Metropolitan Weddings Podcast
Metropolitan Weddings Podcast
Meet The Wedding Pro - Tammy with The Veranda
Imagine stepping into a place where love stories are painted against the backdrop of stunning chandeliers and rustic industrial charm; that's The Veranda, as told by co-owner Tammy Lucas. With a personal touch Tammy guides us through the venue's remarkable transformation from a diesel shop to a dream wedding destination. Her narration is a tapestry of family, determination, and an unwavering belief in love's power to triumph over adversity – even when that means renovating a venue amid the pandemic.
Tammy unveils the practical magic behind hosting celebrations that range from the intimate to the grandiose. Her stories of a family heirloom truck adding nostalgia to the venue, and the heart behind the name 'The Veranda' infuse our episode with a sense of community and heritage. Tune in for an inside look at a venue where every detail is steeped in love and every event is an ode to the art of making memories.
Welcome to Metropolitan Weddings. I'm Meg, I'm Dawn, and we are here to educate couples with information from wedding professionals in the industry.
Speaker 2:Our goal is to make the wedding planning process as seamless as possible by providing you with insight from industry professionals.
Speaker 1:Okay, couples, let's get this party started. Okay, listeners, we're here today with Tammy. Tammy, would you like to introduce yourself and your business?
Speaker 3:Sure, first, thanks for giving us the opportunity to do this podcast, but my name is Tammy Lucas and my husband and I. His name is Glenn, but he's at work right now. His name is Glenn, but he's at work right now and owns the veranda which is between Fairgrove and Buffalo, about 20 minutes from Highway 65 and I-44 North.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and how did you come upon this property?
Speaker 3:How did you end up being a venue owner? Well, it was not my idea.
Speaker 1:It was 100% Glenn's idea.
Speaker 2:And I see he's not the one on the podcast.
Speaker 3:That means I can say whatever right, yeah, it is. He forfeits. He has, oh, I don't know.
Speaker 3:Prior to buying this, probably four or five years before, he kept saying we needed a. He wanted to do a wedding venue. About the time our kids were old enough and we're talking about getting married, you know, we were looking at venues and all these. So he thought that that would be a good thing and I kept putting him off because I taught kindergarten I only did with little kids, I didn't do brides and so he finally talked me into it and we bought it in January of 20, and then the world fell apart in March because, you know, smart people buy wedding venues or put in wedding venues when nobody can gather. Oh man, um, and then in 21 I retired from full-time teaching and I do part-time with parents as teachers now. So, um, and so we bought it and at that time it was a diesel shop. A what, uh-huh, a diesel shop it was. When he took me to look at it, um, there was an 18 wheeler sitting in the middle of where the reception area is. Oh my gosh, and I thought that he was nuts.
Speaker 1:I mean I? I think he's nuts and I've seen transformed now, so I know that you've made it work, but wow.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we gathered it. I mean, it was bare walls down the metal. We put all new wiring, new sheetrock. Wow, there was sheetrock.
Speaker 1:He really had a vision.
Speaker 3:He did have a vision. I at that point point was not sure. I, everybody, including our children, were like oh, mom and dad, what have you done? I was thinking the same thing a couple of times, especially because you couldn't get anything at that time. Yeah right, but tell us when windows could come and nobody could tell us when sheetrock or anything.
Speaker 1:So so how long did the process of transforming it from a diesel shop into the veranda? What was that timeline?
Speaker 3:we um. We signed the end of january of 20 and we had our first wedding October of 20th.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:That was pretty quick. Wow. So we had lots of family and friends. That helped yeah.
Speaker 4:So yeah, Well, the upside to doing that at that time is no one was working much either. A lot of people were at home, so you probably had lots of help.
Speaker 3:We had lots of help. We had lots of help and that was a very good plus side to that. Yeah, because we're lots of time off. I mean, I wasn't teaching school because the schools were closed, so there was lots of time off and we just kept going.
