Nicole and Jared had actually struggled to find a wedding venue that felt like them. They toured and searched, but nothing was quite clicking until Nicole found Avalon. She booked it basically immediately, and after photographing their wedding here, I completely understand why.

Nicole is an avid reader, so getting married inside a historic library already felt incredibly fitting. Add in the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, soaring columns, marble, warm moody lighting, staircases, and all of the architectural details throughout the building, and it felt like this venue was made for them.

They also love the look of film, which made Avalon even more fun to photograph. We shot a LOT of film throughout their wedding day, leaning into the warmth, grain, movement, and slightly imperfect feeling that works so beautifully inside a space with this much history.

If you’re considering an Avalon wedding venue in St. Paul, keep on reading!

A New St. Paul Wedding Venue Inside a Historic Library

Avalon may be a new wedding venue, but the building itself is anything but new.

The venue is located inside the former James J. Hill Reference Library in downtown St. Paul, a Renaissance Revival building completed in 1916. The original library was designed by architect Electus D. Litchfield and includes Tennessee marble, stone columns, and its incredible three-story reading room. The building was acquired for redevelopment in 2021, with renovations beginning in 2025 to transform it into the event venue that is now Avalon.

And I LOVE that they didn’t try to turn it into something completely modern. The history is the point.

You still have the towering shelves packed with books, dramatic columns, detailed ceilings, warm library lighting, staircases, balconies, and rooms that feel like they’ve already lived a hundred different lives before your wedding ever happens there. It has personality without needing to be completely transformed with decor. Which, as a photographer, is one of my favorite qualities in a venue.

Why Nicole and Jared Chose Avalon

Nicole and Jared’s story is already pretty adorable because she’s an engineer, he works in construction, and they met on a job site. So maybe it makes perfect sense that they ended up getting married somewhere with architecture this good. 😂

But Avalon really clicked for Nicole because of her love of books. After having a hard time finding a venue they both loved, she came across Avalon and knew. It had that slightly unexpected quality they had been looking for, where the venue itself felt interesting and personal rather than simply being a blank event space.

Nicole and Jared are also genuinely two of the nicest people I have ever met. They were down for absolutely anything, trusted me completely, and most importantly, actually LIVED in their wedding day. Nothing felt overly precious or controlled.

They laughed. They wandered around the library with me. They ate cake sitting on the floor between bookshelves. They let themselves experience what was happening instead of worrying about whether every second looked perfect. Those are always my favorite weddings to photograph.

Getting Ready at Avalon

One thing I really appreciate about Avalon is that the venue includes private furnished dressing rooms, so you can keep more of the wedding day happening in one place. And from a photography perspective, the interiors give you something completely different from the typical bright white getting-ready suite.

There’s dark wood, old architectural detailing, soft directional light, and so much texture. For couples who love documentary wedding photography or want images that feel a little moodier and more editorial, there is SO much to work with here.

The Reading Room at Avalon

The Reading Room is the showstopper. There really isn’t another way to describe it.

It’s more than 5,800 square feet, with massive columns, multiple levels of bookshelves, balconies, and that unbelievable sense of scale when you first walk in. Avalon currently lists the Reading Room for up to 225 guests for a seated reception, around 150 for a ceremony followed by a seated reception, or approximately 275 for a cocktail-style reception.

Nicole and Jared held their ceremony here. And this is where I think the venue becomes especially cool for a wedding. The architecture surrounds everyone, while the bookshelves and warm lighting give the entire ceremony this intimate feeling even though the room itself is enormous.

It somehow feels grand and cozy at the same time.

An Avalon Wedding Ceremony

The ceremony setup can be incredibly simple here and still look intentional. For Nicole and Jared’s wedding, the warm fall color palette worked beautifully against the darker shelves and stone. Candles and deeper floral tones felt completely at home in the room without competing with what was already there.

Avalon allows couples to bring in florals, signage, lighting, and properly enclosed candles, so there is still plenty of room to make the space feel like your wedding. But honestly, this is one of those venues where I would lean into what already exists rather than trying to cover it up.

Wedding Photos Around Downtown St. Paul

Another huge advantage of getting married at Avalon is its location.

You’re right in downtown St. Paul overlooking Rice Park, with beautiful historic architecture surrounding the venue and the Mississippi River nearby. That means we can step outside for wedding portraits and get an entirely different look without losing a huge chunk of the timeline to travel.

