer and food! MMF went above and beyond to help execute our plan and vision. From the renovations to the farm, the amazing tent for our band; John, Ed and all of the staff were extremely helpful leading in and during the process of planning our wedding. The on-site stone cottage is breathtakingly comfortable. MMF is worth every penny on a full weekend rental, as you never have to worry about the cookie cutter-wedding venue that may have 3 or 4 weddings per day. It’s your day/weekend and that’s all that matters. It goes a long way. My recommendation to anyone looking for a concept like this is to be thorough, open, and commutative to every vendor with kindness and they will deliver for you no questions asked!

y/staging area *inside* the weekend. As for the barn, there are so many ways to use the space that you can have a rehearsal dinner AND a wedding out here and they'll feel very different. John, the proprietor, was on site for the wedding and helped out a ton. He also was very quick to reply to emails and calls leading up. We weren't high-maintenance but we did have lots of questions and he helped it all go off wonderfully. The grounds were maintained and some new additions (bigger shaded patio) really helped make the space work on a hot day. Also, we had an act-of-god power/weather issue the first night that the property resolved with a generator and then fixed before the wedding, promptly. I can't say enough how great it was to be taken care of when things outside of your control are handled. You can decorate minimally and still have an A+ wedding because the property is stunning and does so much work for you. Our guests all talked about the area, and if you're not FROM Maine, it really puts on a "Maine in the summer" display. The catering coordinated smoothly — use Red Plate (the Damariscotta River Grill) and you won't be let down. The fire pit rocks. Get a few cornhole boards and a frisbee, set out some wine and watch the party make itself! I couldn't recommend this property enough. John even kept in touch, returned our deposit promptly, the whole shebang. Get married here!

ved on property and walked around the grounds, we noticed that the flower beds, gravel paths, etc. hadn't been maintained and looked messy. This was a Thursday and the property manager was unavailable until Friday to resolve the issue (not something you want to manage the day before your wedding). It was disappointing as we paid a lot of money for the Farm to look a certain way and it didn't day of. Post-wedding, we followed up with the owner, John, asking for a credit due to the state of the grounds of the Marianmade. He eventually agreed to credit us back a small amount. However, 8 months later, he still hasn't sent the payment. My husband was in communication with him and then John simply stopped responding. In my opinion, the behavior of the owner is completely unprofessional and shows a real lack of character. If you choose to get married at this venue, be aware of the major service issues.

nice and accomodating. When we first signed on with the venue John had just taken it over. As we were getting closer to the wedding we noticed a change that was made from when we were signed on that would have effected us financially. Once I explained the issue, John was super understanding and honored what we originally agreed upon. I will say there are some challenges when having a larger event. We had 130 people and the space was limited for dancing and the bathroom lines were pretty long-nothing the venue could do, but just something to think about. Even knowing this now, I wouldn’t have chosen somewhere else because the beautiful space was worth it.

s had a great time. The reasons for the poor rating are a combination of frustration at repeated nickel and diming (explained in detail below) and the fact that when we arrived to set up for the rehearsal dinner (which we had at the venue), we found that the management had chosen to leave an extra tent up on the venue that we didn’t request. We tried to get in touch to ask if they were going to remove it, but they didn’t respond. Ultimately, we just had a giant tent up on the venue for both the rehearsal dinner and the reception, which didn’t impact the events too much but did significantly impact the aesthetic of the venue. When they finally did respond, their answer was that they “wanted to keep the grass dry” and that “we should be thankful that we got the use of a tent”. Full story on nickel and diming: If you decide to go with Marianmade, build in extra space in your venue and rentals budget. One downside of the venue is that there are no garbage or catering facilities on site, so you will have to take that into account when choosing vendors. Presumably, if you’re looking at Marianmade, you are also looking into other barn weddings and are prepared for that. A more frustrating fact is when we were evaluating venues, we got quotes on chair and catering tent rentals for the farm that were significantly lower than the prices we were charged (we ended up managing to get the original price on chairs, but not on the catering tent). The final price was on the high side for rentals, and the lack of transparency was not appreciated. The straw that finally broke the camel’s back and led to this review was that at the culmination of the reception, there was a single bag of trash left outside on the venue that our event coordinator was planning to pick up in the morning. An animal got into it in the night, and made a mess. The management’s response to this was to send an angry email to our event coordinator, and then charge us $250 for cleanup. Now, it was probably annoying to pick up the trash, but I have a lab at home who has gone through a lot of trash bags. There’s no way the cleanup involved more than 10 minutes with a broom, especially since it happened outside. No mopping or disinfecting needed. It certainly wasn’t $250 worth of annoying. That response really sums up what it is like to deal with the management here: their focus is on maximizing profit from your wedding, not on ensuring you have a good experience. You can still have an amazing ceremony and reception at this venue, but be warned that there will be headaches (and hidden costs) involved in running the show.

re and see a locked gate and no one in sight. A woman came out of the house that is oddly situated on the property (which we figured was affiliated with Marianmade) came out and told us to move our car and that we were on private property. When I called the phone number I was given, I was told the woman I made an appointment with no longer worked for Marianmade. I can't imagine their management would be any better for a wedding. We will not be considering this venue - that's for sure.

because it is so chic. The contract is from Thursday - Sunday so I was able to drop decor off early, have the rehearsal dinner, wedding, and brunch all at the same place. There are also lovely bathrooms on site and it included transportation to the local hotels. Tables and beautiful lighting are also included. Michelle and MacKenzie make you feel like family! I adore them both! Michelle also did my flowers and I was blown away! Flowers were one detail that I just wasn't that excited about or interested in. Michelle did such an amazing job that looking back they were one of my favorite things about the wedding. What an incredible experience! I wish I could do it again!

ly. Michelle is able to create the 'just picked' look naturally and easily- something I am sure is not actually easy. Her floral arrangements were absolutely stunning and we are so pleased we chose her for our wedding day. Would highly recommend her, without a doubt.