Decisions - Deciding on Your Reception Centerpieces

A mixture of both tall and low centerpieces

Your next decision will be centerpieces. After you decide colors, and types of flowers (or candles, feathers, whatever) you’re going to have to decide do you want tall centerpieces, low centerpieces or a mixture of both.

There are several things to consider before making this decision.

#1 is of course is budget. Tall centerpieces are normally more costly than low. They are larger and the vases are more expensive to rent.

#2 is ceiling height. If you reception area has really tall ceilings, all low centerpieces can end up feeling lost in the room.  The same is true if the ceiling is low.  If the ceiling is low and all the centerpieces are tall it will seem overwhelming to guests when they enter.

Remember low centerpieces have to be low enough that guests can see over them and tall centerpieces have to be tall enough that guests can see under them.


All Tall Centerpieces
Pic:  Donnie Brown Weddings



All Low Centerpieces



My personal favorite is a mixture of both, what's yours? 

Decisions - Should My Reception Tables be Set or Not?

Ok you’ve looked at pictures and you’ve decided on your tables, chairs, and linens. You’ve made the decision between seated dinner and buffet. Now is it time to decide on one more table related item. Do you want your tables set with your place settings (silver, china and crystal) or left bare except for the centerpiece?


Now if you have decided on a seated dinner the decision is made, your tables will be set. If you are having a buffet, action stations, or heavy hors d’oeuvres, this is a decision you will need to make. Many brides tell me they had no idea the table could be set for a buffet. Well I assure you it can, but keep in mind this can only be done if you are having seating (chair at a table) for each guest. The table should be set with everything but the dinner plates. Plates will be picked up and filled by the guests at the buffet.

Personally, I favor having the tables set. I do this for two reasons. One, I think it adds to the overall look of the room when your guests enter and two (and this is a biggie) it certainly adds to the comfort of your guests. I have yet to meet a guest that enjoys trying to fill a plate, balance a glass of tea, clutch their silverware and pick up a napkin. It is way too easy to spill something all over your party clothes.

So to help with this decision here are examples of the two different looks.

Guest tables without crystal and silverware added

Tables set with crystal and silverware

Which do you prefer?

Decisions – Table Linens at Your Wedding Reception

Your next decision is going to be table linens. Do you want to stick with the linens offered as part of the wedding package at your reception venue or do you want to rent linens of your choice?

Linens included with your package are usually either white or ivory. Most times the linens do not go to the floor but instead are lap length. In other words if you are sitting at the table the linens will reach just above your lap thus exposing the table legs. Also the napkins will normally be included with the package and will be either white or ivory.

If you want to upgrade your linens to either floor length or any array of colors and textures you will need to rent these linens. There are also beautiful overlays that can be added on top of the linens. Rental places in most towns carry an assortment of linens and they are also widely available on the internet. Besides the cost of rentals you should be aware that there are delivery fees, pickup fees and setup fees that go along with having these linens. While these linens do take a bite out of your budget, there is nothing like it for the wow factor at any reception.

Floor length linens



Same linens with overlay added



White linens included in reception package with overlay and chaircovers added


Elizabeth Taylor

Still From The Father of the Bride - 1950

I just had to take a moment to say goodbye to one of the most famous brides of all time, both in the movies and in real life.  You'll be missed and remembered often.

Decisions - What Chairs Do I Want at My Reception?

Today your decision is chairs, what chairs do you want at your wedding reception. I’ve had brides tell me on more than one occasion, “I never even thought about chairs before”. Well yes my lovely brides, chairs are a very big decision both esthetically and budget wise.

So what are the choices? Well there is always the standard ballroom chair that is probably included in your venue package.

There is the plastic rental chair, next to the “included in the package chair”, your cheapest rental alternative. Be warned even though they may say white on the description it is more of an ivory color.

Then we move up to the garden chair. Actually they are a much better choice than the plastic chair in every way except budget. They are not only better looking, but come in a choice of colors, white, natural, and black.  When these chairs are placed on the ground they do not sink or wobble.

Then we move up to the chiavari chairs. These beautiful chairs come in silver, black, white, natural and mahogany. While the most esthetically pleasing they are also the more expensive. Not only do you need to rent the chair, you must rent the cushion and pay to have the cushion tied in place.

Now if budget is no object then you can have the chairs known as ghost chairs. While their claim to fame is that they just disappear in a room making it all about the décor, they do not just disappear in your budget.

So which look says dream wedding to you?

Decisions - Choosing The Tables for Your Reception

Your next decision will be your tables. Yes, even with tables there are decisions to be made.

Do you want to go with the tables provided by your venue? Do you want to rent tables? Do you want round tables? Do you want 48 inch, 60 inch or 72 inch tables? Maybe you don’t want round tables at all. Maybe you like the look of square tables or rectangular tables. Maybe you want to live on the wild side and mix your tables. It is all up to you and your budget. What fits the picture you have in your head of your reception?




