Is Bench Seating Real?

I absolutely love this idea, and think it looks amazing when done properly, with that said, my friend had DIY bench seating for her wedding. Tree stumps cut to the same height, with a 2x4 or similar piece of wood. We were sitting down for around half an hour between waiting and the ceremony and it was SO uncomfortable. The stump heights were very awkward, much too low for the average person to be in a comfortable position. I definitely don't want to discourage going this route, but just in wanted to point out some things to consider in the process

I think this may be one of those—looks nice on Pinterest but is impractical as h-e-double hockey sticks in real life. I don’t like sitting on benches or stools without backs...my back is bad so I end up hunched over and hurting by the end of the night. Kind of like those wedding shots you see of pillows and poofs and hay bales for seating...not the best for guests.

We're doing benches that FH is building. He's a carpenter. He built some for his daughter's wedding and they were beautiful. I didn't think about physical ailments. Hopefully they suffice for the few minutes they'll be used.

I suggest providing some sort of cushion if you DIY... even church pews are super uncomfortable(hey, there's an idea!).

I would evaluate the cost of the DIY in total and continue a search for rentals in the meantime. If you diy, you don't need to get much fancier than legs, the seat, and maybe a backpiece. Make sure you build them sturdy so a guest doesn't accidentally fall and break part of one. I would thrift shop hardcore for pillows, seat cushions, and anything else you can wash and extract stuffing from and make a long seat cushion to fit your benches. Your guests butts will thank you.

Do a search on www.searchtempest.com for free church pews.

Here's just one ad that is current:

https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/for/d/free-church-pews-good/6553962373.html

You can also set up an alert so you get an email when someone posts an ad

Be careful with making them. Wood for benches is oftem made of quality solid wood and can become spendy fast. It would be beautiful to have them hand made but what do you do with them all afterwards? Perhaps there are event rental places that can recommend places to call. People in that industry seem to always know 'a guy' haha