Anyone here have/had a Friday wedding?

cantblobubbles

We had a date picked out, 10/9/10, which is a Saturday. The date holds no meaning other than it would be our wedding date. I originally thought I just NEEDED to have a Saturday wedding, but the more I think about it, we are on a budget and it would make sense to switch the date to the 8th and have a Friday wedding. So my questions are: Those who had Friday weddings, what was the time line like? What time was the ceremony, what kind of things did you do different than if you would have had a Saturday wedding? Did you have anyone gripe about it? What are your opinions on a Friday wedding, whether you've had one or not?

sbowersox

i didn't do a friday wedding but i've been to a few. my only gripe is when they start a 5.  it is really hard to get there on time when you're coming from work, dealing with traffic, etc, etc i woudl just suggest a later start time

mink492

I'm doing a Sunday b/c it's family tradition, cheaper, and wouldn't mess with people's work schedules (leaving early anyway, several are taking Monday off) I've only been to one Friday wedding & I ended up missing the ceremony even tho I left work way early. So my only suggestion would be to have it start later.

corinne2010

I don't enjoy going to Friday weddings. I've been in two and attended one. For the two I was in, I had to take Thursday and Friday off. I heard alot of people complaining because it is difficult to make it to a ceremony at 5pm especially if people are travelling distances. When I first got engaged, I knew I did not want to have a wedding on Friday because I didn't want it to inconvenience people and make them feel rushed. The one I went to, I had to leave at around 3:30 pm from work to make it to dinner by 6. We weren't invited to the ceremony, only the reception. Again, I felt rushed and was exhausted from working the entire week so I didn't party as much as I probably would have if it was on a Saturday, IMO.

RachelCheetah

Sunday weddings are becoming a bit more popular lately and guests are less likely to miss the ceremony. The last one I was at, people stayed until the very end too. I was expecting people to cut out a bit early but there were still a good amount of people there at bar close.

Tammara7

We had a Friday wedding. Ceremony was at 5:30. Reception at 6:30 – 12:30. We actually had about 70 of the 100 guests at the ceremony. The way I looked at it was, the people that really cared about us and wanted to be at the ceremony could leave work an hour or 2 early to make it. We didn’t do anything different. It was the same as any Saturday wedding I have been to. Last year I actually went to more Friday weddings than Saturday weddings. I like them. And for the guest coming from out of town regardless of the day I am sure they will still need to take time off to make it.

cantblobubbles

What about if the majority of the family doesn't go to the ceremony anyways? It seems like a lot of the weddings in my family, the reception is where everyone shows up. Our ceremony will probably be only about 20 minutes also. I mentioned a Sunday wedding and my Grandmother was appalled....lol. Saturday weddings are just So darn expensive! Oh also, no one is coming in from out of town, and everyone lives within about a 30 minute drive from the venues we're looking at.

jessbug1122

I'm having a Friday wedding and we have actually found that more out of town guest are coming because they will have Friday and Saturday here before they have to leave to go back. My fiance's brother had a Sunday wedding and the attendance was low, people left by 10-10:30 and nobody hardly drank. We have 200 people that have already RSVP'd to ours and the people who want to make it to your ceremony will make it, and then people who don't want to won't. Even on Saturday weddings you never have full attendance at the ceremony. We are doing our pictures before, having the wedding at 5, cocktail hour at 6:30, dinner served at 7:30. The reception last until 1 instead of midnight. I have been to many Friday weddings and they are so much fun, so I wouldn't worry about it. We have saved all together about $5,000 on all the specials you get from vendors for having a Friday wedding.

lawjjg522

my wedding is friday..  our ceremony is at 4 and the reception is starting at 6.  dinner at 7.  we aer saving about 10 pp. 

sunkissed212

We originally had a date of 10/2/10 but have since switched to Friday 10/1/10. Mostly for the cost factor. FI and I are paying for the wedding ourselves and because we both have fairly large families, our guest list is pretty big. In order for us to be able to afford what we wanted, we had to switch to a Friday. I, too, was married to Saturday before I realized how much money I could save by switching to a Friday. Plus, by switchting to Friday, I also got the photographer that I really wanted (who was already booked for my saturday date). Our ceremony will start at 5:30 and the reception will start at 6:00, dinner at 6:30. We are having the ceremony and reception at the same location. It's about an hour commute for most of our guests so I realize that I may be inconveniencing them a bit by asking them to leave work a little early to make it but hopefully people won't be too upset with us...it's our wedding after all, not just a get together. I actually polled a lot of my friends and family on the issue when we were trying to decide if we should do it or not and to my surprise, most of them were more in favor of it than I was.

wpw08

we didn't want to but at one point we considered it if it would be enough of a savings, not one of our vendors charged less for a Friday over a Saturday and it would be a huge PITA for my family and friends so we dropped it pretty quick.