Speaker 4:Lemonade and lemons.
Speaker 3:And I said, what are we going to do? He's like we have no choice. We're going to put this together and I'm like, okay, Okay.
Speaker 1:I mean it is nice to be able to call your friends and be like. I know you're not working today, so come on over.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it was a big leap of faith. I'm like, oh my goodness, well, congratulations, I'm not the risk taker. Yeah, I hear you.
Speaker 1:Well, congratulations on the transformation. Now that I know that it used to be a diesel shop, it's even cooler that you guys did all that yourself. I didn't realize that. I just assumed you built a wedding venue.
Speaker 3:No, it was a diesel shop.
Speaker 1:So there's an outdoor. Okay, walk us through the venue, because inside there's a couple of different parts. There's an upstairs.
Speaker 4:I'll make this perfect. I haven't been there.
Speaker 1:I haven't seen it.
Speaker 4:Tell me about this place, and then everybody else can get the same picture.
Speaker 3:Right, we do have an indoor and an outdoor ceremony area. It's a lot of metal and wood Like. There's a six-foot metal chandelier that hangs as soon as you walk in the front door, the double door. There's an upstairs where lots of DJs will sit, because then they can look down over it, and that has big tables for the banister and all on that. There's an aluminum and copper bar over by the kitchen area that also has a window that opens up into a shipping container that has an outside bar so you can pass things through it In our, our VIP room. One of them has a curtain so the groom can walk through there without seeing the bride and go into the ceremony area. Yeah, on that on the side. So, and then our outdoor area, um has three steel arbors, the what. The main one is a 3d. It has a tall one and a short one, and then it has two shorter our metal arbors that stand on each side of it with some evergreen trees in the background I'm looking at the pictures right now.
Speaker 4:The arbors are pretty cool those are new this year yeah, I love the dimension, the dimension that it creates, how they're like stacked together right there.
Speaker 1:That's pretty cool yeah I like the okay, so it's. It's really nice because you've got indoor area, outdoor area, the views you're not far from town but definitely like rolling hills and trees and fields and you get a sense of just sort of that midwest beauty out there so if you're listening right now, go to the verandamodecom and you can kind of see what we're talking about too yeah and yeah, yeah, we set up just enough, just high enough, on a hill that, like pictures and all, you don't get any of the roadways Right, or like in the sunset, you just hit the top and with the sunset, and so you could do the ceremony indoors or outdoors.
Speaker 1:There's a reception space indoors, there's that pretty sizey outdoor like courtyard area. That's right in front of that shipping container bar, which is totally fun. I love it that you guys put that in Super cute.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we call that the mix and mingle, terrace it that you guys put that in super cute.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we call that the mix and mingle terrace um, out there, there's a fountain and a fire pit and a swing um, out there, we've also had weddings out there, just a small uh-huh. We've had weddings under the string lights out there instead of out back. There's a couple of places out back. There's a big tree that we've also had an outdoor wedding at instead of where the arbors are, so there's different locations for the outside wedding and then under the veranda there we've had cornhole.
Speaker 1:Obviously you've got to get your games on when you're after the wedding. You've got to celebrate with a few rounds of cornhole.
Speaker 2:Everyone loves cornhole. They really do, they really do Always.
Speaker 1:Dawn says that because she's good at it and she wants to trick you into playing.
Speaker 4:She's a sandbagger. She's like come on let's just play a little game of cornhole. Here's the thing she's like oh, let's play cornhole, this is fun. And then, all of a sudden, she's winning.
Speaker 2:That's not 100%.
Speaker 4:It is true, you're a sniper.
Speaker 2:We're usually even come on now.
Speaker 1:Tammy, in your household who's the cornhole king or queen? You're a sniper.
Speaker 3:We're usually even. Come on now, tammy, in your household, who's the cornhole king or queen? It's definitely not me, and Glenn is much better than I am.
Speaker 4:So, tammy, I have to ask how did teaching kindergartners prepare you for the wedding world?
