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Branford House Layout

KLT0109KLT0109
First Comment
in Connecticut
Hi - question for any Branford House brides who have had their weddings already or anyone who has been to a wedding there.  I am planning on having guests in the main room and the room closest to the office and then the DJ in the room on the other side.  I'm worried that guests seated in the side room won't want to walk to the other side to dance.  Has anyone had this happen?  Did your guests in that side room still walk through the main room and into the DJ room to dance or did they seem bored and stayed on that other side room away from the DJ?  Hope to hear back from someone on this!  Thanks!
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Re: Branford House Layout

  • calindicalindi member
    5000 Comments Second Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    Hi!!!  I'm getting married at the Branford House on Sept 1, 2012 (the day before you???) so I think we should definitely chat off-board to see if we can help each other out at all.  Like I'm renting a tent for the patio, if you want to split that somehow.

    We're having dancing on the patio under the tent, stations in the room closest to the office, and seating in the other two rooms.

    I think it totally depends on your crowd - are they likely to want to dance?  If people want to dance, nothing is going to keep them from the dance floor, certainly not a few feet to walk.  If they're an older crowd and would prefer not to dance, you might end up with people milling about.

    I went to a wedding recently where everything was in one room, but there was an outdoor area with the bar and places to sit.  It was super easy to get to the dance floor since it was in the middle of the room, but a lot of people wandered outside because they just didn't want to dance.  It all depends on the crowd!  Talk to your DJ to see how they manage a crowd - I feel 100% confident that DJ Melee is going to be able to get people dancing, and I know my friends will be on the dance floor from the first song to the last, though we'll have a seating area for the older generation.

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  • TBee99TBee99 member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    We are doing a similiar set up as you and I'm not concerned. If people want to dance, they will! We are also having a buffet, so people will be up and down anyhow. I think as long as you have a good DJ, you won't have a problem!
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    We are planning on doing food stations outside on the patio  (under a tent I believe) and seating in the room closest to the office and the middle room and dancing in the last room next to the portico where the open bar will be.  We are also using DJ Melee and his preference is to be set up in the middle room in the corner where the piano is.  He said it worked best for him and the dancing.  I don't think we'll have trouble getting people to the dance floor since the booze will be right there too!
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  • rswan412rswan412 member
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I have no idea what the room closest to the office is, as I just attended a wedding there- so looking AT branford house, from the driveway, the room all the way to the left was where the candy buffet and food was, the middle room had the tables and the last room was for the ceremony and then for the DJ and Dancing. This was a winter wedding. People absolotely mingled aroudn the WHOLE area- but it depends on your crowd- we thought it was set up great, and I will make my way to the DJ wherever I am because I LOVE to dance.
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  • KLT0109KLT0109
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Thanks for the input!  I guess you are all having buffets but I am doing a sit-down dinner so won't need a space for the buffet stations.  I'm expecting at least 140 guests, if not more so will need that whole space for tables.  That's interesting that DJ Melee sets up in the main room and doesn't want to be in the room where the actual dancing is?  Does he put speakers in that room?  I haven't found a DJ or a photographer yet so any suggestions there would be welcome too!  Thank you!
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  • calindicalindi member
    5000 Comments Second Anniversary Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    Yes, he puts speakers in that room.  He just needs a central place to set up, and he doesn't like to take up useable space for other things, like guest tables and food setup and bars and such.  That space next to the staircase is perfect for him, he said.

    He operates all his speakers with his iPad, so he can walk around and doesn't need a big bulky set-up.  Just give him a call and see if he still has your date available, and if so you can discuss specifics.

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  • monefmonef
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I got married at Branford House in June. Coastal Gourmet did the catering and DJ Melee was the DJ. We had 125 guests and we had the buffett set up outside. Room closest to the office had candy buffett, photobooth and three tables. Main room had the majority of the tables, and the side room closest to outdoors had 4 more tables, DJ  set up and dance floor. The bar was outside on the side patio. It worked amazingly well. People were up mingling and dancing the whole night. DJ Melee was incredible. My photographer has just blogged the pics so if you go through until you get to the reception bits you can get an idea. Photographer was my favourite vendor of the night. Amazing.

    http://alakija.com/blog/2011/09/20/efe-tom-mystic-ct-alakija-co-photography-moving-to-the-usa/
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  • KLT0109KLT0109
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Thanks so much!  Your pictures are gorgeous!  Who did you rent the chairs from and do you remember how much they cost?  I don't really want to use the white chairs that the venue has but all the rental chairs are like $7.50 per chair which seems kind of crazy. 
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  • monefmonef
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I did all my rentals through the catere, coastal Gourmet. Honestly, I think it was about $7 per chair, chiavari chars are so expensive! I ended up deciding that the cost of renting white wooden chairs + chair covers would have been about $5-6 so the extra dollar for chiavari was worth it.
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  • KLT0109KLT0109
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Did any of you who used DJ Melee happen to ask him why his prices are so much lower than all the other DJs?  He is half the price of all the other ones I've gotten quotes from.  He has great reviews but it just makes me nervous why he's so much cheaper.  Let me know if any of you know why he's so cheap!  Thanks!
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  • aliciapoormanaliciapoorman member
    First Comment
    Hi, I'm a bride getting married this April 22, 2012! I'm deciding whether or not to have my actual ceremony outside..any ideas for a party of 200. I'm also wondering what the set-up would look like inside the big ballroom if we were all to sit inside..any ideas??
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  • calindicalindi member
    5000 Comments Second Anniversary Combo Breaker
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_connecticut_branford-house-layout?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:65Discussion:fe57c8fc-9050-4e6b-aba4-a1cd30d5621aPost:1ac86961-e719-4aa4-8a4f-00e72f2a91ae">Re: Branford House Layout</a>:
    [QUOTE]Hi, I'm a bride getting married this April 22, 2012! I'm deciding whether or not to have my actual ceremony outside..any ideas for a party of 200. I'm also wondering what the set-up would look like inside the big ballroom if we were all to sit inside..any ideas??
    Posted by aliciapoorman[/QUOTE]

    Alicia, hi and welcome to the board!  Just for future reference, usually when a thread hasn't been commented on in several weeks we just start a new thread.

    That said, I think 200 people eating a sit-down dinner inside the Branford House would be rather tight.  We capped it around 170 comfortably seated without buffets, around 160 (ideally 150) with buffets since they'd need more room to walk around and for the tables.

    April could still be quite cold, yes?  I haven't lived up north in a few years, so my sense of temperature for seasons might be off.  If you have a ceremony outside, just keep it very short so people don't freeze! 

    What about renting a tent for the patio?  That would extend your seating area, and if it's warm you could leave the doors off but if it's cold you could wall it off so it stays warm inside.  It would also give you a backup for a ceremony space if it's too cold or rainy!

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  • SharlyAnnSharlyAnn
    First Comment
    Hello! This is my first post :) I am also getting married at the Branford House 09/21/2013. We were originally going to tent the dinner outside through Sperry but it would add on so much extra $ (between the tent rental and lawn fee) that we decided to have our guests eat inside, and rent a smaller tent (with lights and heaters) over the patio for dancing. This will keep everything free flowing and not confine everyone to inside since a party of 200 can be rather tight! Hopefully we will get that number down through the planning process but this is what we have so far!
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