The Wooly — Attraction in Gainesville

We held our wedding reception at The Wooly on July 6, and it was absolutely the perfect venue. Though we considered several venues, The Wooly worked out so well, and better than we could have expected. The reasons why, in list form: -Bailey, the Events Director at The Wooly, is incredible to work with. During our first exploratory meeting, she was super informative and helpful – her preferred vendors list was probably the most valuable piece of paper we’ve ever received. From her, we found our wedding planners (Mercer & Smith, also very highly recommended) and reconnected with an old friend to be our DJ (DJ Cameron, the best in town). Throughout the entire process (6 months, start to finish), she guided us through it and answered every inane question we had. Her day-of coordination was flawless. By the end of everything, she felt like another valued guest at our wedding. -The actual event space is just a cool place to be and works well for a high-energy wedding reception. The last thing we wanted was a boring, generic, stuffy ballroom. Instead, The Wooly has a beautiful bar that encourages people to get up, move around, and talk to one another. We were able to fit all of the dining tables in the area in front of the stage and have our dance floor to the left of the entrance. We had about 120 guests, and while everyone was seated, space was a little tight. While this was one of our concerns before the reception, it actually ended up working well as people were talking between tables – there was just a lot of energy in the place. Additionally, the on-site photobooth ended up being a focal part of the reception, as we had our guests paste their photos into a guest book. Not having to hire an outside company to supply the photobooth was so convenient. -The location is also excellent. Being right in the heart of downtown, we were happy our out-of-towner guests could see a part of Gainesville that we love so much. The sights around the venue make great backdrops for wedding photos – the murals, Hippodrome, etc. Because our party wrapped up around 8:30, it was easy for our guests to hop over to another bar to keep their nights going. -Food. Having the food catered from The Top was awesome – really high quality for less than it would have cost from the other places we had considered. The beer and wine were excellent – lots of local Gainesville beers on tap, which we were happy that our guests could try. For the cake, we ended up going with an assortment of cupcakes in different flavors. They were so good! Our only regret is that we couldn’t eat all the leftover cupcakes before they went bad. -The price couldn’t be beat. At first, we weren’t sure if we wanted to get married in Gainesville or in another city. We are very glad we decided to stay in Gainesville for our wedding. Availability in the summer was excellent, and the prices were so (relatively) reasonable. The Wooly ended up being cheaper than the other places we looked, and it provided so much more than the other places could.

Simply put, we had a great wedding reception, and The Wooly was an...

Review for: The Wooly/The Top/Top Secret Events/ Bailey Bruce

Where to begin? We had what is currently being called by all, “The BEST wedding and the BEST reception EVER!” First off, the team that helped us was incredible. From the moment we met Bailey at the Wooly, she helped us solidify our vision. She was extremely helpful with every question/concern we had. She really listened and understood who we were right away. Bailey introduced us to our wedding planner and her team (Calla with Mercer & Smith, who are BEYOND the best, BTW), who work with The Wooly for day of planning, so we chose to hire Calla and Mercer & Smith for the entire wedding, including the offsite portions. We chose The Wooly for the vibe, firstly. We were so taken by the venue, with its unique touches and its awesome history. We could see how the space could be either as modern as a person wanted, or as retro. We loved this place, and began to highlight our very loose vision to Bailey. We knew we wanted a full reception with a live band, so we rented the whole space (including the bonus room). They were able to make a plan to utilize the entire space to accommodate both a cocktail lounge, a dinner party and flip it for live music and dancing. We had a live big band playing on the stage. It was SO COOL! It was nice that the Wooly team were able and willing to work with our vision, the band, and the house production people and just make it happen! That to me, means this is an INCREDIBLE group of people, with a venue that offers EVERYTHING! Even a small closet for me to change into my second dress (because my wedding dress was going to be WAY too much to try to dance in)! The in-house catering from The Top was a huge success. In summation: you have a visionary in Bailey, who gets along and helps coordinate with the other vendors right away, you have this gorgeous venue, you have food that really is “The Top,” and you have all the other people involved in Bailey’s team that truly are INCREDIBLE. And they were! From thoughtful touches to fantastic planning, this team and venue is the way to go. If it weren’t for Bailey, we wouldn’t have had the absolutely perfect wedding that we were able to have. I can’t wait to do our next party with them! Just need to find a reason…… photos are previews by ASHLEY...

When my husband and I got engaged, we absolutely knew we wanted our wedding reception at The Wooly. We both went to school in Gainesville and had so many great memories at The Wooly and The Top. It made sense to have such a memorable night there, and it exceeded our expectations.

Of course the food was AMAZING, because The Top catered. Wedding food normally is bleh, but not here!!!

The venue itself is decorated and eclectic, so we didn't need to add much. Bailey was an angel to work with and I was truly able to enjoy the night because I felt comfortable with the organization and professionalism of the staff. She went above and beyond every step of the way.

All of the guests kept saying how they loved the energy and vibes of the venue. It can be hard to create an atmosphere that is enjoyable for all types of people, different ages and different preferences. The Wooly was able to please everyone!

The planning experience was easy and fun (seriously!). They provide so many different options and Bailey will work with you to help your vision come to life.

I still get such a big smile on my face thinking of this magical place. I...