Outdoor/Backyard/Tent Wedding-who does what?

radleyboo · October 2012

Hi all-
FI and I are in the very early stages of planning a June-ish wedding for next year. I am of the mind that I'd like to do a small, family wedding in my Aunt & Uncle's backyard, they have a lovely home with a huge yard on a lake. I'm thinking renting a tent, hiring a caterer, going that route, you get the picture. However, as I'm thinking of all the 'moving parts' to this production, I'm getting cold sweats and palpitations over the logistics of it all. I have some very basic questions, and I'd love your input:

Who sets up the tables and chairs?
Who 'sets' the tables and chairs with linens and dishware/glassware/silverware?
Who sets up the chairs and decor for the ceremony?
Who takes care of the audio for our music and singer?
Who decorates the tent?
Who cleans up at the end of the night?
What about trash?

We're trying to decide if we should go the less-expensive route and DIY at my Aunt's, or pay a premium for something at a restaurant or inn. This is a second wedding and we are on a budget, hope that helps.

I've never orchestrated an event like this, so please, be gentle even if some of my questions are basic. Any ideas are welcome!

Thanks.

Knottie1450123632 · October 2012

depends on your caterer. depends what is in the contract

QueerFemme · October 2012

this all depends on your caterer and who else you hire. If you hire someone to come and set up the tent, they will likely come and take it down for you. The caterer may supply the linens, silverware, etc., but you'd have to ask them and see what is included.

You can also hire some "helpers" to do things like trash collection, cleaning up, etc. Sometimes you can find those people through your other vendors (like the caterer, or other vendors). You also have to see if the caterer will want to work in a backyard type of setting. If they don't have access to a commercial kitchen, everything will need to be prepared in advance. That may cost more.

Also, if you are serving liquor, that will be an additional expense, and you may have to hire a licensed bartender.

So, there are a LOT of variables. the best thing to do is just start calling around and getting estimates and see what people are willing to offer you.

jennylee813 · October 2012

This sounds a lot like what we're planning. I've hired a caterer who is willing to travel to our location for no extra charge, so they will be setting up place settings and breaking them down afterwards. We will set up the tables ourselves the night before or the morning of. I am planning to ask the groomsmen to move the chairs from the ceremony site to the tables for dinner (which is basically across the lawn).

We were torn about hiring a caterer or doing it ourselves, but that meant a lot of extra work and rentals. If we had provided the meals ourselves we would have had to rent dishes as well as tables and chairs - so the costs quickly mount.

Budget wise for us, it was actually less expensive to go with a caterer.

HTH

balletdawn · October 2012

I would NOT say a wedding rental company is cheap, but I agree that they will usually set the tables & chairs up for you. Ours set up the night before & left the chairs folded & propped against the tables and the linens in their packages so they wouldn't get dirty. The morning of the wedding, our moms unfolded the chairs and put the linens and centerpieces out. The caterers and the bartenders wiped the glasses and put the table settings out and then cleared plates at the end of the night. We could have rented plates but would've had to rinse them at the end of the night. Instead, the caterers were responsible for that.

What the caterers didn't take, we left. We all went back to homes & hotels or to the bar for the after party and just dealt with it the next day. It was mainly H and I, we didn't ask anyone to come help us. But our MOH and a guest spontaneously showed up and helped and it went pretty smoothly. We folded the tables & chairs and the rental co. picked everything up later in the afternoon.

I would get quotes from caterers & rental companies with a detailed list of what that includes.

[Deleted User] · October 2012

If you are concerend about the amount of work, price out both ways, reception hall and backyard. Then you can compare prices, amount of work involved & figure out which option is best for you.

jess9802 · October 2012

We got married in my MIL's backyard. Check the bio in my signature for a budget breakdown and planning information. It was a lovely, memorable wedding, but in the end, with the money we spent, as well as the money my MIL spent, I am not sure we really saved money.

Who sets up the tables and chairs? We did this before the wedding.
Who 'sets' the tables and chairs with linens and dishware/glassware/silverware? We set up the linens and silverware, placed wine glasses on the bar, water glasses and pitcher (filled by caterer) on the tables, and silverware at each place setting. The plates were at the start of the buffet line.
Who sets up the chairs and decor for the ceremony? We did this before the wedding.
Who takes care of the audio for our music and singer? We didn't have this - my aunt played the harp for our ceremony and we didn't need amplification.
Who decorates the tent? We did.
Who cleans up at the end of the night? The caterer cleared the tables and packed up everything for the rental company. We paid extra to have the rental company come and break everything down and pack it up the next day. This saved us, and our friends and family, from having to do anything after the wedding.
What about trash? Caterer did this.

It really wouldn't have been that bad setting everything up before the wedding - but it freaking rained the morning of our wedding, and we didn't have a tent. I won't repeat the story here - you can read it in my bio. If you have a tent, this will save you a lot of my trouble!

Since it was a small party in a private home we didn't need a bartender. We bought a bunch of beer and wine and it was self-serve. The caterers couldn't touch the alcohol (although one of the servers did pour my wine). This was kind of tricky when it came time for the champagne toast, but a friend brought out the bottles and passed them around the tables. I do think we saved a TON of money on not needing a bartender and being able to supply our own alcohol. If we'd had a larger wedding (more than 50 guests), it probably would have made more sense to have a bartender.

subdola · October 2012

We had a backyard/at home wedding and hired a caterer and got all our rentals (tent, tables, chairs, linins, dishes etc) through a rental company. The rental company put up the tent and dropped off all the other supplies. The caterer had a small staff who put the tables and chairs up, and set the tables before the ceremony/dinner. I cannot remember who broke it all down. I know some was done by the caterer (the dieshes etc) but they left before the party was over, so maybe we just left all the rest and the rental place dealt with it in the morning.

The only thing we had to do was move all the chairs to the yard for the ceremony, and then back to the tables for the dinner. For the ceremony I think the bridesmaids and groomsmen mostly did it before they all got ready. After the ceremony the groomsmen were going to do all the chairs, but once people saw them start to move them, everyone just sort of grabbed a chair and put it at a table...it was really easy.

In any case, I would specifically ask caterers/rental people about who does the set-up and break-down of the site so you at least know if you have to participate at all.

subdola · October 2012

One more thing - the audio for your music and singer - do you have this coordinated yet? If not, then ask the people you are thinking about hiring if they can provide a microphone, amplifier, whatever. Our guitar player for the ceremony brought an amplifier for his guitar, which we hooked up with extension cords from the main house. We wanted recorded music for the processional and immediately afterwards, so we hooked up our ipod to a stero and ran the speakers outside.

Outdoor/Backyard/Tent Wedding-who does what?

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