Morning Wedding: Timeline Help!

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Anyone feel like helping with our timeline?  I feel like it is off, or maybe there is just something I'm not seeing.

Important Info:

*Ceremony Starts at 10:30am

*No Wedding Party

*No Bouquet/Garter Tosses

*Undecided on Dancing as of now

*Venue is a Restaurant with essentially 2 spaces - the indoor restaurant, which will be set up with a brunch buffet (YUM), and the patio, which is where the ceremony will take place.  There is nowhere for guests to go while either space is "flipped" to allow for a cocktail hour, so CH would be guests wandering around a buffet they couldn't eat, or ceremony chairs. 

*Open to a receiving line, but we don't know how or where to put it

5:30a - makeup or hair starts at hotel with bride

7:00a - makeup or hair (whatever one isn't done yet) starts at hotel with bride

8:30a - get dressed, travel to venue (10 mins away)

9:30a - first look pictures with groom

10:00a- guests start arriving

10:30a - ceremony starts

10:45 - ceremony ends, B&G run out to start family pics asap, guests enter reception & start finding tables, lining up for brunch, etc.

 

We don't want to do a formal cocktail hour because we want people to go ahead and start eating. We would like to squeeze in some family pics beforehand, but I don't know if there will be time.  We don't have a wedding party, and we aren't doing any formal dances, garter/bouquet tosses, etc. We have to be cleared out by 2-2:30 at the latest.  I think our preacher will make an announcement (go inside, find your seats, start eating, etc) so people are clear that they are ok to eat and they don't have to wait for us.    

 Alternately, we could have a quick cocktail hour (30 mins?) but there isn't really anywhere for our guests to go.  They would be in the same ceremony space with the chairs.  There is no option for "flipping" the space and no alternate location.  So it would be everyone standing around the ceremony chairs for 30 minutes, which seems awkward.  Even with mimosas/bloody mary's.  So letting them go straight inside & start eating seems like the best plan to us.  What do you think?

QueerFemme

I'd move up your first look to 9:00am, instead of 9:30.  I'd give yourself a full hour before guests arrive to take first look and family photo, and do maybe 15 minutes of photos after the ceremony.

I think letting them go in and eat is the best method.  Or, you could just let them go in but not open the buffet until 11:00am.  At the end of the ceremony, when you walk out, the officiant can say something like "Please go into the reception space, and locate your seat.  Mimosas will be served momentarily and the brunch buffet will open at 11:00am".

Then, when the buffet opens at 11, have someone else make an announcement that the buffet is open.  If things go as planned and you take the majority of your photos before the ceremony, you would be arriving around 11:15.  I would have a day of coordinator or the restaurant staff make your plate, so your food is ready as soon as you walk in.  Then, everyone should be wrapped up eating by noon and you can do a cake cutting or dessert at 12 and dancing or just mingling from 12-2. 

 

artbyallie

Unless you're doing something super elaborate I don't understand how you need an hour and a half each for hair and make-up. Even an up-do is unlikely to take more than an hour at the very outside and I can't imagine any make-up application taking more than 30 minutes. And you said no wedding party, so I'm assuming this is just you.

I got married at 10 myself and I think hair for me and all the bridesmaids started at 7 or 7:30 but we also all did our own make-up.

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artbyallie said:

Unless you're doing something super elaborate I don't understand how you need an hour and a half each for hair and make-up. Even an up-do is unlikely to take more than an hour at the very outside and I can't imagine any make-up application taking more than 30 minutes. And you said no wedding party, so I'm assuming this is just you.

I got married at 10 myself and I think hair for me and all the bridesmaids started at 7 or 7:30 but we also all did our own make-up.

I have NO idea how long to plan for makeup/hair.  I have really long hair, and she will be adding some extensions for body/fullness.  I have no idea how it will be styled, yet.  And someone else is doing my make up, so I just guesstimated on the times.  Also, I'm incredibly slow, as a person (if it takes a normal person 5 minutes to do something, it will take me 15.  I have no idea why or how) so I built in a little cushion of time for that.  

And yes, my mom is having her hair done by my SIL (who is doing my make up), but that will be while I'm getting my hair done, so those times can overlap.  But it is just us.  No other girls.  

I cross-posted this on Chit Chat (HERE) and they had some good ideas, too.  I think skipping pictures after the ceremony and doing them near the end of the reception is the best plan as of now.  And doing as many as possible before the ceremony.  I like @QueerFemme suggestion of moving the first look up 30 minutes.  If hair/makeup won't take as long as I was thinking, then we should have time to do that.  

THANK YOU!!!