Invites and Vendors

Oh- how about the MUA? Am I supposed to invite her to everything?

No ,they are being paid to be there. Just don't forget to feed them.

They will be fed! Thanks! How about the MUA?

You do not send them invites. If you need them during event, you arrange for them to get vendor meals. Do not seat them with guests.

I'm not sending a formal invite....Just feeding vendors that will be there during your reception... DJ & photographs... if your MUA will be at the reception working then yes.

I am planning on sending them invites because I will have extras and I think they are cool, and we have become kind of friendly during this process.

No need to invite the hair and makeup people. They will be long gone by the time of the reception.

As for the DOC and photographers, mine are going to be seated with the guests and fed the same food as everyone else.

I don't think you need to invite them, though if you are getting married in a church, I think it's customary to invite your officiant to the reception. MUA should be done and gone before the wedding starts, so you don't need to invite or feed them.

@karen- can i sit them all together? I'm sure they won't all be eating at the same time.

I recall someone on WW suggesting the you give the photographer an invite; but I think that was just the day of-so they can include it in some pics...

ETA -- if your officiant is your family minister or religious person, I would treat them as a guest. A paid officiant, not a person you have worshiped with, would not invite. They can leave after ceremony.

Everyone else, they are employees, not guests, have a table away from guests they can sit at.

If I were a guest, I would be insulted if I were seated with photographer or DOC. They will be jumping up, and working. I am a guest. I would leave.

Ah yes, Karen, consistent, as always, in her distain for vendors.

I like getting an invite because it confirms the location, time, and gives me an insight into the style of the couple. I am pretty much always invited by either the venue or the couple, but I never stay past a bit of cocktail hour, and probably no officiant will unless they are your family officiant. I always tell my couples not to include me in the head count.

Your photographer will want an invite for your photos. And their contract probably says something about what and how they're fed; it's a very long day for them.

Anyone who is there for the duration should get a meal. You can ask your venue how they handle this, and how they seat them.

Bye Karen!!!

Celia, if you are a professional, you get a contract that tells you the location and time.

Of course, vendors like photographers who will be there the entire time get a meal. The officiant can leave after the ceremony.

I do not have disdain for vendors, I just understand the difference between friends and families and vendors. Everyone here, including you, says do not contract with "friendors." Well, imho, the converse is true. Vendors can be polite, charming, etc, but that does not make them your friends. You cannot buy friends.

You can give copies of invite to vendors, but they are not guests.

ETA - the general advice here is to assign guests to tables. If you invite vendors, where do you plan on putting them?

Every thread you post in has the bitter flavor of thinking your vendors are taking advantage of you and thus deserve to be treated like shit.

None of us think we're guests. Trust me.

Thanks for the advice. So is it acceptable to sit the vendors all at a table together? If I were a guest and vendors were seated at my table I feel like it wouldn't bother me, but that's just me. Wasn't planning on doing that anyway.

Celia, if you are not a guest, you do not get an invite. So we agree, right?

I said, vendors who have to be there during the reception, like band, photographers, get a meal. They just should not be seated with the guests.

So what exactly do you disagree with?

You can definitely seat the vendors together! But you also don't have to. I plan on slipping mine in wherever they fit best based on groupings of 8 guests per table.

I'm sending my photographer an invite and I gave STDs to my caterer, MUAH and DOC. I had some leftover anyway

An invite is probably not necessary...talk to your venue. Mine has an area they set up for the vendors to eat and they have special meals. They also keep snack food and water there for them to grab as they are working.