The exterior architecture around Avalon feels classic and very St. Paul, especially with the stone steps and historic buildings around Rice Park. Then you walk back inside, and suddenly we’re surrounded by bookshelves and warm, moody light again. That variety is SO good for a wedding gallery.

Why Avalon Is Basically Made for Film Wedding Photography

Nicole and Jared specifically love film, so we incorporated it heavily throughout their day. And if there was ever a venue that deserved to be photographed on film, it might be this one.

The warmer tones, candlelight, rich greens and reds, bookshelves, dark corners, marble, and old architectural details all translate beautifully. Film also keeps the venue from feeling too polished. There is grain, movement, and also occasional light leaks and unexpected little imperfections. It feels nostalgic.

I still photograph digital alongside film so you’re getting the reliability and versatility of both, but Nicole and Jared’s wedding is such a good example of why I love weaving film into a wedding gallery!

An Avalon Wedding Reception

Then the Reading Room transforms again. Long after the ceremony is finished, the same towering bookshelves and columns become the background for dinner, speeches, cake, and dancing.

Avalon includes 32 round banquet tables, ten eight-foot banquet tables, 15 cocktail tables, 250 banquet chairs, and setup and strike of its in-house furniture. There is also a catering staging kitchen and dedicated venue management and staffing.

Nicole and Jared leaned into a darker reception aesthetic with black linens, candlelight, rich florals, and warmer fall colors. Inside a library? YES.

The Lounge and Other Spaces at Avalon

The Reading Room gets most of the attention for obvious reasons, but there is additional event space within Avalon too. The venue lists a 1,700+ square-foot Lower Lobby, while its Lounge can host around 100 guests for a cocktail-style reception.

Having multiple spaces gives you options for different portions of the day, and it also means your guests can move through the building and actually experience it.

What’s Included With an Avalon Wedding?

If you’re seriously considering Avalon as your wedding venue, here are some of the practical things currently included or available through the venue:

• More than 5,800 square feet of Reading Room event space
• More than 1,700 square feet in the Lower Lobby
• Private furnished dressing rooms
• A catering staging kitchen
• Dedicated venue management and staffing
• In-house round, banquet, and cocktail tables
• 250 banquet chairs
• Setup and breakdown of Avalon’s in-house furniture

Avalon works with catering partners, but outside caterers can also be approved for an additional fee if they meet the venue’s licensing, insurance, and service requirements. At the moment, beverage service needs to be provided through the caterer or another licensed and insured beverage provider because Avalon does not currently hold its own liquor license.

Of course, venue policies can change, so I’d always confirm the current details directly with Avalon while planning.

Parking for an Avalon Wedding

Because Avalon is a downtown St. Paul wedding venue, it does not have its own dedicated parking facility.

The venue currently recommends several nearby ramps, including Science Museum, RiverCentre, Kellogg, Lawson, and Victory, and couples can also choose to arrange valet service.

This is one of those details I’d include clearly on your wedding website so guests know exactly where you want them to park before they arrive.

Can You Bring Your Dog to Avalon?

YES, fellow dog people.

Avalon currently allows well-behaved dogs to participate in wedding ceremonies and portraits as long as they have a dedicated handler supervising them.

Planning an Avalon Wedding in St. Paul?

After photographing Nicole and Jared here, I would go back to Avalon in a HEARTBEAT.

There is so much to photograph that I genuinely feel like I could photograph ten weddings here and come away with something different every time. Give me the stacks of books. Give me candlelight and floor-length dresses and film. Give me couples sneaking away upstairs for five minutes while their guests are finishing dinner. Give me wedding cake on the floor of a library.

I’m in.

If you’re planning an Avalon wedding in St. Paul and you want wedding photography that balances the big beautiful portraits with all of the emotional, hilarious, blink-and-you-miss-it moments happening in between, I would LOVE to hear what you’re planning.

Reach out here, and let’s make your wedding story unforgettable!

Vendor Spotlight:

Venue: Avalon Saint Paul

Photography: Me, Amelia Jo Photo

Assistant Photographer: Precious Film Co.

Wedding Day Coordinator & Planner: Better Than Bliss

Florist: Stems and Vines Floral

Catering: Hightop Hospitality

Drapery: We’ve Got It Covered

HMUA: Lady Vamp Artistry

DJ: Transmission Music