A seat for every butt?

raeah219 · January 2014

I know that I need chairs for all of my guest during the ceremony and reception, but what about during cocktail hour? Im going to rent some high top tables, and there are a few benches and couches on the garden where we are doing cocktails, but not enough place to put 120 chairs. People could go sit in the ceremony chairs right? I dont know. What should I do ladies? An hour is too long to be standing in heels while im taking pictures somewhere. I dont want to be rude to my guests.

firebabe6519 · January 2014

Are you against first look? That could lessen the wait time for the pictures. Otherwise I think they do need chairs. Standing in heels outdoors for an hour is killer.

SlothGoals · January 2014

How far is the ceremony space from the cocktail space? I went to a wedding once where they were literally right beside each other and people simply sat in the ceremony chairs if they wanted to sit instead of mingle.

Would there be a way for the venue staff to do a quick flip and move the ceremony chairs to the cocktail space?

raeah219 · January 2014

firebabe6519 said:

Are you against first look? That could lessen the wait time for the pictures. Otherwise I think they do need chairs. Standing in heels outdoors for an hour is killer.

I dont like the first look thing. We dont want him to see me until I'm coming down the aisle.

MyNameIsNot · January 2014

I've never seen that many chairs at a cocktail hour. Yes, standing for an hour in heels can start to be a bit much, but that's why there are high tops, sofas, etc around. Most people will walk around, get a drink, use the facilities, sit and chat with someone, then walk around and get another drink or chat with someone else. The hour goes by very quickly.

ei34 · January 2014

You said it- a seat for every butt. It doesn't have to be chairs...if the high tables have stools, and as you'd mentioned, there are benches and couches, you'd only need enough chairs to ensure that if every guest during cocktails wanted to sit at the same time, they'd all be able to.

People tend to move around during cocktail hour, to visit different food stations and mingle with different guests, but it's still important that everyone have a place to sit if they desire.

KatWAG · January 2014

We did not have a seat for every butt at our cocktail hour. And I have never seen that. FTR, our cocktail hour was in a different room than our reception.

raeah219 · January 2014

I've never seen a cocktail hour with a seat for every butt either. I have no clue how we would squeeze all those chairs into that space either

KatWAG said:

We did not have a seat for every butt at our cocktail hour. And I have never seen that. FTR, our cocktail hour was in a different room than our reception.

MandyMost · January 2014

I've never been to a cocktail hour with seating. Just like if you go to a popular/crowded bar...there's some seats, but the majority of people are standing. Or a cocktail party (whether at a house, a bar/restaurant, a function hall, for a work event, at a conference, etc.) never has chairs for everyone. Sometimes there are no chairs at all.

We will have chairs for everyone at the ceremony, then people will proceed to a separate area for the cocktail hour where there will be a few seats or benches to accommodate anyone who is incapable of standing for an hour (i.e. the elderly, a person with a foot problem, a pregnant woman, etc.) but everyone else will be standing and mingling. We'll have passed hors d'oeurves. We're planning some high-top tables to set your drink down if necessary. People will then proceed to the reception, which is using the same chairs that were used for the ceremony (they will be moved around the tables while everyone is at the cocktail hour).

delujm0 · January 2014

our cocktail will be largely standing as well..there will be some high tables and a small reserved seating area for our grandparents who physically can't stand for an hour at a time. I've never been to a wedding where people sat during the cocktail hour...it's usually just everyone mingling.

As long as it's only an hour, it's ok to not have a seat for every butt for the cocktail hour...but you absolutely need them for the ceremony and reception, obviously. ANd if your cocktail "hour" goes longer than an hour, you might want to consider making the reception space available if people would like to sit down.

ElcaB · January 2014

I've never been to a cocktail hour with a seat for every butt. Ever.

I think you're okay, as long as there's some seating.

majesty318 · January 2014

I also have never seen a cocktail hour with enough seating for every single person. However my mom does tell a horror story of a cocktail hour she attended with no seating at all, as well as hardly any food... everyone was drunk and standing (wobbling). So that would be the other extreme. But the norm for weddings I have been to is some seats - high tops, sofas, etc. I would say enough for half the people or so.

JaxInBlue · January 2014

Agree that chairs for most is probably okay but I'm also one of those people who can't stand for heels in an hour without triggering back problems. If guests don't circulate and the seating remains taken by those who grabbed the spots first, it can be awful for me. Definitely be sure to keep cocktail hour to an hour or less as a courtesy to your guests in this situation.

QueerFemme · January 2014

I went to a wedding with no seating for cocktail hour and within 15 minutes people were bitching. 30 minutes in, there were women in pretty dresses sitting on concrete.

raeah219 · January 2014

QueerFemme said:

I went to a wedding with no seating for cocktail hour and within 15 minutes people were bitching. 30 minutes in, there were women in pretty dresses sitting on concrete.

I would never have no seating at all. Thats horrible

lyndausvi · January 2014

No you do not have to have a seat for every butt for a cocktail hour. As along as you have a decent amount of places for people to sit and/or put down your drink you are good.