Speaker 3:Because there's got to be correlations there.
Speaker 4:Well, I'm just dealing with them I know you're like I've never done weddings before because I did kindergarten. And then you do weddings and you're like I feel the same way exactly I still work on.
Speaker 3:I still work on a lesson plan and Lynn's always saying do you have to plan everything? I'm like, yes, yes, at 10 o'clock we're doing this.
Speaker 1:Yes, I love that about you.
Speaker 3:Sometimes it's just survival, sometimes it's just survival.
Speaker 1:I feel like just teaching, like teaching kindergartners to line up. That's lesson one in weddings. Just, can you control the crowd at all? Right, it just. It's a constant like, well, we're going over here, hello, we're going over here.
Speaker 4:Do you ever use a whistle?
Speaker 3:I have not at the venue. No, I have not at the venue?
Speaker 4:I have not. I've not at the venue. I have not at the venue.
Speaker 3:I have not.
Speaker 1:I have not at the veranda make a list of things that don't translate from kindergartners to weddings.
Speaker 3:Number one whistles a whistle would be a good idea. You know, sometimes it's still like like wrangling cats. Yes, maybe switch it to like a bell or something a little less. Sometimes it's still like wrangling cats, yes.
Speaker 1:Maybe switch it to like a bell or something a little less aggressive, yeah.
Speaker 4:We need to do an anonymous, unfiltered venue owner podcast. Oh, no when everyone just shares the rough and tough side.
Speaker 1:We're going to disguise everyone's voices so I mentioned.
Speaker 4:You said you make a plan and you said at like 10 am this happens. So is that something that you do with the couples that come there? Do you make a plan for the day for them?
Speaker 3:I don't um. I only make glenn a plan um let's support our couples and all um in different ways, but I don't make them a plan. I give them suggestions if they want it, but I don't make them a plan how. I give them suggestions if they want it, but I don't make them a plan.
Speaker 1:How many people can you guys have out there?
Speaker 3:We have tables and chairs for 200. We've had a few over 200, but for space-wise and depending on the time of year, especially if it's outside, it's very, very doable Inside if it's dead of winter. Of course, in Missouri it could be dead of winter and still be 80. But we have tables and chairs for $200. Okay, we also have an outside I don't know like a 1951 truck. Oh yeah, it's a dump truck. That's real popular and it actually has a story behind it. It was my husband's grandfather's and it used to be a hay truck and he cut it down and made it a dump truck so he could haul gravel in it.
Speaker 4:Hold on one moment Our silly dogs.
Speaker 3:Hey, I understand when I'm not doing parents and teachers or subbing or doing the veranda. I have five grandkids so I get it.
Speaker 1:It's kind of the same. Do you have any pets, Tammy?
Speaker 3:We do, we do, we do. We have two dogs, one's inside and one's outside.
Speaker 2:Two dogs sounds amazing. Yeah, we have six Way too much dog in this house, all in six indoors how ridiculous.
Speaker 3:Ridiculous. Most of my messes come from the grandkids, because I watch the three youngest three days a week. So they're nine months, 18 months and three oh wow. That's the age where you have to work. Yeah, yeah, when we go to the veranda they feel very familiar, comfortable and familiar up there, so they help me do tours. Sometimes they still do the show, but you know.
Speaker 2:Adorable.
Speaker 1:We do love raising kids in the wedding industry. Yeah, we have raised some kids, so I'm glad that you're starting a new generation. Yeah, but this, so this gave you the opportunity to do that. Right. You would still be daily kindergarten teacher and you wouldn't necessarily be, you know, have the schedule where you could watch them and teach them right of venue owning right. Yes, so that all worked out here. He knew what was going on, old glenn he did.
Speaker 3:He knew that I was. If I retired, I wasn't gonna just sit home and eat bonbons he's keeping you busy I think I excuse me. I think I'm busier now than I was when I worked full time.