The 72" Round Table



Rectangular Tables




Rectangular Tables Mixed with Rounds

 





Rectangular Tables Placed Together to form a "Feasting Table" Among Round Tables





Decisions - Do I Want a Buffet or a Sit-Down Dinner for my Wedding Guests?

Your next decision is between a buffet meal or sit-down meal. Buffet means your guest will self serve themselves. Buffet meals usually include some action stations, such as carving station or mash potato bar.  Sit-down meal means that the food will be brought to your seated guests. Both ways are totally acceptable. Our Willrich Brides run pretty much 50/50 on the decision. Sit-down is definitely the more formal of the two but a lot of people prefer buffet because it allows the guest more choices.

As far as cost goes, you may read that sit-down is more expensive because of the need for serving staff, but I have found that the actual cost runs close to the same. The reason being that with sit-down the chef knows exactly how much food to prepare. With a buffet he needs more of everything because you never know if there is going to be a run on the fish or the chicken. So even with the need for serving staff for a sit-down the cost pretty much evens out.

Visually there is a difference, as you can see. The buffet table will be located in the room. For a buffet the guest will be up standing in line. For sit-down there is no buffet and the only people up moving around are the serving staff.

The decision is yours and really depends on the look and feel you are going for.

Decisions - Deciding on Your Reception Site

In part two of our Decisions series, we are going to look at reception site decisions. Do you want outdoor or indoor, church social hall or urban loft? What works for you and your groom?

Remember to keep in mind the season (no outdoor weddings in the south in the hot summer months), number of guests, the theme of your wedding and the budget. Also, for your best value compare not only the price of the venue but what is included. Do they include tables, chairs, linens, centerpieces and lighting? Sometimes the cheapest price is not your best value. What are the time limits? Do you get the venue for all day or just a few hours for the price? What is the parking like? Will there be enough parking available for your guests? Will they have to pay? Is the parking convenient to the site? Can you bring in your own vendors or must you use their vendors?

There are a lot of questions involved in picking a reception venue. Don’t make a hasty decision that you will regret later.

Decisions - Where to Have the Wedding Ceremony?

As a newly engaged couple there will be many decisions you are going to have to make. Some are hard, some are not. But I have found with nearly all our Willrich Bridal couples that seeing actual pictures of different choices is a definite help. I have put together a series of pictures of some of the major decisions you will have to make on your journey to the perfect wedding. I have decided to run this as a series in the blog entitled "Decisions".

Our first decision is a tough one. Where do you want to hold your ceremony? Now several things can affect this decision such as head count, budget, time of day, weather, and time of the year. All of these should be kept in mind when deciding on the type of ceremony you envision. Which one do you picture as your dream ceremony?

How To Make Wedding Guests Happy - Reception Space Size

When discussing the space size at your wedding reception there are two things to keep in mind. You need to make sure that your venue is not too small to handle your number of guests, nor does it need to be too big.

No one likes to be squeezed in to an area where they can’t move. If guests can not get to your food or your bar because too many people are in the way they are NOT going to be impressed. There should be enough space between tables to easily allow traffic flow to restrooms, bar, dance floor and food. Guests need at least a little space to allow them to mingle and move about.

Likewise, if your guests are scattered throughout an overwhelming space they are not going to feel comfortable. You want to avoid the appearance of a big empty room. Remember parties are always a bigger hit when the space is intimate and comfortable.

As a side note: When deciding on a dance floor size guests always prefer a somewhat crowded dance floor to a large open area. Make your dance floor smaller so dancers feel that they can blend into the crowd not be on display.

Is "First Reveal" Right For Your Wedding?

The bride and groom see each other for the first time as the minister looks on.

Photo by Jason Tench

A somewhat popular new trend with wedding couples and photography is the “First Reveal” or “First Look”. If you don’t know what this is, it is when the bride and groom see each other before the actual wedding ceremony. The meeting is usually staged beautifully for pictures. Most often only the groom, bride and photographer are in the room. The groom’s back is turned; the bride enters and calls his name. The groom turns and sees her for the first time. Done right it is an incredibly touching moment. The few times I’ve been privileged to see it, hankies were definitely needed. The photographer catches all the candid moments and then the couple is left alone to spend a little time together before the wedding party comes in for more pictures.

Now I can hear you saying, “But it’s back luck to see the bride before the ceremony”. Says who? I promise you the wedding gods are not going to rain bad luck down on you for sharing such a touching moment. This all started when marriages were arranged and the groom did not see the bride before because he might not like what he saw. After the marriage it was too late. Hopefully your groom has no plans to run. 

Photo by:  Jason Tench

Also, there are some very real advantages to doing this:

1) Your time for pictures together greatly increases. You have the time for all those great magazine styled shots that you do not have time to get between the ceremony and reception.

2) In every case where we have done this, both the bride and groom's nerves were gone after seeing each other and they were better able to enjoy their pictures and ceremony.

