Reception Fun - What are you doing?

[Kari]

What kind of things are you doing at your reception? Tosses? Dances? Anything unique?

Share ideas/stories with us!!

[StaceyG]

the most unique thing we did at our wedding was a balloon drop what was supposed to be during our first dance but there was a malfunction and it happened right after but still great. heres a pic

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a168/smusero/WEDDING%20PICS/balloonwait.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a168/smusero/WEDDING%20PICS/balloondrop.jpg

[~Sara~]

We're not doing anything terribly unique...we're having all the traditional stuff...garter, bouquet toss, all the dances. But we are having the DJ call our parents onto the floor and dedicating a song to them (Long and Winding Road by the Beatles...my dad's favorite). My parents are celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary this year and Jim's will be celebrating their 38th so we wanted to do something special for them :) (Oh and it's surprise to them :))

[Carrie429]

We did the traditional tosses and dances (except for the BP dance).. the 2 "unique" things we did that aren't really unique on the boards but hadn't been seen by our guests were the children's favor bags with the coloring books I drew and the candy buffet - both were a huge hit! People are still going on about the candy lol.

[belle67]

We aren't doing any tosses and we are having just our first dance followed by a family and WP dance (with their SOs).
To get us to kiss, they have to answer 3 trivia questions about that will be on each table.
We are giving away the flower and candle centrepieces. First quick game is hot potato, the other will be a special tag taped under one chair per table. That person will also win.

[Marisa]

We're giving sparklers as the favors for use when we depart.

Other than that, we're having the Bermuda Regiment Band and the Bermuda Islands Pipe Band perform, my highland dancers will dance, my bellydancers will probably do something and my FH and I have a waltz, fox trot, bossa nova and theatrical dance that we may do.

[Krissy]

The one unique thing we did was....

After we got all into the dancing the DJ called DH to the dancefloor. We had him sit in a chair and my BMs, best friend and I all danced around him and sang "Let's hear it for the boy" OMG it was so fun. People were yelling and whistling. It was hysterical.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y97/KrissyFisher02/Our%20wedding/IMG_0367.jpg

[Emily]

we didn't do any of the traditional stuff...but we had a casino theme...so we had a craps table, a blackjack table and a roulette table.

[KathyandJer]

Great ideas - love the "Lets Hear It For The Boy" dance :lol:... and the trivia to make you kiss :)

Only thing sort of different that we're doing is instead of the bouquet toss, we're going to give ours away to the couple who has been married the longest :) Got the idea from someone else around here and just loved it!

[Noelle]

I was at a wedding where they gave the garter to the couple married most recently (that was us....we'd been married for about 8 months) and the bouquet to the couple married the longest (the groom's grandparents!) It was really neat! :)

[lmhcmm]

I was at a wedding where they gave the garter to the couple married most recently (that was us....we'd been married for about 8 months) and the bouquet to the couple married the longest (the groom's grandparents!) It was really neat! :)

I love this idea. We're not doing the tosses because most of our guests are already married/engaged. I was thinking of giving my toss boquet to a newly married or newly engaged couple. :)

[septbride]

Not doing anything unique, just sticking with the dances, bouquet toss and probably the garter toss. I may be too embarrassed for that! But I just love the idea of a balloon drop!

[Hughto]

We're doing the tosses and dances. But we'll also do an anniversary dance and when we invite the different lengths of marriages out, play music from their time... Specifically for my grandparents, their song. They have been married for 52 years. His parents will get their wedding song, they have been married for 42 years. And so on.

[HelenAngel]

We did the traditional tosses. Our favors, however, were toys. We also put slide whistles on all the tables and had inflatable globes as centerpieces. Our friends are silly like us so they had fun playing with the balls and toys :)

[Poloke]

We are doing a dance for my parents to celebrate their 30th anniversary that will be later that september.
*the top & cutting layers of the cake will be blue inside.
*my bouquet will be out of a nautilus shell

[*meghan*]

We're having garter toss, bouquet toss, yadda yadda. We are combining the father/daughter and mother/son dance into one, so our guests don't spend all night watching us dance. We are also having a *surprise* for my BM who turns 30 that very same night, so it should be lots of fun. I want to do something for my grandparents - both sets have been married for 57 years!!!

