My husband and I had a “mini/micro-wedding” at USSB December 30th, 2023. After being together for almost 7 years and 2 years engaged, we decided to move forward and elope! We spontaneously made the decision about 3 weeks before the date we chose to do it on. After so much searching and favor from the Lord, we fell upon USSB and fell in love with the sanctuary space. It was absolutely beautiful and perfect for what we were looking for. We had a small, intimate ceremony with our immediate family and a couple friends followed by a dinner at a local restaurant.


THE SPACE:
The indoor chapel is stunning. We are so thankful to have our ceremony and forever photos in a beautiful space like this one.The arch detailing of the architecture and the large stained glass window made our ceremony photos look like a dream. It was just the perfect space for an intimate ceremony. Our family sat in the first two rows of seats. We decided not to mic up or use the sound equipment the church provides, but our guests could hear everything and it was nice to have everyone close to us. The sanctuary also has a beautiful grand piano so we hired a close friend who is a professional pianist to play before & during the ceremony. That was a beautiful touch.

We were also provided a space for myself (the bride) to get ready in. With it all being short notice, we did not arrange for a rehearsal or a tour of the property before the day-off. I was not able to get an early hotel check in to get ready in SB before the wedding, so it was really useful to have somewhere to change and touch up hair & makeup before walking down the isle. The exterior of the church was absolutely beautiful for photos after the ceremony.

THE PROCESS:
Incredible! We worked with Joanie who is just wonderful. She worked very hard to flip the space for us since it was so close to the holidays, AND she did it on short notice! Joanie made our dream come true. She was kind, excited with us, and so generous with her time. Joanie always got back to me very quickly even though we were communicating in between the holidays.

POST-WEDDING REGRETS:
The only thing I wish I could have had the opportunity to do would be to have a large wedding at the USSB! The property is just stunning and truly makes the perfect wedding venue inside and out. I’ve said it a million times already, but the sanctuary was the perfect space for an intimate, romantic ceremony. I cannot have pictured having our “mini/micro-wedding” anywhere else.

I don’t have all of my photos yet, but I will attach the ones I do have!
So-Cal Photographer Instagram: @leenanesh

We are so glad we chose to have our wedding and reception at the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara. We wanted an indoor ceremony venue that embodied the classic Santa Barbara central coast Mission style, but we very much did NOT want a church. USSB was perfect for us because although it has church-ish vibes (and has a PIPE ORGAN, which you're darn right we utilized), there is zero religious iconography inside; nary a crucifix in sight. For us, this was huge.

The staff was always professional, helpful, and quick to respond. They were very flexible around where we placed our catering and even allowed us to block some of their loading zone spaces in order to accommodate a last-minute catering change where instead of being under a tent, our caterers worked out of their food truck to better be able to quickly serve our volume of guests. (Note that we did have to coordinate this with the city as well as USSB.)

We loved that we were able to buy & bring our own alcohol instead of being locked in to purchasing from the venue like so many other locations in SB. And, for all this AND MORE (don't get me started on the convenience of having tables and chairs available to be rented from the venue -- and set up by them too!), USSB was one of the most affordable venues we considered. We have zero regrets in choosing USSB for our wedding & reception and recommend them wholeheartedly to any other couples considering a wedding in Santa Barbara.

USSB was the perfect place for our ceremony. Very few restrictions on timing, etc and Joanie and her husband were both very accommodating. Guests commented on the organ and the space itself looks stunning in pictures — like a cathedral! A gorgeous church.