Nicole&Dan

We're having a friday wedding and our ceremony is at 5, as it's the only time the church does ceremonies. We just don't have that gap in between the ceremony and the reception (aka Catholic gap from the Catholic Mass). Happy we're doing it then, saves us money. Most of my friends are nurses so they don't really care if it's saturday or sunday. If our families go to the ceremony great, if not I'm cool.

handleyp

I feel like Friday weddings are more difficult for out of town guests.  If the wedding is on a Saturday, guests might be able to make it without having to take an extra day off.  I know that I hope that the out of town weddings to which I'm invited are on a Saturday.  Just another factor to consider I guess.

mollylovesu

We got married on a friday and found no problems for us personally... just when it came to guests.... One worked with stocks and couldn't leave until the market closed on Friday's - One is a new hire and couldn't take work off so early into her new job. SO - the only thing we ran into as far as problems with a Friday was work schedules. My husband was rushed because of work - but in the end we were fine. WE MUCH preferred our wedding to our reception that was this pat weekend. We did our timeline just like any other wedding day... it was sad to not have his best friend/best-man and my aunt all because of work. (you would think bosses would be more understanding! - they did know a year in advance!)

brobin01

I hated Friday weddings, until I started planning my own wedding and looked at cost, etc. I would def have a wedding on a friday if I had to, like pp said..the people who REALLY and TRULY care for you will be there..times are hard and we as brides are more into cutting costs wherever we can now of days. I say do what works best for you and hubby and whoever can be there, will be there. maybe put the word out there to some of your guests and listen to some of the feedback??? then weight your options based of what your potential guests are saying...

blackberryaddict

If you don't have any OOTers, then Friday or Sunday would work out really great. I wouldn't complain. A majority of my guests are from OOT so having it on Friday or Sunday was not an option, for the convenience of others.

liza0828

I had a Friday wedding, and I think out of 120 guests, only 4 people didn't make it to the ceremony... and we had a lot of out of towners. We did a Friday because of the savings, which were pretty considerable at our venue, and because we didn't want to have a gap between the ceremony and reception. We had a 5 PM ceremony, 6:30 reception and it worked out fine. Bottom line, do what works best for you. You can't please everyone.

leeshab1982

We are having a Friday wedding.  Our ceremony will be at 6 PM and the reception will be from 7 PM - 1 AM.  We wanted to start things a bit later to make sure that more people have the opportunity to make it.  We are having a non-religious ceremony that will probably be short and sweet, maybe 20 min. max.  This has nothing to do with it being on a Friday, this is just what we want to have.We are paying for the wedding ourselves and having it on a Friday night has saved us a TON of money.  We got the hall itself for a significant discount and we've saved money with some of our vendors, as well.  Our hall was also much more lenient with their rules of minimum guests because we were having it on a Friday (they normally require a min. of 200 guests for their biggest, prettiest room, but made it 175 for us on a Friday night).  I'd estimate that overall we are saving somewhere around $2000 by choosing a Friday over a Saturday.We are going to make sure to send out Save the Dates about 7-8 months in advance, so that anyone who would need to take time off from work has plenty of time to figure that out.  I won't be offended if people can't make it to our ceremony because of it being on a Friday night.  However, if they complain to me about it, I'll probably tell them where they can go because we are doing what we can afford and it's OUR day. 

cantblobubbles

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I spoke to FI about it, and we are going to move our date one day ahead, and go ahead with a Friday wedding. Since we have no out of towners, I don't see it being an issue. Thanks again! Big weight lifted off my shoulders.