[-->Kat<--]

We're having all the regular dances/tosses but FH won't be going under my dress to get my garter, we both feel kinda weird about that. Also instead of bells on the table to have us kiss we have gold star clackers for the guests. And we're having a table just for the kids with a kid friendly crayon/candy centerpiece and coloring books. (not common in our families)
And we're having a star shapped cake so that's kinda different :D

I love the idea of the balloon drop.

[dolface546]

At a wedding I was at recently they did "pass the buck"
Each table had to have a $1 bill. When the MC started the music you passed the dollar around the table (he even said reverse a few times). When the music stopped whoever had the dollar was "table manager." If your table wanted more drinks/food etc. the manager got it for you. They were "in charge of keeping the table happy" Occasionally the MC would ask if everyone's table manager was keeping them happy.

We also had a dance where all the married couples danced and the MC would call out "if you've been married less than # of years leave the dance floor" which filtered out the couple that had been married longest.

[Weddingplans]

We are doing the traditional first dance, Father-daughter/mother-son dances, but not the bridal party dance, and the bouquet and garter tosses, but I am also going to do a Teddy Bear toss in which kids 12 and under will be called up to catch before the bouquet and garter tosses. Then also, there will be a scavenger hunt that kids can pick up after dinner with a variety of items they need to find and also do, and when they get them all, they find the MOG and get a goodie bag (we will have also already handed out coloring books with crayons at the ceremony, so they will already have those too).

[Weddingplans]

I also, today, just picked up 3 boxes of those glow necklaces/bracelets at HobbyLobby, they were half off! We are hoping for around 175 people all together, and i got 150 bracelets...so that should be plenty...and FUN! :giggle:

[KathyandJer]

That sounds like fun!!!

[km]

:computer:

Find the right spot.Locating the right spot to host your fun, formal affair is your greatest challenge. Having the wedding in a hotel ballroom will lend a very different tone than having it in an old weathered barn on your grandfather's farm. Locate a distinctive venue -- scout out old nightclubs, movie theaters, city roof gardens, hip restaurants, art galleries, or historic mansions. Or transform the space you choose into something different by setting up screens to create different environments for dinner and dancing. You can even change the mood from one area to the next with the lighting: one room might feature white and ivory paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling while the next may be outfitted with deep red beaded lampshades on every table.
Finding a common chord to play through all the elements of your wedding -- from your paper products to your party -- will help you put on a production that's truly unforgettable. Try a masquerade ball! Infuse your theme from the reception venue (a fancy ballroom or an old theater) to what to wear (have guests come in costumes, such as butterflies and angels) to the favors (give guests handmade masks) to the honeymoon (go to Venice during Carnevale).

Give guests a lasting impression with a fabulous send-off. Have a fireworks display over a nearby lake; be the last to leave and thank each guest personally as you hand out favors; or have one final dance song with everyone on the floor!


Have a photo booth set up at the site so that your friends and family can take their own pictures or group shots. The results are a little like a home video without sound. Whether you pose properly, make funny faces, or try your best Rockette kick line, you'll be caught on tape showing your true colors. Compiled into a visual wedding-day guest book, these are photographs that will be treasured by brides and grooms for years to come.

The vibe of every wedding is dictated by the decor. To achieve an event that reverberates with romance, adorn your space with dozens of red roses and golden ornamentation. For casual elegance, try candles set afloat in pools, flowers floating in fish bowls, and a string quartet playing love ballads.


White-on-white is never out of style. As many people as there are looking for hot, hip new colors and coordination there are those craving the ultra-traditional. Talk to your florist about mixing shades of whites for the bouquets; use all-white linens or linens that mix various shades of white -- ivory cloths with white overlays, for example; and have a white wedding cake with white rolled fondant frosting and accented with ivory sugar blossoms. Final touches: waiters dressed in tuxedos with white jackets (hello, James Bond), and, of course, a white limousine.