I have also have zero patiences for women who choose fashion over comfort when it comes to foot ware.

mysticl · January 2014

The majority of the cocktails hours that I have been to have been in the same room as the reception so people could just sit at their table. The last wedding I was at had cocktail hour in a different room with limited seating. Certain people got in there right away and claimed their seats. Leaving the pregnant guest to stand and me to stand holding my 11 month old (my husband and I kept trading him off). Some of use went into the reception room even though we weren't "supposed" to be there so we could put our stuff down and sit for a while.

raeah219 · January 2014

mysticl said:

The majority of the cocktails hours that I have been to have been in the same room as the reception so people could just sit at their table. .

I havent been to a lot of weddings, only 2. The majority of my wedding knowledge comes from TV, and they always seem to do the cocktail hour somewhere else, but I never understood why we couldnt just do it in the reception room. It will already be set up and everything. Maybe we will do that.

JCbride2015 · January 2014

I've been to... I don't know, around 7 weddings. Never seen a cocktail hour with enough chairs to seat everyone. We will have some seating at our cocktail hour, but definitely not a seat for every butt.

Maggie0829 · January 2014

raeah219 said:

mysticl said:

The majority of the cocktails hours that I have been to have been in the same room as the reception so people could just sit at their table. .

I havent been to a lot of weddings, only 2. The majority of my wedding knowledge comes from TV, and they always seem to do the cocktail hour somewhere else, but I never understood why we couldnt just do it in the reception room. It will already be set up and everything. Maybe we will do that.

The majority of weddings I have been to have their cocktail hour in the reception room. Very few have the cocktail hour elsewhere and I believe those that did was because the reception room was also used as the ceremony room so a quick changeover was needed.

AddieCake · January 2014

I've only ever been to weddings with cocktail hour in the reception room.

Sars06 · January 2014

Echoing others, I have never been to a wedding where there was full-seating at the cocktail hour. As long as some seating is available, I think guests are ok to stand and mingle for an hour. People tend to be waiting in line at the bar or standing around the food tables anyway.

tammym1001 · January 2014

Every wedding that I've been to had the cocktail hour in the reception room so people just sat at their tables.

HisGirlFriday13 · January 2014

I just want to thank you for the tables. The last wedding I went to that had a cocktail hour had neither seating options NOR tables, so DH (then FI) and I had to juggle messy food (meatballs and crab cakes and shrimp cocktail) and drinks and my purse and it was a disaster.

PrettyGirlLost · January 2014

HisGirlFriday13 said:

I just want to thank you for the tables. The last wedding I went to that had a cocktail hour had neither seating options NOR tables, so DH (then FI) and I had to juggle messy food (meatballs and crab cakes and shrimp cocktail) and drinks and my purse and it was a disaster.

I hate that, that is the worst!!!!!!

HisGirlFriday13 · January 2014

PrettyGirlLost said:

HisGirlFriday13 said:

I just want to thank you for the tables. The last wedding I went to that had a cocktail hour had neither seating options NOR tables, so DH (then FI) and I had to juggle messy food (meatballs and crab cakes and shrimp cocktail) and drinks and my purse and it was a disaster.

I hate that, that is the worst!!!!!!

I gave up on the food and just drank. It made the Pinterest explosion of the wedding seem less....something

kjvaracalli · January 2014

I agree with some others: I don't think you need a seat for EVERY behind, but as long as you have some (you do), you're fine! Cocktail hour in my head implies you're likely going to stand and mingle, but there will be a few seats. Most weddings I've attended have been cocktails in different room than reception (mine will be that way too), but there are some couches, some high top tables, plus guests can walk around the place too. I think you're fine.

mysticl · January 2014

HisGirlFriday13 said:

I just want to thank you for the tables. The last wedding I went to that had a cocktail hour had neither seating options NOR tables, so DH (then FI) and I had to juggle messy food (meatballs and crab cakes and shrimp cocktail) and drinks and my purse and it was a disaster.

That was the last wedding I was at. The people who snagged the only chairs also snagged the only tables. The only other option was to stand at the bar to eat and block people who were trying to get a drink. So throw juggling a baby in there and imagine my "fun". At least the food wasn't that messy.

phira · January 2014

Of the weddings I've been to recently that have had cocktail hours, one of them had tables and no seating, and the other was in the same room as the reception. The second one had a MUCH more enjoyable cocktail hour, but I think it would have been okay if the first one had SOME seating.

Our cocktail hour is going to be in a separate area from the room where we're having our ceremony and reception. We're going to have some high tops and limited seating (couches and benches), but after the room is flipped to the reception layout (about 10 minutes), guests can head to their seats if they'd like.

In your case, I'd try to make sure there's some seating, and definitely tables, but don't stress if there isn't seating for everyone. If you want to make sure your photos don't run long, but you don't want to do a first look, I recommend doing some photos pre-ceremony that don't require you to be in photos with your partner. So, pictures of the groom and groomsmen, bride and bridesmaids, etc.

climbingsingle · January 2014

I don't think you need a seat for every butt during cocktail hour. Most of the cocktail hours I've been at had just limited seating and high top tables. I've never been bothered by it.

melbelleup · January 2014

Just my opinion, I'd have at least half of seats. The wedding I went to in dec only had 3 tables of seats..... which all older folk took. I was dying by time dinner came. People also went back to the ceremony area and sat while they were trying to take pictures which rattled my friend (the bride). More chairs, the better.

A seat for every butt?

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