Speaker 1:It sounds like it Okay, so I'm assuming that are there any nights of the week?
Speaker 3:they can't do a wedding there. No, what is the process like, do they? Yeah, we do weddings seven days a week, different prices, different packages. We have micro weddings and so we work with them on payments and we just try to have really good, open communication with them and be affordable um, do you guys do?
Speaker 1:like rehearsal dinners out there or um rehearsal yeah, they do.
Speaker 3:They can do a rehearsal um anytime the week of. Sometimes it works out, but it can be the day before their wedding, just depending on the week of what's booked and all. But they can do rehearsal and their dinner there all at the same time. So that is one option that they get. That way they don't have to go somewhere else, since they're already there. So how big is the property? It's almost five acres, okay.
Speaker 4:So there's plenty of green space for people to take photos as well. Yeah, that's cool. It's really pretty. I need to just make a trip out there.
Speaker 2:It is.
Speaker 1:It's really pretty. You can get your picture taken with the truck. What did he call his granddad? Is it grandpappy or like?
Speaker 3:He just called him.
Speaker 4:You know, I don't know His name was Jack Lucas. Everybody has a Grandpa.
Speaker 2:Jack, I know.
Speaker 4:I had a Grandpa Jack, don had a Grandpa Jack.
Speaker 2:Well, he was Papa.
Speaker 4:Jack, well, mine was too. Yeah, we had.
Speaker 3:You can get your Go ahead.
Speaker 1:Tammy.
Speaker 3:I think I don't really know. I've never asked that. I think he just called me. I don't know. You know, I've never asked that.
Speaker 1:I think he just called me, I don't know Well, Grandpa Jack's truck, then that's what we'll call it for now. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Grandpa Jack's, how do you know?
Speaker 4:Okay, so, I'm always curious where people come up with the names for their venues. So how did you come up with the veranda?
Speaker 3:Well, when we when it went from, because it did not have that wraparound veranda on it. So when we were looking for names, veranda actually means open porch, it's ground level and it's usually roofed. It can stretch along one side or more than one side, like a wraparound porch. And so when I was trying to come up with a name, I was Googling all kinds of, you know, different images and different terms, and so veranda came up when I put in that it had like a covered wraparound because it's on two sides of it, and so we just came up with the veranda that way.
Speaker 4:And so we just came up with the veranda that way. Nice, it sounds like. I know it's a common term with like a home structure in a building, but it sounds just super classy to me.
Speaker 1:I don't know why.
Speaker 4:Like we're getting married at the veranda.
Speaker 3:I kind of thought it did.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Better than the diesel shop, for sure, for sure, we're getting Better than the diesel shop For sure, for sure, when you get married.
Speaker 4:the diesel shop, the old diesel shop.
Speaker 1:There are other venues that like work in the old, like the old property name. I don't know if that would have worked as well for you guys. Right, yeah, the old diesel shop, yeah, grease and wheels.
Speaker 3:Yeah, most people think it was a diesel shop and I'm like, yeah, if I showed you pictures, if I showed you pictures, it has transformed.
Speaker 1:well, I mean there's a few people that would get into it, but not the mass amount I don't think Probably did good. On the name there, what style? Without looking at the pictures? What style are we painting the picture of in their mind?
Speaker 3:Most of the time it's more of an industrial because it does have a lot of metal and wood, um, but it's also a blank slate where we've had like really rustic, with leather table runners or you know um to some that are all glittered out. So it kind of Glitter. Cleaning up is wonderful.
Speaker 1:Don't talk bad about glitter.
Speaker 3:Hey, I like glitter Everyone hates it.
Speaker 2:It's the worst. I love it. It's the worst.
Speaker 1:Glitter's the best.
Speaker 3:It works to clean up, but I love how it looks.
Speaker 1:Yeah, sequins are better.
Speaker 3:They're a little easier to clean up. They usually are.
Speaker 1:Well. I didn't want to leave everyone with this Diesel vision, so we need to like.
