Is it okay to make people stand up at the reception?

First of all, I hope nobody will be worrying about high heels because I will make it CLEAR that it is an informal reception. The wedding with be semi-formal, but the reception will be informal.

Secondly, the reception will be around 45 minutes.

Also, we will be having fruit, pie and wedding cake...not a full meal.

It is an evening wedding, so it should be past the heat of the day. There will be no tent...if it rains, we're moving it to my church.

There WILL be places to sit regardless of anything else...the chairs from the ceremony will be available and can be moved.

The field is very level and quite solid. If it is muddy we may have to regroup.

I know these people--none of them will be offended if my wedding is a tiny bit uncomfortable, but I don't want them to be uncomfortable.

I had considered cocktail tables, but that really doesn't save me much...Originally I was going to build my own tables out of old wood and tree stumps, but that got expensive.

I loved the picnic idea...I may very well do that...I actually suggested that, but my future mother in law and fiance thought it would be really uncomfortable. Maybe if I did a combination of that and sawhorse tables (another brilliant I idea I had already disregarded but am now reconsidering), it would work out. I have no problem with having my groomsmen move the chairs, I am just concerned HOW MANY chairs there are to move.

If it rains though (which is not that unlikely in June)...the whole thing has to be moved anyway, though, so I don't see the point in investing in a $3000 tent and making a big fuss if it has to be moved anyway. Honestly, if it starts raining during the ceremony, we're just going to pull out umbrellas...I'm going to encourage people to wear jeans, and there will be a hay rack ride out to the wedding spot. Oh and yes, it's on my family farm.

Ashley will the church still be able to accomodate all 500 guests?

Dearest Ashley,

You are giving 500 people fruit and pies?....without tables..I would call the local firehouses and churches to see if you may rent them...and it does rain in June..Trust this June it rained every weekend..Can your church hold that many guests?

Good Luck

g

If the reception is casual/semi-formal you still need some tables. You could use some cocktail tables or small card tables with nice linens. If you want to go a little more casual you could use benches and hay bales with large piece of wood or something else to serve as a table. Our reception is semi-formal, about 80-100 peeps, and we're going to have sit-down tables for about 60 and then cocktail tables near the dance floor. Hope this helps!

If it is evening, then you can stop worrying about the heat and start worrying about lighting/bugs coming out. And even if it is just fruit and pie and cake, you need to hold the plate with one hand and the fork with the other, and juggle a purse and drink while potentially swatting at bugs while the sun is going down. We aren't trying to tell you your wedding is stupid or wrong, we're just trying to help you trouble shoot - wouldn't you rather hear it from us in advance and have time to at least think about new ideas that may work better?

My church can hold the 350 guests I am expecting. It also has an area where we could set up a reception for that many in the gym.

I am worried about rain, but he wanted an outdoor wedding, and so I figure I just have to take my chances. I've got the church ladies praying, so I should be good.

My best friend had an outdoor wedding and it rained right after the reception, but they had a barn to run to...i don't have anything but a little cabin.

Oh no I don't mind. I just am not able to spend the money it would take to do some of these things. I'm a big fan of the simple suggestions though.

We have the bug problem planned for: we are going to have the area sprayed ahead of time and use tiki torches and citronella candles. This should take care of a good percentage of the problem, I hope.

Well I guess I'm just thoroughly confused. You've gone from a semi-formal, heavy hors d'oeuvres wedding to a very short and casual jeans and cake reception.

If your reception is only 45 minutes and you are encouraging jeans and casual dress, then what you are suggesting could be acceptable. That kind of reception is very different than a semi-formal, heavy hors 'doeuvres reception.

I like the idea of the picnic style with blankets and haybales around. I think it would be really charming out on a family farm.

But if you want a very casual reception, I would encourage you to match the ceremony with the same style. I'm not saying that your bridal party walk down the aisle in jeans, but I would suggest nice sundresses for the girls and slacks and button down shirts for the men. If your bridal party is in semi-formal dress and your guests are in jeans, it could appear disjointed and confusing. Hope this helps!

