A Romantic Harding Waterfront Estate Wedding

Harding Waterfront Estate has flown a bit under the radar until the last few years when it’s making a name for itself as a great Toronto wedding venue. It’s one of only a few wedding venues with tent reception options on site which makes it an incredibly unique option.

It’s located a short drive from Toronto right on the Mississauga - Oakville border. It features a gorgeous 50 ft x 70 ft glass pavilion (3500 sq. ft) which can accommodate up to 240 guests for a seated wedding reception and a standing capacity of 500. The vaulted ceilings are a soaring 18’ high, draped in sheer fabric and adorned with 6 dimmable crystal chandeliers. Air conditioning and heating are available seasonally which is rare to find in these types of event spaces.

The grounds are immaculate with lush gardens all around. The outdoor ceremony space overlooks Joshua’s Creek and Lake Ontario is visible from the rear terrace of the estate’s main building, Bell-Gairdner House.

The flexibility within the rental period of the wedding day also lends itself well to getting ready on-site and photos on the property.

Have a scroll through the beautiful photos captured by Cleland Photographs. Florals were designed by Fable Floral Design, stationery by All That’s Lovely and linens, chairs and tabletop pieces by Simply Beautiful Decor.

A Colorful and Intimate Same-Sex Gardiner Museum Wedding, a Downtown Toronto Wedding Venue

Mitchell and Scott had been dreaming of a Gardiner Museum wedding when they reached out for wedding planning help in the fall of 2022, yet they were still open to exploring other venues just to make sure their decision was the right one. I sure am glad we made it back to hosting their wedding at Gardiner Museum because it truly is one of my favourite downtown Toronto wedding venues.

From there, we got to dive further into their wedding colour palette and we had so much fun! This was their second must-have - a colour palette that was broad and colourful, fun but classic, without being too literal with the Pride Rainbow. We leaned into green as our lead colour since it felt masculine but inviting. It also allowed us to use the fun, modern, pistachio coloured dining chairs the venue had on hand. The florals allowed us to expand the palette to include purples, blues, pinks and white sparingly just as a backdrop to let the other pieces pop.

The third must-have item on the list was to incorporate their dog, Chester, not only in their ceremony, but also throughout their wedding day stationery. They actually found me on Instagram from a post I had shared of Emilie and Leo’s wedding, where we featured their beautiful doggo, Maple, right through from their wedding invitations to their sweets table cookies! All That’s Lovely, a local Hamilton wedding invitation designer, embraced their vision and created a suite that felt elegant but fun using colour blocking as an economical design element to increase the overall richness using Racing Stripe Green invitation paper with white ink, a Pistachio envelope and a Powder Green details card.

Fable Floral Design, an incredible Toronto wedding florist, was given creative liberty to take our ideas and bring them to life. We dreamed up a unique wedding ceremony floral design using florals and candles on pedestals varying in height. Once the ceremony was complete, this piece was transitioned into a unique seating chart idea. While some florals were transitioned to guest centerpieces, others remained in place, simply replaced with four seating chart signs.

Having the opportunity to work with Daniel et Daniel, easily the best Toronto wedding caterer was a real treat. They handled all venue communication and food and beverage. Their food was incredible and we preset the first course of a watermelon salad which only added to the guest experience as guests entered the Gardiner Museum’s Terrace Room that was transitioned from wedding ceremony to wedding reception.

The full team who brought this downtown Toronto Gardiner Museum wedding venue to life includes Christine Lim Photography, Fable Floral Design, Daniel et Daniel, Element Events, All You Need is Love Weddings, All That’s Lovely Paper Co., ES Bridal, Castle and Cole, Evolved Entertainment and The Food Dudes.