Speaker 4:Glitter it up Glitter doesn't make it better. Wow.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:I think, people who like glitter.
Speaker 1:What about us?
Speaker 2:Adam, I just don't get it, that's all you got, it's like stuck on your face.
Speaker 1:It's like stuck everywhere and yeah, mental issues, yeah, home and there's like glitter might be like it's glitter, though it's not like it's maggots on my face. It's like little sparkly things Glitter.
Speaker 4:So when somebody gives me a card that has glitter on it and I open it up and I put the card down and I look at my hands and there's glitter on it. And then I go to wash my hands and there's still glitter on my hands. And I do it again and there's still glitter on my hands. It makes me want to throw up.
Speaker 1:Well, Adam has a birthday coming up.
Speaker 3:The kindergarten background. Yeah, glue and glitter everywhere.
Speaker 4:You're probably immune to glitter at this point from being a kindergarten teacher. True.
Speaker 3:It doesn't bother me, honestly, who's messierier? Kindergartners or weddings? Oh man, oh, wow.
Speaker 4:yeah that that too kind of depends on the glitter so, speaking of messy weddings, do you guys, do you guys, have a liquor license? Do you provide alcohol or do you allow alcohol?
Speaker 3:yeah, we do allow it. We don't have a liquor license um, so they have to either hire a licensed and insured bartending service um, we do offer that they can. The bride and groom can purchase um and bring it in, but they do have to carry a host liquor liability with that.
Speaker 4:Okay, good to know.
Speaker 1:Also, you mentioned a bride's room and a groom's room. Or was it a groom's room or was it a bride's room and a? There's a bride and groom. Tell us about those. She's like there's room. I said Tell us about those. She's like there's rooms.
Speaker 3:I said tell us about those. Okay, yeah, I'm like, pardon me, the bride's room has a whole wall of mirrors and white, so they have. I think there's 12 plug-ins, so there's plenty of plug-ins. Yes, that also has a door that can walk right into the ceremony area. The groom's room does not have all the plug-ins for the straighteners. They do have their. The bride's room has its own wine tool or wine refrigerator.
Speaker 3:The groom's room has a refrigerator room has its own wine tool or wine refrigerator. The groom's room has a refrigerator um. The groom's room also has an xbox um and a tv and dark and some games in there for them to to do while they're waiting patiently.
Speaker 1:Yes, nervous energy. Uh, occupy their time.
Speaker 1:Yes right while they're waiting while they're waiting for the 12 plug-in room to get ready, yeah, until it's showtime I mean you guys really have for for starting with a diesel shop in the middle of a pandemic. It sounds like you guys have really done a great job at turning this into a perfect spot for you know couples to come and just have a nice, peaceful, beautiful day Blank slate, but it's. It's a blank slate, but you set it up really well as far as like the areas and the vignettes of space that you know people can gather in, so it's a really good gathering space thank you.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we have. We tried to think of lots of different things and read and toured and so, yeah, there's always something that needs to be done and updated and added, and that that's just part of anything you do, so we are always doing more with that.
Speaker 1:Always.
Speaker 4:I'd say, by looking at the pictures, I would classify it as a blank slate with very functional design elements that are complementary to any style.
Speaker 1:There we go. I like it.
Speaker 4:That's what I think when I see it.
Speaker 1:Can we write that down for their ad in the magazine? There you go. I'm going to need a quote, yeah.
Speaker 3:Every time somebody comes in and adds their flair to it, I'm like I never thought of that. And it goes really well, and so.
Speaker 1:Can they do?
Speaker 3:fireworks out there, they can do fireworks.
Speaker 2:There's a bonus too? Yeah, because you can't do that everywhere. You cannot.
