Timeline ok?

Re: Timeline ok?

• tammym1001 member

  

  March 2014

  Are you having your hair and make up done at the ceremony site? I think 1 1/2 hours for that might be a little rushed and if you have to drive to the ceremony site for pictures then that definitely isn't enough time. Also remember you will need time in there to get into your dress.

  
  

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• Gina0887 member

  

  March 2014

  Thanks! My dress is really easy to get into and hair and makeup would be at the church. You still think I'll need more time?
  

  

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• AprilH81 member

  

  March 2014

  Gina0887 said:

  Here is the timeline I'm looking at doing. Please offer suggestions if you think I'm wrong in the amount of time it takes. (My photographer thinks it is not enough time because I'm "pushing it close"). I told her I don't care for all the detail pictures as much as I do the interactions.
  
  2:00pm - Makeup I would do makeup last so it is "fresh" and I would allow 45 minutes for you and 30 minutes for anyone else getting make-up done.
  2:30 pm - Hair Unless you are having the most simple of hairstyles it will take longer than an hour.  My trial time was 40 minutes and it took double that on the wedding day causing us to miss picture time.
  3:30pm - Pictures of bridal party and immediate family (FI doesn't want to see me until I walk down the aisle)
  5:00pm - Ceremony
  5:45pm - Receiving line (is this really necessary? We have 85 guests.) We had a similar guest count and a receiving line is quick and easy.  We also tried to do table visits too, but we didn't get to every table so this ensured we greeted everyone.
  6:00pm - Guests drive to reception venue (takes 25-30 minutes to get to reception venue) / Pictures with FI and I together
  6:30pm - Cocktail hour on balcony / More pictures including more extended family groups (aunts/uncles, etc)
  7:30pm - Reception ballroom opens
  7:40pm - Announcement right into first dance
  7:45pm - Father/daughter dance
  7:50pm - Mother/son dance
  7:55pm - Bride/groom dinner served
  8:00pm - Guests served/dinner
  9:15pm - MOH/Best man toasts/dance music starts
  9:45pm - Cake cutting
  10:15 - Bouquet toss/garter toss
  11:30 - Farewell
  

  See my comments in bold.  You will want to start hair and makeup earlier to give yourself some wiggle room.  Things ALWAYS take longer than you think and you don't want to run late.

  I would do the cake cutting and bouquet/garter toss before the dancing starts so you don't stop the party for spotlight events.  People may use the break in action to just pick up and leave.

  If possible I would tighten up the timeline between the pictures at the church and cocktail hour.  Can you do the family pictures at the church so you don't have to track everyone down during cocktail hour? 
  

  

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• Gina0887 member

  

  March 2014

  Thanks you so much, @AprilH81 !!
  I would prefer clumping all the "events" so I can just relax and have a good time too instead of getting interrupted so much. I just didn't want guests to feel rushed. Does this sound better?
  
  1:30pm - Hair (it will be down and pretty simple, but I can bump this up after trial run if it takes more than planned)
  2:45 pm - Makeup
  3:30pm - Pictures of bridal party and immediate family in church
  4:30pm - Doors of church open
  5:00pm - Ceremony
  5:45pm - Receiving line
  6:00pm - Guests drive to reception venue / Pictures with extended family
  6:30pm - Cocktail hour on balcony / Pictures of FI and I
  7:30pm - Reception ballroom opens
  7:40pm - Announcement right into first dance
  7:45pm - Father/daughter dance
  7:50pm - Mother/son dance
  7:55pm - Bride/groom dinner served then guests
  8:45pm - MOH/Best man toasts
  9:15pm - Cake cutting
  9:20pm - Bouquet toss/garter toss while caterer is cutting cake/dance music
  11:30 - Farewell
  
  Does that sound like enough dance time? I'm not sure if I should book DJ for longer or just see how it goes and add per hour charge if need be.
  

  

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• AprilH81 member

  

  March 2014 edited March 2014

  @gina0887 I think that will work a lot better for you and I think 2 hours for all out dancing/partying is plenty.

  You can also move up the toasts and have them happen DURING the main course if you want to further condense things without rushing.  The best man gave his toast after the last table was served their entree so no one really stopped eating to listen.

  Here was our reception timeline if it helps (lunch reception).

  12:30 Entrance/Introductions

  12:35 First Dance

  12:40 Joint Parent Dances (we danced to the same song at the same time to split the attention between us and to eliminate a spotlight event)

  12:45 Cake Cutting

  12:50 Blessing

  12:55 Meal Service Began

  1:50 Group Picture on the Dance Floor (80 guests)

  2:00 Anniversary Dance

  2:05-4:00 Open Dance Floor (most guests were gone by 3:30-3:45)

  We didn't do a bouquet toss or garter toss...

  

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• Gina0887 member

  

  March 2014

  Thank you so much, @AprilH81 for your input! I do like the idea of toasts during dinner and for cake cutting can just gauge by when people are finishing up dinner and estimate an hour.
  

  

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• AprilH81 member

  

  March 2014

  Happy to help! 

  Don't forget to talk to your venue coordinator if you have one, mine was wonderful about fine tuning the schedule since I wasn't sure how long meal service would take.

  Also, a benefit to cutting the cake before dinner is that they can take it back and cut it before people start really wanting cake. 