~ K

We're having a Friday wedding too - ceremony starts at 5:30, cocktail hour immediately after.  Like many others, we did it because of the savings.  Originally, I hated the idea.  Now, I've come to the conclusion that whoever can make it great, if you can't oh well.  We're giving lots of notice, so people can make arrangements and you can't please everybody.  At the same time, I won't be hurt or offended if certain people can't make it due to the circumstances.

tnspight

Let me preface this by saying that my parents are paying for our wedding.  That said, I think Friday weddings are an inconvenience to guests.  Some co-workers and I discussed this during the school year, and everyone (4-5 ppl) said the same thing.  It's a pain trying to get there from work, whether taking the day off or leaving early.  Taking the day off or leaving early comes out of your vacation/personal/sick time.  After leaving, whether early or not, you have to do all of the prep (shower, make-up, hair, etc) over again instead of being able to rest after working all week.  Could you save by having it early Saturday or Sunday afternoon?  My aunt and girlfriend were married on Sat afternoons and saved a lot of $.  My aunt was married at The Ritz where we had brunch, soda/juice and champagne/mimosas.  My girlfriend was married at the D'born Inn.  She had lunch served and no alcohol as she and DH don't drink.Regardless of what night you pick, as others have said, your fam & friends will be there to support you no matter what u decide.  GL

ked353

I was just like you! SOOO against a Friday wedding. I still am iffy about Friday but it makes sense.  YOu get a discount on many things for the same service.  The guests still get a weekend... and they get to get out of work a little early on a Friday!  They will have SO much time in advance that it will be fine for getting out of work!  This works out well because all but a few of our guests are local so not much travel. What we are doing differently: Nothing but having better/more food for the same price! Our wedding I believe will start at 4:30 and reception like 6 or 6:30.  If someone gripes oh well! Its your wedding and this is what it is. Since ours is at a hotel (Dearborn Inn) we get Saturday to all hang out!!    Go for Friday if that is what you want! I guess... Are you will to pay more just for a certain day of the week? To me it is going to be our Wedding day no matter if its a Friday or Saturday.  Good luck!

cantblobubbles

tnspight, I understand what you're saying, but 98% of the guests will be family, and they are big time party people. We all like partying until the wee hours of the night, so a brunch or afternoon lunch reception would just suck.I appreciate the advice though

amyvan317

Having a Friday wedding was the one thing DH was adament against.  We had a lot of out of town guests as well as our bridal party, and we didnt' feel right having people take 2 days off of work for our wedding.  Additionally, we had no cost savings with our vendors, so it made the decision really easy.I personally cannot stand them.  The rush getting to the ceremony and reception after work and just feeling usually exhausted on Friday nights after working all week.  After talking with some people about it, I realized we weren't the only ones that felt that way.

scarywife1026

We had a Friday wedding. Ceremony started at 5pm. Reception followed after since we had the ceremony & reception at the same location. We had a huge turnout for the ceremony. We had a great turnout to the reception as well, and people stayed to the end. I'm w/ Tammara. If they want to come, they'll come. No one complained about the time or having it on a Friday. We had a ton of OOT guests (35 rooms booked). The good thing about having it on a Friday is that guests still have the rest of the weekend.  

HeidiMarie95

I'm getting married on a Friday, and personally I prefer going to them, too, because Saturday and Sunday are my only days off, and that way I still get to do what I want to do for them.Keep in mind that this is your big day, and you are inviting other people to share it with you - you guys call the shots and if they can make it, that's wonderful. As long as you're not upset if someone can't make it. People have vacation days for a reason, and I know I would never ever think twice about using one day to celebrate a wedding with a loved one.

~ K

Well said HeidiMarie!  That's what I was trying to say but you said it much better!

aprillm730

I am getting married on a Friday. Really, what really made my decision for me was that we are having a full mass ceremony, and on Saturdays you can only have them up to a certain time in catholic churches beceause they have afternoon masses... I have always been a guest who HATES that huge gap in between ceremonies and receptions on Saturdays!! I thought of a Friday because there is no gap, only a little for a few pictures outside. I thought... which would annoy me more? A huge gap on a Saturday or leaving work a little early on Friday? And my Friday wedding was born at that moment!

jessimaphone

I hate Friday weddings, as a guest. They're incredibly presumptuous and usually a rush/not enjoyable time to try and get to. In general, I don't know many guests who like Friday weddings - but as a Bride who is planning, they sure are tempting!If it's the route you're going to go, I would plan it late, and plan it as a same location for the ceremony/reception and keep it small and simple.

leeshab1982

I think "incredibly presumptuous" is pretty harsh. I don't see any boldness or arrogance in planning a wedding for a Friday night.  I have been to many of them and have never thought twice about it.  Who is the wedding about, anyway?

wpw08

I agree that it is presumptous to assume that it is easy for everyone to be able to go on a Friday.   The wedding itself is about the couple, but the reception is the thank you from the couple to their guests for being there to celebrate their wedding so if I can't go to the Ceremony, I don't go to the reception.   I also always feel rushed for Friday weddings and given that I barely get any time off at all during the year, I wouldn't take time off to go to a Friday wedding unless I was in it.