How exactly are you planning on having a semi formal ceremony with an very informal reception all in the same field? Are your guests going to be changing their clothes behind the big oak tree between the ceremony and reception?

I'm not trying to sound sarcastic or rude, but it seems like your plan is not very well thought out. It also seems like you've pretty much made up your mind on what you're going to do, so I'm not sure what you're asking for help on. Good luck to you. I hope it all works out well.

I guess I should have defined my idea of "semi-formal"... My bridesmaids will be wearing sundresses (making them) and flip-flops and the guys will be wearing just full back tux vests with ivory shirts with the sleeves rolled up. That's a lot more formal than most of the weddings I have been to...must be the area I live in.

I think most helpful comments for me were the ones about the picnic style reception and the make-shift tables, so thanks guys. The rest of you, your comments were great too...if I had more money, I would probably have tried one of them.

Don't worry guys, nobody's going to be changing behind the oak tree except maybe me. Sorry for confusing you.

This is one reason why i love WW,,,you'll find the answer to you thoughts.

I was planning on doing the same as you Ashley buy my FH is saying know but after reading here all i think i need to do is let my guest know it's a casual event event since it will be held on the beach. in that case one can wear what they want.

Ashley you know your guests so if you think they'll be fine then go for it. And as long as you let folks know up front, if somebody shows up in heels then it's their own fault lol. The picnic thing is a good idea. I don't know if you can build a theme around it. I'm not that creative so I won't be having a theme. You could ask your guests to bring a blanket but you should probably have a few extras just in case. And because I grew up in the country I'm a bit concerned about folks' drinks tipping over if they set them on the grass. If you have the money in your budget, maybe you can make some type of "centerpiece" that people could use to set their drinks on on top of the blanket. maybe a corkboard or some type of plywood and you could decorate them. And since families will probably sit together, that could also serve as a favor and the guests can take them home as a momento from your wedding.

Just a quick comment for you to consider... your wedding is a day before my birthday. It ALWAYS rains on my birthday - it has never failed. So just keep that in mind with your planning

Wow, 500 guests! You're so brave to try to pull that off, LOL! I can't imagine!

I think it just depends on the crowd, which you know better than us. Keep in mind people are there b/c they love you and want to support you on this special day in your life. I personally think not having seats for everyone is fine, especially if you're serving alcohol and have a DJ or band. We had a seated dinner, but after people ate half of them dance the whole night anyway.

Great ideas ladylee!!! Thanks!

Aldewitt...ah you're lucky...you made it through! I'm still in the making it there stage.

My theme for my wedding is just having fun. I want people to be comfortable and mingle. These people know each other...like almost all of them, aside from the family, but even some of them. It will be like a great big reunion really; in fact, some of my mom's family (11 bros and sisters) are skipping out on family reunion just to come to my wedding lol.

Thanks for all of your wonderful suggestions! The picnic idea is already in the works, and I'm excited.

Ashley - open field....any chance there are hay bales around anywhere close or that could be moved over for the evening? Then you could drape them with blankets and you've got your seating - or a flat surface for folks to put their plates down.

I'm guessing that your guests will happily bring their chair with them.

In MHO...you'll be just fine - you know your guests, and as it gets nearer I'm sure you'll have people asking you, how can I help? what can I do.

Yeah...we're actually having a hay rack ride out to the wedding, so we'll have haybales on trailers. I figured the kids might want to sit up there...there's a ramp that makes it easy to get to. I like that idea though...that would give you some elevation, but still the picnic feel...hmmm.

Ashely, sounds like you have semi formal casual reception mixed together. You have more casual ideas then semi-formal. Any time you are planning a out door wedding you have to have a plan B which would be incase of rain and if the weather is very hot. You always have to have a place for your guest to go for comfort. If you don't have it in your budget to provide the right comfort for your quest then you might think about cutting back on the number of guest, this is the first place you go to be able to accomidate your guest. Even if you are only having a cake and punch reception you always provide a place for your guests to sit.