Wedding Reception IdeasPosted by Kim Rix on June 30th, 2010

Dear Bride and Groom,

You will find that most of your time will be taken up thinking about your wedding reception. Although the ceremony is obviously the most important part of your day, the reception takes up the longest and most sociable part of your day (and night!).

Your reception can be simple and elegant, extravagant, exciting or intimate and calm. It really depends on what you want from it. The reception is likely to reflect a lot of your personality as a couple and this is what your guests will buy into and enjoy. The main thing is that your guests are well entertained and have a great time with you.

The Setting

The first thing you want to think about is where you want to be for your wedding reception. If you would like grand elegance then you might want to have a look at some of the National Trust properties that interest you. A good number have large banqueting halls, equipped with the most magnificent art, fittings and decorations. Some may even provide staff and scene settings in keeping of the period of the venue. There are plenty of privately owned stately homes and gardens that cater for weddings.

If you are looking for something a little different then you could look into hiring a yacht, getting exclusive use of your favourite restaurant, bar or even nightclub.

If you have a particular interest eg. Art, music or theatre then you can look into getting exclusive use of a favourite gallery, theatre or venue. You would be surprised at how many would be interested and accommodating.

The Entertainment

This might be dictated by your wedding venue a little. For example, if you choose a theatre venue, then you could have a small interesting performance followed by live music. In a stately home you might want a string quartet or traditional music for the meal and then a 5 or 6 piece band for some late night dancing.

But what can you offer apart from music? How about a wandering magician? One or two can be available to demonstrate and wow your guests with impressive table magic – don’t worry no clowning or balloon creatures!!

Give your guests something to take home by asking a caricaturist to draw guests on each table at their request. It’s a great conversation starter!

If you have any gardens available then you could look at hiring a croquet set, jenga set or chess set for your guests to play with – you will be surprised at how keen your guests will be to get involved, and again its great for getting people talking!

Kind regards,

Kim Rix

Your London Wedding Planner

Freeing up YOUR time and delivering the personal service

What do you do when the dream wedding all goes wrong?Posted by Kim Rix on June 18th, 2010

Dear Bride and Groom,

So what if it goes all wrong? What if the caterers mess up your food, or the cake doesn’t arrive? What if the DJ is awful and your photographer gets sick? What if the weather is awful and your guests are soaked during the garden ceremony and to top it all of there is a massive family argument??

First of all. Breathe.

 Second of all. This, most likely will not happen to you.

Thirdly. If anything does happen, you can handle it. And this is how:

Cool as a cucumber

You may want to throw a big hissy fit or burst into tears but that is not going to help and it only makes you look bad! So if you hear any bad news the first thing to do is take a moment, process it, say ‘ok’ and follow it up with ‘how do we solve this?’.

The bearer of the bad news has probably come up with several solutions on their way to find you. Listen to them all, ask your bridesmaid or best man for their opinion and let them get on with it!

People will respect and admire your amazing calm head and ability to take it in their stride. It’s also more likely to come to a pleasing solution quicker than if you have a screaming match!

Turn It On Its Head

Ok, so your guests are soaked through. It’s not pleasant but its now the huge talking point of your big day so document it!! Ask your photographer to get as many photos as they can while people are still outside and willing to pose, get them to do something wacky and let loose. There is also the potential for a lovely series of warming up and drying out shots. Beautiful, personal portraiture or people wrapped in towels or fixing themselves.

I was once at a wedding in a hotel where the fire alarm went off and the whole place had to be evacuated just as the evening reception was getting underway. The fire engines arrived and it was thankfully a false alarm. While waiting to get back into the hotel the Groom took some initiative and asked one of the firemen if they would turn on the engine lights and the couple had a romantic, silent first dance in the glow of the dancing lights. They also have a cracking photo of his mother in law with one of the fireman. Totally unforgettable.

Any disaster can be handled coolly, turned on its head and made into something truly unique and exciting about your wedding. Focus on your guests having fun and your family being happy. The rest will fall into place.

Kind regards,

Kim Rix

Your London Wedding Planner

Saving you time and delivering the personal service