Develop a visually stunning scene using monochromatic color, whether blue, violet, or kiwi green. Consider setting up different sizes and shapes of tables (circular, square, rectangular) and use different textures or designs for the fabrics (pin-stripe fabrics on round tables and tiny polka-dot covers on square ones). Although your color palette will remain the same, each tabletop will render a distinct personality.

Who says the tables must sport uniform arrangements? Think of your spread of tables as a garden, each row or corner with its own identity. Place some of your chosen blooms in tall opaque vases, float other flowers in short bowls, use others in clear vases filled with rocks and water. Accent the shorter centerpieces with tall taper candles and the taller ones with shorter votives or tea lights.

If you've chosen a huge reception space to accommodate your massive family, make it more intimate by adding lounge furniture. If you can't bring in couches and plush chairs to create a sitting area, try seating only four people to a table instead of eight to ten, or drape the walls and ceilings with rich velvety fabrics to close in the space.

Lighting is a key (and usually forgotten) element. Okay, so there's always candlelight or chandeliers or strung twinkle lights. But before you take an easy way out, ask if your venue has another form of lighting and use it! Find out if your venue can provide cool effects like gobo lighting to create shapes with light. Yes, it could border on cheesy if you overuse it, but initialing the white walls with your new monogram during your first dance can add an unexpected element to the occasion.

Serve something regional. We know a bride who had a popular East Coast seafood soup poured at each place setting, as guests arrived in the tent. Another bride we know served sour-cream cornbread with mayhaw jelly, a local southern favorite. If you're marrying in a city that brews its own beer, be sure to stock the bar with it or with another signature drink from your hometown.

Espresso bars are hot and a good accessory to dessert -- especially if you serve your espresso with cordials. These bars also provide a good jolt toward end of the night as the party winds down and the yawns start pouring in; plus, lattes and cappuccinos served on dainty china can be very sexy drinks.

Bring in 20 different sweets like chocolate-covered strawberries, banana fosters, and creme brulee. Talk to your caterer for clever ways to decorate tables and present mini desserts. Your family can join in the fun -- ask your best friend's mother to make her famous brownies or your aunt to make those pecan delights. A dessert buffet encourages mingling and ensures getting people off their seats and closer to the dance floor. If you still can't pass on the multitiered confection, box the individual cake slices and distribute as favors.

Book professional entertainers. An a cappella group or singing waiters during cocktail hour will turn on the charm. Hire a group of dancers -- choose from belly dancers to Irish jig or salsa dancers -- who'll perform during courses. Bring in some different music for an hour or so, perhaps a steel drum band, a barbershop quartet, or a mariachi band.

A master cigar roller who demonstrates the art of cigar rolling will prove to be a big hit. You might ask him to display and hand out an array of rare or limited-edition cigars for guests to enjoy after dinner -- do this in conjunction with a lounging area or around a martini or vodka bar for an added chic factor. Or, have him entertain guests during the cocktail hour while you two are busy taking pictures.

There are wedding watercolor artists who will draw in pastels, or paint in watercolors, the reception as it unfolds. This can be a great gift for the bride and groom, but it's also some quiet entertainment for guests and especially good for weddings set in great scenery -- creating a collage of events like guests dancing outdoors on the sand and the best man's toast by the water at a beachside bash.


:wavey:

[*Diane*]

You would have to have the right wedding guest mix but this hit me today. You could let the guests make their own table centerpiece. :crazy: I know but maybe :crazy: like a :fox:

You could put out containers (glass vases, straw hats, buckets) and flowers in buckets. Let the guests choose their own and arrange. Maybe some ribbon or paper pieces... whatever you would want if you had to suddenly make a centerpiece. It would certainly keep people entertained while you had those after the ceremony pics taken. :)

[~*Kate*~]

:grad: That would be so fun!