Speaker 3:We also I mean, we try to make it affordable and we have linens and things like that and planning sessions for them. But we also do a mock setup. They can schedule Anytime before their wedding To come in and bring whoever their photographer, whoever, and they get to do a mock setup and so they can move the tables how they want them and the lights will dim and brighten and so they know how, where they want everything. Not that any wedding is stress-free, but if they come in and kind of know how they want it set up and we set it up for them, where they just have to walk in and decorate, that mock setup helps with the stress a little bit. Very cool.
Speaker 4:So you said you do have linens, we do. Okay, do you have different colored linens, or what do they have to?
Speaker 3:choose from Black and white, black and white. Okay, so you do, you have different colored linens, or what do they have to choose from? Black and white, black and white Okay.
Speaker 4:We do black and white Very cool. Is that included with the fee or is that an additional charge?
Speaker 3:It's a it's a small additional fee.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Speaker 3:Just because it's a fee is all it is.
Speaker 4:Very cool.
Speaker 3:And then, like the day of, we don't want to be, I don't want to be, I don't want to be the teacher with the whistle hovering over them that day. But we, we give them their privacy, that they want, and then we check in and out and if they want us to stay, we, you know, you know, we stay, um, but we're just minutes away if we need to go back, um, but we check in and out with them and kind of base it on whatever the couple wants for that day. So we kind of give it a little bit of both, because I don't want them to feel like I'm, I don't want to feel like I'm the teacher.
Speaker 1:That makes sense. Yeah Well, I feel like we've kind of gotten a pretty good picture of what it's like at the Veranda. I want to come see it now.
Speaker 4:I need to go out and see it.
Speaker 2:It's a nice drive.
Speaker 4:Where are you guys located?
Speaker 3:You go straight down. I did. But you go straight down 65 North past Fairgrove, but about five miles before you get to Buffalo and it's right on the right or the east side of 65. So it's very easy to find.
Speaker 1:And everybody honk at Tammy when you drive by. That's it. Well, if they want to get a hold of you and come tour the property or ask you some more questions, how do they do that?
Speaker 3:They can go on our website and they can respond there, or they can call my number at 417-818-5153 or text at either one. They can get all the information they need. I'll be happy to talk to them. Our website has prices and photo galleries, which pictures are always important? It gives them that mental image.
Speaker 1:What is the website. It's the veranda mocom okay, the veranda mocom more pictures. Go look at the pictures. Yeah, thank you so much for spending the morning with us.
Speaker 3:Thank you for the opportunity.
Speaker 2:It was good talking to you, Tammy.
Speaker 4:Can't wait to see the veranda, the veranda, the veranda there we go the veranda. You need to have Glenn just standing in your booth if you're at the show or whenever you talk to people and just use an accent.
Speaker 3:There we go, tammy. I'll start telling that oh my gosh, just use an accent. There we go, tammy.
Speaker 4:I'll just start telling that, oh my gosh, would you?
Speaker 2:like to come and see the veranda.
Speaker 3:They'll hire you the veranda. Yeah, there we go, we'll just hire you to do it.
Speaker 1:But if Adam comes out to visit, will you get a whistle and some glitter.
Speaker 2:Oh no, who would know Just throw glitter at him as he's walking up. And some glitter, oh no, oh no. Yeah. Just throw glitter at him as he's walking up.
Speaker 1:Just do it, Just follow him around like brr. I'm sorry you can't go there, sir Brr, Move it along, sir.
Speaker 2:All right.
Speaker 3:I guess, we'll let you get back to your day of playing with grandchildren.
Speaker 2:Well, they've been very good. They have been so far Better than our dogs have been during this podcast, that's for sure.
Speaker 4:But would you rather have six dogs or six little children?
Speaker 3:I'll stick with the dogs. Right now you can't put the dogs in a kennel.
Speaker 2:We had to take them out of a kennel, because they were down there barking.
Speaker 3:So yeah, that didn't work.
Speaker 2:It's a little frowned upon if you put children in a kennel.
Speaker 1:All right, thanks, tammy. Thank, you have a great day, you too.
Speaker 2:Bye, bye-bye.
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