Wedding Vows & Ceremony Discussions

Standing Ceremony

We visited a venue last week and absolutely fell in love - it's a winery overlooking one of the Finger Lakes in NY. The ceremony is held down by the vines. One thing that gave me pause, though, was the coordinator said that they provide three rows of four chairs each to create an "aisle" and so that elderly people and guests of honor can be seated. The rest of the guests stand.

Our ceremony will be at 6pm in late June so it shouldn't be blazingly hot, and we planned to keep our ceremony short. However, I'm not sure how much I'd like attending a wedding where I had to stand on a lawn during the ceremony.

Has anyone attended/held a wedding where most people stand? Is this considered rude? Or will most people not really mind? We have about 120 guests and they are all very close family and friends.

Re: Standing Ceremony

  • Everybody needs a chair.  People arrive early, up to half an hour.  Then the ceremony starts 5-10 minutes late, and lasts 15 minutes.  People can end up standing for 45 minutes or so.  Not fun, especially if you are trying to keep your heels from sinking into the grass. 
  • Thanks for your responses - your points were exactly what I was thinking and what I was afraid of. The last thing I want to do is give anyone a negative impression or the idea that we didn't care enough to provide them a seat. The coordinator spoke like it was no big deal and it sounds like every bride there has a standing ceremony. I'm just not comfortable with it.
  • Did you ask them if they had additional chairs you could rent or maybe look into bringing in rental chairs from another company to make up the seats that would be lacking? That would be the best solution, I think, if there is physically enough space for it. 
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  • Also, with 100+ people standing, it will be hard for the majority of people to see the ceremony. Definitely look into renting chairs. 
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  • Which winery? I'm from the Finger Lakes area. If they don't have chairs that you can rent, there are a few rental places in my area that have chairs that are really inexpensive.
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  • Your gut feeling is right. I had to statnd for MY ceremony, and could hardly walk back up the aisle at the end. And I didn't have to get there early like our guests did. Look into renting additional chairs.
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  • Carson386, it's Thirsty Owl on Cayuga Lake. I will be meeting with the coordinator soon to work out details; I'm not sure whether we're obligated to use the rental company they work with or if I'm free to contact another. Any suggestions on inexpensive rentals would be very much appreciated!
  • A chair for every butt. No exceptions, no excuses.

    Anything less is rude.

    *I felt sorry for my husband before I met him. Take a number.*
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  • Other girls on these boards have made a great suggestion when this question has been asked previously. . . . if you are really thinking of doing this, put on a nice dress and heels, then go outside and stand in the sun for a half an hour in the grass without moving.  It should finalize the decision you already seem to be leaning towards, you need a seat for everyone.
  • Carson386Carson386 member
    500 Comments First Anniversary
    edited August 2012
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_standing-ceremony-2?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:10Discussion:51b290b5-cc05-484c-a7cf-d3e0b72a7e19Post:1a15a356-76b8-46b0-a5d0-4bbe0b185aa4">Re: Standing Ceremony</a>:
    [QUOTE]Carson386, it's Thirsty Owl on Cayuga Lake. I will be meeting with the coordinator soon to work out details; I'm not sure whether we're obligated to use the rental company they work with or if I'm free to contact another. Any suggestions on inexpensive rentals would be very much appreciated!
    Posted by ekislos1[/QUOTE]

    I know of a rental place in Bloomfield, NY (near Canandaigua Lake),  that might be a little far though. Have you tried Auburn Party Rental? Their chairs are pretty decently priced. Also Upstate Party Rental in Auburn. I know they are still a little ways a way from your location, but there really aren't any rental places in Ovid. The one I know of is Tailored Events in Bloomfield. They might allow you to come pick up the chairs so you don't have to pay for delivery if that's something you were interested in.
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  • There's also a rental place in Geneva. Have you looked at other wineries? The Thirsty Owl is a really nice one, but pretty much any of the wineries on Cayuga or Seneca offer the same views and a similar feel in the venue. I know Ventosa in Geneva does weddings very regularly. I'd suggest going to our local board and reading the recs sticky, lots of the local girls used wineries on the wine trials. 
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  • Just to play devil's advocate, I recently went to a standing wedding (a few rows of seats for elderly guests, but that's it), AND it was in August. Here's the important details:

    1. The couple was getting married in an alley (it's famous for being the only alley in the city where graffiti is legal, they're crazy artists, so it goes), so it was a very nontraditional space
    2. Their ceremony was short, including the fact that there was little downtime between guest arrival and the ceremony.
    3. They emphasized a "come as you are" dress code, encouraging guests to dress for comfort.

    I had sweat drops rolling down my legs by the end, but the venue and brevity of the ceremony was enough to justify their decision for me. I would recommend providing chairs if at all possible, but if it's really not, then do everything in your power to minimize discomfort. Maybe have a raised "stage" area for you to stand on, get picnic blankets and plenty of citronella candles to keep bugs away, and let people arrange themselves picnic style?
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