The Ruby Street: A Unique Arts & Crafts Venue for Unique Events

This event venue, ideal for weddings and receptions, bears a history from another era. It has that thing that party planners look for: memorable details.

More than a century ago the Arts & Crafts movement traveled from its birthplace in Great Britain to find a distinctively American expression in the Arroyo Seco area of Los Angeles. The architectural style is evident in the legions of Craftsman homes in NELA (Northeast Los Angeles) towns that include Highland Park, Eagle Rock, and South Pasadena.

A few non-residential structures also have the distinctive features of Arts & Crafts: deep eaves with exposed rafters, low-pitched roofs, and decorative knee braces. An excellent example of that is The Ruby Street, an event space in Highland Park that once was a church. The people who converted it to a place for parties clearly had decked out guests, deejays, wedding caterers, and al fresco cocktail events in mind.

This can be a place for intimate gatherings, but with 4,000 square feet it accommodates up to 200 guests for sit-down dinners. Inside a sound system and projector, private bridal suite, and custom wood tables and chairs are complemented with one-of-a-kind arrangements of chairs, sofas, tables, and wall art that make it a welcome departure from hotel and other banquet hall reception mills. This is a place where Los Angeles wedding caterers are inspired to match the menu to the venue.

Arts & Crafts-style homes in the Los Angeles area very often placed a premium on gardens. Outside of The Ruby Street, in the back, is a lawn and plaza that can be used for the ceremony, cocktail hour, or the dinner itself. Ask any wedding catering director: Guests are just naturally happy to be outside when weather allows, but the option of the indoor space is essential. Rain might be good luck for the couple but not so much for people wearing their wedding day best outfits - in Los Angeles as much as anywhere else.

A distinctive stained glass window from the building’s ecclesiastical past remains a commanding feature of the building. This is ideal for wedding photos, shot from either the inside or out, but that doesn’t mean The Ruby Street can’t be used for corporate events, receptions, exhibitions, and other private events. The kitchen is outfitted for any kind of foodservice, and event planners are invited to bring in whichevercorporate caterers in Los Angeles that they choose.

The primary ethos of the Arts & Crafts movement was an emphasis on the hand-made, non-industrial features of homes and, in this case, a church. For mothers-of-the-bride who do their Martha Stewart best to craft a gift for guests, the theme can be applied to their 21st century reception.

The Ruby Street is a one-of-a-kind location that honors an historic architectural style while accommodating the needs and expectations of modern bridal couples and other event planners. It’s also affordable, with rates that vary according to seasons. As guests arrive and depart an event at The Ruby Street, they’ll know they were able to enjoy a solidly built structure that has endured the tests of time - fitting for people who are just beginning their own lives together.