Ok, new bride-to-be here. HELP!!

samanthafaul94

Well, I want the ceremony and reception in the same place and I want to be able to have a "backyard wedding". Meaning: small, cheap and everyone brings a dish.

AdeleDazeem

Pot luck has no place at a wedding.

ootmother2

Pot luck is okay for reunions and such GTGs but  not for a wedding.

HobokensFury

Pot lucks are unacceptable for weddings. Sorry.

bratto06

Sorry but I have to agree....You need you wedding to be a bit different the average old get together 

Avion22

Nothing expresses love like an outbreak of food poisoning from aunt Suzie's chicken salad that wasn't kept cold enough....

vbandell

Okay, so I kind of have to say a pot luck is nothing i would do for a wedding. But at the same time a ceremony is the wedding, the reception is the celebration. My parents didnt have a reception right after the wedding but they had a pot luck a few weeks later to celebrate. So it all kind of depends on what YOU want to do. Not what anyone else tells you! 

Enjoy the planning, maybe be a DIY bride to help save on money and get the perfect look. Talk to local people about food. Maybe you know some elderly people from church who would be willing to help with the cooking (my aunt had that done for her wedding, ($600 for 300 people) No clue how that worked because that is $2 a plate, but she did it!

Congrats!

RebeccaB88

You can still have a casual, backyard picnic reception without rudely begging your guests to bring the food for you.  Check out local BBQ restaurants, often they will cater for a good price.  Or you could hire someone to cook burgers and hot dogs on a grill, and go to Costco or the grocery store and get potato salad, coleslaw, chips and dip, fruit, veggie trays, etc to go with it.  You just have to make sure you rent the proper service pieces to keep the food safely hot or cold (hire someone to do this too).  Wedding cake or cupcakes are pretty easy to get at a good price too.  There's also the tea party type reception, where you have little sandwiches, veggie and fruit trays, and cake and punch in the afternoon.  That cuts down on the amount of food you need to serve, so it's less money. 

calliopeia2013

One thing that might be helpful, OP, is an explanation of WHY a potluck wedding reception is rude. A reception is a celebration, but it's also where the bride and groon receive their guests after the ceremony, hence the word reception. A recepetion in this context is a thank you to your guests for attending the ceremony, which is why it's rude to make then bring anything. You're supposed to be thanking them, not making them thank each other.

thmpper

Have a potluck if you want to.  It's YOUR wedding.  We can't all afford catering, and if your guests are friends and loved ones, they will understand that and be happy to help.  If not, do they really need to come?  The food is not what your wedding day is about anyway.  It's about you guys uniting.  I've been to weddings where there was no food whatsoever.  It didn't bother anyone.  They were there to see the couple marry. 

There are other wedding sites/boards where people are a little kinder. 

Good luck!  I'm sure whatever you decide will be just fine. 

GoodLuckBear14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_ok-new-bride-to-be-here-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:10Discussion:d5386424-83fd-419b-a1f2-e14c1c916725Post:12cdfe0b-d621-4038-be79-04b43f1ebbe8">Re:Ok, new bridetobe here. HELP!!</a>:
[QUOTE]Have a potluck if you want to.  It's YOUR wedding.  <strong>We can't all afford catering</strong>, and if your guests are friends and loved ones, they will understand that and be happy to help.  If not, do they really need to come?  The food is not what your wedding day is about anyway.  It's about you guys uniting.  I've been to weddings where there was no food whatsoever.  It didn't bother anyone.  They were there to see the couple marry.  There are other wedding sites/boards where people are a little kinder.  Good luck!  I'm sure whatever you decide will be just fine. 
Posted by thmpper[/QUOTE]

Not an excuse to ask guests to act as the caterers for your wedding.  A perfectly acceptable wedding reception is getting a cake and punch from your local grocery store.

thmpper

I don't think anybody said anything about over 80,000 guests!  lol  She said a "backyard wedding."  A potluck is fine for that size.  If they're offended, they can decide not to attend.  Like I said, it's about people coming together.  My friends and family certainly wouldn't have a problem with it, and they wouldn't be unhappy either.  They can choose not to bring a dish and not eat too.  It seems like people forget what a wedding is all about.