Wedding Reception Forum

Need ideas for a rustic, Old South wedding

 I am having an outdoor wedding reception at Beavers Bend State Park. My family is helping out with the wedding plans. I am in need of some ideas for some rustic-looking tables and chairs for my reception. My little sister had an idea of making picnic tables and benches out of square hay bales. Can anybody else give me some more ideas that would tie into my wedding theme?

Re: Need ideas for a rustic, Old South wedding

  • itzMSitzMS member
    2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers First Anniversary
    In Response to Need ideas for a rustic, Old South wedding:
    [QUOTE] I am having an outdoor wedding reception at Beavers Bend State Park. My family is helping out with the wedding plans. I am in need of some ideas for some rustic-looking tables and chairs for my reception. My little sister had an idea of making picnic tables and benches out of square hay bales. Can anybody else give me some more ideas that would tie into my wedding theme?
    Posted by sweetlilsoutherngirl[/QUOTE]

    Please don't have your guests sit on hay bales. They are pokey and itchy and lots of people are allergic/sensitive to hay.

    Try googling "rustic wedding" or "country wedding" and you will find TONS of images and websites to gather ideas.
  • I agree about avoiding the hay bales.  It looks cool, but hay is extremely uncomfortable to sit on unless you are wearing leather or denim.  It has the potential to rip and tear the type of clothing most people would wear to a wedding.  If you want to use the hay, put bales around the outside to decorate instead.

    I also like gingham picnic table clothes and mason jars with simple flowers, like daisies.  
  • I also agree about avoiding hay bales, even if it you cover them with a quilt/some sort of fabric, they're still going to be uncomfortable. Pinterest has tons of rustic/country wedding ideas. :)
  • I actually think the hay baked are cute. Maybe you can put a cloth over them. Or just use the original park benches. Both seem rustic.
  • Hay bales aren't Old South. You wouldn't see Scarlet O'Hara sitting on a hay bale ;) I would suggest long tables (think picnic table, but without the bench - ladies in dresses will not want to climb in and out of a picnic table bench). If you leave the tables uncovered it will give you a rustic feel & save $ on linens! If you feel as though you should have hay bales you could cover them with quilts (or something equally thick) and have them scattered around so that people can use them to sit on as they mingle, etc.
  • Covering hay bales is a good idea,  I wouldnt want to sit on a pile of hay during a reception.  Google is agood place to search, also Pinterest is a brides new best friend!! They have soooo many things on there.  My friend said she wished Pinterest was around when she got married, she would have had an even more amazing wedding than she had!
  •  I am having an outdoor wedding reception at Beavers Bend State Park. My family is helping out with the wedding plans. I am in need of some ideas for some rustic-looking tables and chairs for my reception. My little sister had an idea of making picnic tables and benches out of square hay bales. Can anybody else give me some more ideas that would tie into my wedding theme?
    PINTEREST! Be careful of allergies with hay bales.  If I were at your wedding I wouldn't last ten minutes at a table sitting on a hay bale.  Especially children that may have asthma. 
  • edited June 2013
    That's country or Old West, not Old South.

    Go for benches and calico.
    Exactly. Old South is elegant, like so:
    image
    ETA: It's not showing up/ :( But it's a picture of Tara from Gone with the Wind.
    image
  • KDM323KDM323 member
    Knottie Warrior 500 Love Its 500 Comments Name Dropper
    Please avoid hay bales.  Not only are they uncomfortable, but they are highly allergic and can have bugs in them.

    Plus...bales of hay can actually be quite pricey - potentially more expensive than actually renting chairs for a wedding.  Then you have to get blankets, pillows, etc. to put on top of the bales so that guests can actually sit on them.
    *** Fairy Tales Do Come True *** Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • http://www.rusticweddingchic.com/

    The above website should be very beneficial for you, It came in very helpful for me planning my barn/outdoor wedding.

  • edited June 2013
    I googled Beavers Bend State Park, is that in Oklahoma? Just wondering. Are you going for the cute & vintage country theme that's all over Pinterest? Because when I think Old South I think Georgia, South Carolina, Civil War, elegant plantation homes, Spanish moss in oak trees, sweet tea, pearls, cotton, that kind of thing. Like a PP said, hay bales don't go with that. I hope you don't think I am being critical; I genuinely want to help but I want to have a better understand of the look you're going for. 

  • I agree with Navy and Allie. You're saying your theme is old south when it sounds rustic and country. They are most definitely not the same thing. Whichever route you go, please do not use hay bales for the reasons listed above. It hurts to get poked by hay!




    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
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  • In addition to the other problems with hay bales mentioned, tables without somewhere to put your legs are incredibly uncomfortable to sit at.



  • Im getting married in sc at a plantation it has a pavillion area for the receptionand the benches slide out from the picnic tables and im using burlap and raw cotton for my flowers for the wedding and reception :)
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