Reception Tips

Your wedding day is one of the few days that will have a profound impact on the rest of your life. It can also be one of the most stressful days too. To help alleviate some of your stress here are some tips for your reception.

1.Immediately after the ceremony most couples have their formal pictures taken. It is important to allow adequate time for this, so that you don't start running behind before you arrive at your reception. The suggestion is to plan 3-4 minutes for each person in the bridal party, include parents and grandparents. For example, let say that you have a maid-of-honor, a best man, two bridesmaids, two groomsmen, a flower girl, four parents, two grandparents and yourselves, a total of fifteen people. Allow for 45 to 60 minutes for your formal pictures.

2.If you feel that you will be arriving at the reception more that 50 minutes after your guests arrive, consider letting your guests begin eating as they arrive. Guests have a tendency to become anxious if they are waiting longer than 45 minutes. Also if you arrive at the reception after your bridal party, have just yourselves announced into the reception because it may be difficult to round-up your attendants, once they have started to mingle.

3.Receiving lines can be very time consuming, speaking to 100 guests for just 15 seconds adds up to 25 minutes. If you must have a receiving line, have yourselves and possible your parents only form your receiving line.

4.If possible, do your first dance after your guests have eaten. This way your guests will be ready to fill the dance floor after your traditional dances. Speaking of traditional dances...brides, locate your father before your first dance, for a smooth transition, and remind your bridal party to be ready to dance with their partners when it's their turn.

5.Remember to place your wedding cake away from the traffic flow and out of direct sunlight. Cutting of your wedding cake is one of the highlights of the reception, have it announced for your guests to enjoy.

6.When it comes to deciding on your first dance, father/daughter dance etc. "test them" once, to make sure that your choices are at comfortable tempos. This will avoid having to stumble through your first dance.

7.Musical entertainment may be a critical part of the success of your reception. Typically, about 20% of your invited guests will be your close friends, leaving 80% of your guests older or younger relatives, co-workers, and friends of the families. A good host is considerate of all their guests, keep this in mind when making musical requests, this is a way of letting your guests know that you appreciate them coming.

8.The bride and groom are the center of attention, therefore you set the tone of the reception. When you dance the dance floor will be full, when you sit and socialize your guests will do the same.

9.Schedule your photographer and videographer to be on hand for all your special events. This will avoid having to rush through the cake cutting, bouquet toss, send off etc. because of time restraints. Make it clear in your contract how long you expect them to stay.

10.Hire highly experienced professionals. There is no second chance for your wedding day. As you begin to plan for this day, the scope of such an event begins to be understood. Everything has to fit into place, many people's efforts are brought together on this day to make your wedding day a success. Misfortunes such as poor photos, mismatched colors, lopsided cakes, ill-equipped helpers, uneven seams, no shows, and equipment breakdowns are much more likely to occur when friends and family are used.