Reception only?

My wedding will be reception only since we already did our religious marriage. It’ll be really fun, I got the idea from one of my friends who did it and I loved it so much. It started at 6pm, guests arrived, bride and groom made a cute entrance, had dinner, then spent the rest of the night dancing! Personally I found it really convenient because a lot of times the ceremony can be pretty boring or weather may not comply, some people have work early (even on weekends), etc. everyone was able to come all done up, relaxed and ready to party.

Forgot to add: my friend that did it had a bridal party but she used it mainly for photos and had a bridal party table. Same as a regular wedding format except the only difference was that after the photos everyone just met up at the reception area.

One more thing that might be helpful haha sorry: it was also really convenient for her because she was able to start getting ready later than someone who did a ceremony since she didn’t have to start her day as early. So all of us in the bridal party showed up at around noon ready, met up at her house for photos then went to a garden for bridal party pics (she also had her family and other close friends that she wanted to join for this) and the regular guests just went at 6pm. I would say it was a very very relaxed and chill day. Let me know if you have other questions!

View Quoted Comment Thank you so much!

Just the other side of this type of event: Why are you inviting to celebrate an event that they weren't actually invited to? I personally don't love the idea and know a lot of others who feel the same way. Not saying it's wrong necessarily - just something to think about.

View Quoted Comment Because a ceremony isn’t us. But we want to celebrate with everyone. A great excuse to get the ones we love together to party.

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Ok - but the reception is literally a thank you to your guests for attending the ceremony. Again, technically what you're doing isn't wrong (it's super common in fact). It just seems icky to me ask people to come celebrate and bring you a present (sure, you may not expect it, but most people will do that) when they weren't important enough to actually be there for the event you're celebrating.

View Quoted Comment I don’t except people to bring gifts. We’ve been together 8 years, own a home, and have a son. A gift isn’t necessary as we’re pretty well set on most things you’d get from a wedding. It’s a way to celebrate our marriage.

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I think that is a very judgmental way to think about it. News flash: western/American cultures aren't the only cultures in the world that have weddings and there are almost no other cultures that celebrate weddings by needing to have a "traditional" ceremony first. In fact, almost every wedding I've been to did NOT have a ceremony because of culture and some didn't even wear a white dress. Get out of your bubble.. Just because something isn't normal to you doesn't mean it's "icky" and certainly doesn't mean that they weren't invited to celebrate, when in fact, the reception IS a celebration and is not JUST to say thank you for watching us say our vows.