3) Your hair and makeup will be freshly done for all your pictures and can easily be retouched before walking down the aisle.

4) Many churches do not allow the photographer access to the front of the church during the ceremony. So it is not easy to catch the moments of the first look. If done before the ceremony the photographer has no problem having access to the perfect shooting spot.

If you are worried about not having that rush of emotion as you and the groom see each other later at the ceremony, don’t be. All my brides have said that the feeling was still there. It is something about being in front of all your family and friends, hearing the music and seeing the love on each others faces that still makes your heart leap and knees weak.

Photo by: Jason Tench

Nothing Says a Party Like a Kazoo Band - Another Idea for Your Wedding Send Off



Photo: Charleston Weddings Magazine



One of the frequent questions I get from brides is "What do I do for the big send off at the end of the reception?" Well there is always the tried and true bubbles, petals, sparklers (not a favorite of mine), biodegradable confetti and ribbon wands.  But here's a new one I saw in Charleston Weddings Magazine that I thought was really cute.  What about personalized kazoo's in your wedding colors?  Nothing says a party like a kazoo band of your guests playing for you big exit.  How cute!

This Just Says It All

How To Make Your Wedding Guests Happy - Cocktail Hour



Veggie and Cheese Display at Cocktail Hour

 Next in our continuing series on what will make your wedding guests happy we are going to talk about the cocktail hour or pre reception hour. We’ve talked before about whether or not you need to have a cocktail hour. You can find that discussion here. I am firmly in the camp that you do need to have one. That being said there are a couple of things you as the bride can do to make sure that your guests enjoy your cocktail hour.

First make sure that your cocktail hour never runs longer than one hour and should in fact be no longer than 30 to 45 minutes. I can hear you asking, “Well I need that time to get pictures after the wedding. I want my photographer to get great pictures.” Yes, you do need some time after the wedding and 30 to 45 minutes is plenty. I have worked with lots of great photographers and they have all finished in that amount of time, unless the bride and groom have decided that they want pictures of every living relative that is attending the wedding. After the wedding is not the time for these pictures. Also, I understand that you want romantic location pictures of you and the groom. But after the wedding is not the time to do these. These pictures need to be done either before the wedding (yes, you can see each other without the wedding gods casting evil upon you) or have an aftershoot the next day before leaving on your honeymoon or when you return . Do not make your guests wait forever on you to get to the reception. Is all you want your guest to remember of your wedding that they had to wait FOREVER for you to show up? I don’t think so.

Next be sure you have food at the cocktail hour. At the least, you should have a cheese and veggie tray. Hot hors d’oeuvres are even better. In the south we don’t over do our cocktail hours, in the north cocktail hours are much more elaborate. Also, you want to offer something to drink, whether it a bar, lemonade or water with fruit garnishes make sure the guests can get something to drink. Don’t just offer fruit punch, so many people do not like fruit punch. Have at least two different choices.

Yesterday, we talked about the need for chairs for each guest at the reception. During the cocktail hour it is not chairs that you need, it is tables, preferably tall cocktail tables. Guests need a place to put their plates and drinks. You don’t have to offer enough for every person to have a spot since people do mingle and walk around at the cocktail hour, but you do need at least a few tables. A couple of chairs or sofas are always good for the older guests to rest on.

The cocktail or pre reception time is the lead in to your reception.  It needs the same amount of loving attention to detail as your beautiful reception.  Don't let it fall short.

Making Your Wedding Guests Happy - Letting Them Know How to Dress

Flipflops provide for wedding guests comfort

In our quest to figure out just what makes a wedding guest happy, I thought today we would discuss letting your guest know how to properly dress for your event. When planning your event, especially an outdoor event, think it through from your guest’s point of view. Most wedding guests come to an event dressed with a formal or semi formal event in mind. (Ok, yes I have seen some jeans, shorts and plaid shirts, but we’re going to ignore those.)

Nice dresses, high heels, light wraps are the standard uniform. If this attire won’t work for your guests make sure they know well ahead of time. For example if it’s a beach or lakeside wedding, high heels are going to be a problem. If it’s on a deck area, again high heels could be a problem.

Is there a long walk from the parking lot? Is the walk paved or unpaved. Guests should be made aware. The last thing you want is grandma teetering along in high heels through a pasture.

Is it outdoors in the open? Will it be hot? Will it be cold? Nothing is worse than guests that are freezing or burning up. A sweating guest is not a happy guest.

Now I can hear you asking, how do I let my guests know? Guest attire can be noted at the bottom of your invitation or on a separate reception card. You can always state something along the lines, “the service will be held on the beach, please wear appropriate shoes.” Another great way is by word of mouth. Have your bridesmaids, mother, grandmother spread the word. If you have a wedding website make sure it states that the wedding will be held outdoors on the beach.

You can always offer flipflops for guests to change into for a beach ceremony or wraps if it is going to be chilly. Fans are a good choice if the weather is going to be warm. Don’t have it outside at all if the weather is going to be really hot.