  

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• CrazyCatLady3 member

  

  March 2014

  You should ask your hair stylist and MUA how much time they need.  My hair stylist said he needs 90 min for my hair (just me, not BMs too!) and my MUA said she need an hour for just me.  It seems like a lot of time to me, but these people do this for a living so I'm going with what they say.

  
  

  Also, maybe you should intersperse the spotlight dances throughout the night instead of all at once so your guests don't have to sit and watch for so long without being able to dance themselves.

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• AprilH81 member

  

  March 2014

  CrazyCatLady3 said:

  You should ask your hair stylist and MUA how much time they need.  My hair stylist said he needs 90 min for my hair (just me, not BMs too!) and my MUA said she need an hour for just me.  It seems like a lot of time to me, but these people do this for a living so I'm going with what they say.

  
  

  Also, maybe you should intersperse the spotlight dances throughout the night instead of all at once so your guests don't have to sit and watch for so long without being able to dance themselves.

  The problem with breaking up the spotlight dances is that you will need to stop the party to have people sit down to watch someone dance for 3 minutes and then the DJ will have to work hard to get the party started again.  In theory it is great, but in practice it usually ruins the mood of the party.
  

  

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• netskyblue2 member

  

  March 2014

  Is that a typical order of events?
  
  I thought the spotlight dances usually came right after dinner, and then once they were over, the floor was opened to the rest of the party?  I'd be hungry having to wait through all that before getting to eat!
  
  If it's right after the meal, then the guests are satiated from dinner, but maybe a bit full yet to rock the dance floor.  It gives them some time to adjust to the tone of the party moving towards dancing without them yet being expected to participate. 
  

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• AprilH81 member

  

  March 2014 edited March 2014

  netskyblue2 said:

  Is that a typical order of events?
  
  I thought the spotlight dances usually came right after dinner, and then once they were over, the floor was opened to the rest of the party?  I'd be hungry having to wait through all that before getting to eat!
  
  If it's right after the meal, then the guests are satiated from dinner, but maybe a bit full yet to rock the dance floor.  It gives them some time to adjust to the tone of the party moving towards dancing without them yet being expected to participate. 
  

  
  You can do it however you wanted to, but since we had a cocktail hour I knew people wouldn't be starving so we chose to do the events at the beginning so we could use the anniversary dance to kick things off.

  I doubt that sitting through 10 minutes of spotlight dances will be enough time for dinner to settle.  *shrug*

  

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• CrazyCatLady3 member

  

  March 2014

  AprilH81 said:

  CrazyCatLady3 said:

  You should ask your hair stylist and MUA how much time they need.  My hair stylist said he needs 90 min for my hair (just me, not BMs too!) and my MUA said she need an hour for just me.  It seems like a lot of time to me, but these people do this for a living so I'm going with what they say.

  
  

  Also, maybe you should intersperse the spotlight dances throughout the night instead of all at once so your guests don't have to sit and watch for so long without being able to dance themselves.

  The problem with breaking up the spotlight dances is that you will need to stop the party to have people sit down to watch someone dance for 3 minutes and then the DJ will have to work hard to get the party started again.  In theory it is great, but in practice it usually ruins the mood of the party.
  

  At the weddings I have been to, the spotlight dances start after a course has finished, so guests are still at their seats.  But these are weddings where all dancing is interspersed between different courses.

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• Gina0887 member

  

  March 2014

  I just want to at least get our dance done and out of the way so I can relax and eat lol.
  

  

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• JoanE2012 member

  

  March 2014

  We did spotlight dances right after grand entrance.  Then we had a best man speech and then dinner.  The DJ opened up the dance floor between courses.  I like when everything is done early.  We had the same reception time and I think our cake cutting was around 9:30.

  
  

  I would just check with your hair and makeup person to see how much time they need. Then I'd start one hour earlier.  You never know what could happen to slow it down and its better to have too much time than not enough.  I built in extra time throughout the day but never really found myself idle.  I'm all about avoiding stress whenever possible!
  

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• Gina0887 member

  

  March 2014

  I just want to at least get our first dance done so I can relax. Might as well do them all in a row to get them over with, right? And we have heavy appetizers during cocktail hour.
  

  

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• JoanE2012 member

  

  March 2014

  Gina0887 said:

  I just want to at least get our first dance done so I can relax. Might as well do them all in a row to get them over with, right? And we have heavy appetizers during cocktail hour.
  

  Yes!  Once the party gets going, you're not going to want to stop it for the parent dances.  Guests will be annoyed.  Get them all done with at the beginning.  Our DJ didn't even play full songs....maybe 2 minutes or so for parent dances?  I can't remember, but they know not to drag them on and they will find an appropriate place to end it.

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• theartistformerlyknownas member

  

  March 2014

  I would definitely cut your cake earlier, unless you're doing mostly-fake cake for display and have "kitchen cakes" that the staff can be cutting while other things are going on. Otherwise it won't be served til almost 10, and people will be leaving already. Try to have it ready to serve right after dinner is finished.

  
  

  We're going straight from our entrance to cutting the cake, then toasts during the salad course, and spotlight dances right after we finish our meals/while everyone else is still eating. By the time spotlight dances are done the cake will be served (left on a table so people can grab between dancing).

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