Today we’d like to introduce you to Crystal Smith.
Hi Crystal, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Magnolia Cottage Venue of Bell Ridge Farm
Carthage has an event wedding venue for weddings and other events, called Magnolia Cottage Venue of Bell Ridge Farm. It can house 50 people inside and about 300 outside. Owner Crystal Smith-Ross has been an event planner on the side for over 20 years and owns Deep River Charm Events. She said it took some convincing, but a building on her husband’s family farm wasn’t being used, and she knew it would make a perfect event space.
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Crystal Smith-Ross and Dennis Ross
Crystal opted for a French cottage feel to help set it apart from other barn event spaces in the area.
“We’re very excited to have this and hope it helps us keep the farm as a farm. It’s so hard to keep large tracts of land together these days,” says Crystal.
For generations, the bell has been more than just a name — it’s a piece of our family’s story. A reminder of hard work, tradition, and the love that’s grown here on the farm for years. v
That same legacy is what inspired Magnolia Cottage Venue — a place built on family, heart, and meaningful beginnings🤍
You can rent it out or buy a full event-planning package where everything is set for you. To inquire about booking, shoot an email.
Want to get a peek inside?
Find it at 1480 Joel Road, Carthage.
https://www.magnoliacottageeventsandvenue.com/
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Getting people to know we are in Carthage, NC.
Every day we meet people say I don’t know this venue is Carthage NC
The other is not having the funds to do all we want to make the place even more special. Their so many things we want to do, and in time we hope we can. One is adding a restroom and a small catering kitchen onto the big open-air pavilion we have.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I have worked for Central Carolina Community College for 20-plus years and have helped plan many of the big events they have had. Ribbion cuttings, and when the college turns 50 years old, I helped plan the big all-day community celebration and the evening gala. I started planning a wedding for friends and family of friends, and that’s how Deep River Charm was created after losing my 1st husband. When I met my 2nd Husband, a farmer in Moore County, we decided to add the venue to the farm to help keep the farm. You can’t just farm crops anymore.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
My family has been my Biggest help and supporters. My 2 brothers own Marks Construction, which helped build and renovate the farm building to have the venue.
My 2 boys and parents have been a big help for years; they always step in when my husband needs a hand.
My Boys, Dylan and Dalton, and a lot of their friends grew up helping me on Fridays and Saturdays set up for events and take down. It comes naturally now, and they do a great job when I need an extra hand.
My mom has always been somebody that I look up to. She is very creative and always helps me come up with ways to do an event or a new idea I have. She has been my biggest Cheerleader in starting my event planning business and now building the venue.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.magnoliacottageeventsandvenue.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnoliacottagevenue/
