what makes an unforgettable wedding day party?
What is a wedding if it isn’t the biggest, best and most unforgettable of all parties? I’m a big believer in your wedding as your party, your day, your chance to have all your best people together, in one place for a huge celebration. BUT… how do you pull off that kind of party? What are the ingredients of best wedding celebration?
AMBIANCE
Creating the right ambiance is a little tricky to be able to bottle a magic formula for – the best nights out are sometimes the least expected! There are a few things you can do to hugely help your chances of the right feel to ‘encourage’ the best celebration. Top of the list has to be timings. Think about them…carefully and not just from your point of view. Think about it from the view of the guests. Do things flow? Is there a lot of ‘wait’ time? The classics here are things like photography time. I, for one, am so glad that trends have moved away from a whole host of posed and rigid family or couple portraits that take up soooo much time your guests are left for an age. Most photographers and couples I work with now are HUGE fans of minimising these time consuming and, often, least ‘spirit capturing/natural’ parts– opting to spend a small portion of the day to get the most important people but, outside of this, preferring to capture the essence of the day as it unfolds – the story.
The logistics of the day can also make a big impact on ambiance. Hands up if you’ve ever been to a wedding where the bar and the dancefloor are too far apart? Do things to encourage a party. Guests always congregate near to the bar so having this right near the dancefloor will encourage people to get on it.
STYLE
How your wedding LOOKS will definitely make an impact on how it feels. I think it is important that you place your personal stamp on your wedding and I am also ever so slightly (well maybe more than slightly) particular about the look. The little touches and how they all come together to sum up your wedding style are things that people will notice and remember. Think of your favourite bar or restaurant… what is it (aside from the food/drink) that makes you want to spend time there? These places spend a whole host of time thinking about all the little details – the lighting, the florals, the décor, the menu cards, the glassware – and they do it for a reason. Now I don’t want to turn your wedding into a marketing strategy but there is nothing quite like a beautifully styled wedding that guests ‘get’ because it just says ‘YOU’. I am in love with some of the ideas below around a tropical themed wedding. Just look at that backdrop and how original are the bouquets? It's your day, go all out!
FOOD AND DRINK
Anyone who follows my posts will know that both of these are passions of mine. Personally no epic celebration ever got started following a below par meal and wine. I’m passionate about caterers and venues that feel the same way. If you are too it is worth checking things like – does your venue have preferred suppliers? If so who are they? Do you like them? Do they offer flexibility if not? It’s your party and the food and drink are such a big part of it, you’ll want to make sure you are 100% happy.
PLANNING
The annoying part of pulling off an amazing party is that it actually takes a whole host of hard work in terms of planning but also executing! You will want to make sure you have your best team on board to do both. Really think about every element. It may be that you thrive on (and have time for) searching out the best suppliers for your day. That’s great. If you don’t you may want to consider getting some help from someone with the inside track. The investment can be completely worth it in saving you search time or in avoiding costly mistakes. Even if you feel you do have the time and energy to do it all yourself, don’t overlook the work involved in sourcing and setting up of your perfect wedding, let alone the running of it. In my experience these are the areas that couples often underestimate in terms of time, energy and effort involved. You really don’t want to arrive at your wedding day feeling (and looking) shattered as a result of taking on too much. Equally, you deserve to sit back, relax and enjoy your day as it unfolds, without worrying about what is happening when. Many planners offer services to help in the lead up to and on the wedding day itself – I do via my Consult and Co-ordinate Service!
A WEEKEND CELEBRATION
Wedding celebrations spread across a whole weekend are growing in popularity. I can completely understand why. We lead busier and busier lives and the time we get to spend with our nearest and dearest is ever squeezed. We also live across different countries and if you have overseas guests, you’ll want to maximise the time with them. People want to make the most of seeing one another. I personally love a weekend long celebration. The pre wedding pieces give everyone a chance to get to know each other properly making the wedding day feel even more intimate. People have had chance to ‘warm up’ and get into the swing of the celebrations by the wedding day itself and, by the morning after, there are new friendships made, stories to catch up on and memories to share over a (strong) coffee (or cheeky hair of the dog).
Image credits (in order) feature image and next 2 images Craig Williams; Sean Cook Weddings; Sandra Hutzen; Our Labour of Love; Jennifer Sosa Photography; India Earl; unknown; Nato Welton; Letsmingleblog.com; Jessica Elizabeth