Chairs for outdoor ceremony?

jhorn86

I'm thinking of having an outdoor ceremony and reception at a local garden, but I'm also trying to save on costs.  Is it rude to consider having your guest stand for your ceremony to save on chair rental costs?  I also have to rent chair for my reception but nice chairs for the ceremony would be 3 times as much!  I would definitely shorten the ceremony to be considerate to my guests.  Help!

Knottie1450123632

yes  need a chair for every butt. pple show up early and cant stand for30 min plus especially in heels and grass.  what about the elderly or pple who have knee hip issues that you may nt be aware of.  i wouldnt want to come to a wedding to find  i cant sit. 

its rude not to have a chair

QueerFemme

People will arrive early for your ceremony.. anywhere from 15-30 minutes.  So, even if your ceremony is only 15 minutes long... that's too long for someone to stand in one spot.

So, do this...  go put on a dress and a pair of heels, and stand in your front yard for 30-45 minutes, see how you feel.  And then, call you local rental company, and rent some chairs.

QueerFemme

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_outdoor-weddings_chairs-for-outdoor-ceremony-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:666Discussion:c68edfa8-150c-4550-97d4-bbdde1848391Post:b2055934-2b4f-4834-b804-454bf08ff014">Re: Chairs for outdoor ceremony?</a>:
[QUOTE]Yes, it is one of the rudest things you can do.  Even if you only have a 15 minute ceremony, your guests will likely be standing for close to an hour (assuming your wedding is one of the few in history that actually starts on time).  Many cannot do that, and even for those who can it is rude and uncomfortable.  <strong>Get dressed up and put on heels and go stand out in your front yard for an hour.  See how great of an idea you think it is at that point</strong>.
Posted by StageManager14[/QUOTE]

My bad..  I didn't see that you already suggested this. 

Summer2011Bride

You need a chair for every butt, absolutely. Don't make anyone stand for your ceremony.

QueerFemme

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_outdoor-weddings_chairs-for-outdoor-ceremony-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:666Discussion:c68edfa8-150c-4550-97d4-bbdde1848391Post:5b2cb31c-f8d0-4476-89ab-1c38aa242f77">Chairs for outdoor ceremony?</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm thinking of having an outdoor ceremony and reception at a local garden, but I'm also trying to save on costs.  Is it rude to consider having your guest stand for your ceremony to save on chair rental costs?  I also have to rent chair for my reception but <strong>nice chairs </strong>for the ceremony would be 3 times as much!  I would definitely shorten the ceremony to be considerate to my guests.  Help!
Posted by jhorn86[/QUOTE]

PS -  OP.  You don't have to rent "nice chairs", just chairs.   If they are the plastic fold out chairs, they are cheaper and still can accomodate a butt to sit on.

ceskmwed

You need something for people to sit on.  Haybales?  Cover them with old comforters.

anssett

I strongly disagree.  If you're having a tiny ceremony of close family who all know in advance that this will be on grass, then they can plan and wear flats. If everyone is young enough and healthy enough to stand for a few minutes, that's ok. If people will arrive BEFORE you and wait, then chairs are required. If they're all arriving with you and they can't end up stuck in the grass for an hour, then it's OK to allow your family to support your budget conciousness by not wearing heels. :-)

I'm having my ceremony under a cherry tree (specific tree TBD). There will be 6-9 people in attendance including the groom, myself, the witnesses (parents) & officiant (best friend). We'll drive to the park, walk to the tree of our choice, talk about our love and our union and our joy for 5-10 min, then all walk out and go to a restaurant for a lovely meal. Everyone is fully physically able and thinks this is the perfect wedding plan for me and what we want.

You need to be respectful of your guests. I attended another fabulous wedding recently that had a few chairs for the older folks, standing room for the rest of us (30 total?) and they kept it under 10 minutes total. It was beautiful and perfect. The guests knew in advance that there was limited seataing so they could choose shoes appropriately. If you don't fill up on traditional ceremony language you can keep a wedding under 10 minutes easily. It's about your love,in whatever way you want to represent that.

A wedding should be a beautiful celebration, not a box that you're forced into. In my state the only requirement is an officiant ask "do you want to be married to each other" and you reply "yes". The rest is up to the couple.

QueerFemme

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_outdoor-weddings_chairs-for-outdoor-ceremony-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:666Discussion:c68edfa8-150c-4550-97d4-bbdde1848391Post:ce3e4bed-60d0-4f4d-9f3a-235bb86ec68b">Re: Chairs for outdoor ceremony?</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Chairs for outdoor ceremony? : To the first, that is a HIGHLY unique situation and isn't a traditional ceremony.  Yes, I agree that your plan is fine, but your plan is not a classic outdoor ceremony with guests that you may not know their physical limitations. As for the other, I would have left that wedding as soon as we got there.  There's no way I'd be taking a chair from grandma and I wouldn't be able to stand for the pre-ceremony wait time, ceremony itself, and then waiting to leave.  Conversely, my 86 year old grandfather would literally fall down dead from heat exhaustion or a stroke before he would take a chair while a single lady, regardless of age, stood. Chairs in no way impede a couple's ability to represent their love.  You are correct that they should celebrate in however they see fit.  But if they don't want to pay for chairs/food/beverages, then they should celebrate it BY THEMSELVES.  Because being a good host to your guests pretty much trumps all the frilly flowery sentiments about "your day" or "celebrating your love" that you can come up with.
Posted by StageManager14[/QUOTE]


what Stage said.

jennylee813

What about using the same chairs for the ceremony and reception? You have to rent them anyway ...

I'd suggest setting them up for the ceremony, then during the downtime have some deisgnated chair movers (groomsmen or just friends who want to help) to shift them from the ceremony area to the reception area.

Susan Barrett

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_outdoor-weddings_chairs-for-outdoor-ceremony-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:666Discussion:c68edfa8-150c-4550-97d4-bbdde1848391Post:5b2cb31c-f8d0-4476-89ab-1c38aa242f77">Chairs for outdoor ceremony?</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm thinking of having an outdoor ceremony and reception at a local garden, but I'm also trying to save on costs.  Is it rude to consider having your guest stand for your ceremony to save on chair rental costs?  I also have to rent chair for my reception but nice chairs for the ceremony would be 3 times as much!  I would definitely shorten the ceremony to be considerate to my guests.  Help!
Posted by jhorn86[/QUOTE]

I just asked an expert who runs a wedding website this question and they said "no, you don't have to have chairs".  If the ceremony is going to be short, folks can stand for a bit.  If there are a few folks who need to sit, you can have a few chairs off to the side for them.  The positive side of having folks stand is that they can get closer to the ceremony and it feel more intimate.  Its your choice.