Another Timeline Question - Which of you ladies wants to help me plan my wedding?

missdelilah · February 2015

Silly me! I thought you booked a venue, told them what food you wanted, and things got sorted out for you. So, now I'm all muddle because I don't know how quickly after everyone's seated they'll be expecting food. They'll get snacks after the ceremony, but I have no idea how substantial or plentiful these will be. We have the room from 6 until 11 PM, but don't want the food to run too late, because there are some families with children. We're having two courses (so how long do I leave between these?) and the cake for dessert (plus some ice cream we're providing). I wanted to get the cake cutting in early as it's easier for the kitchen staff and less waiting for everyone else, or do I do cake cutting, then speeches? And dances before or after or in the middle of food? I figure the speeches go in between entree and cake. I'm all up for suggestions on this, so please, have at it if you're so inclined.

Many thanks! x.

emmaaa · February 2015

The way we did it:

-Ceremony: 5:00 pm - 5:15 pm

-Guests travel from church to reception venue: 5:15-5:30

-Guests begin to get food as they arrive at venue (we had a buffet) at 5:30 and eat until 6:15

-In the meantime we took family pictures.

-Got to reception venue along with wedding party at 6:15

-Spotlight dances at 6:20 until 6:30

-Wedding party and H and I got food

-Toasts at 6:45

-Cutting the cake at 6:55.

-Serving cake until 7:10

-Started table visits and dance floor open by 7:15

novella1186 · February 2015

What kind of snacks do they get after the ceremony? Is it like a cocktail hour? Are you doing a first look or will you need time after the ceremony to do photos?

The ceremony ends and then the reception starts immediately after, at 6, and that's when they'll get the snacks? If that's the case, I'd say dinner could start at 7, and then you could use that hour for photos if you need to.

I would suggest cutting the cake just before you start dinner so that the caterers can finish cutting and plating it and can start serving it when the guests are ready.

Here's what we're doing:

First look and all the other photos starting around 2 or 3 to be done by 4
Ceremony at 5pm immediately followed by cocktail hour, at which my FI and I will be there to mingle with guests and greet people since we'll already be done with photos (ceremony and reception are at the same location)
Start dinner at about 6:30
No cake cutting because we're just doing a big dessert table of mini stuff (so excited about the chocolate mousse!!! mmmm)
May or may not do toasts but if we do them, they'll be towards the end of dinner
Photographer is gonna sneak FI and I out around 7:30 to take a couple photos during sunset
Spotlight dance when we come back in (just 1, because I don't want to dance with my dad. It's complicated) immediately followed by the Hora with all the guests (Jewish wedding)
And then the dance floor is just open for the night and people can grab desserts whenever

theartistformerlyknownas · February 2015

This is what we did:

4-4:30 Ceremony

4:30-4:50 Receiving line (for those who wanted; otherwise there was a door off to the side where some people ducked straight to cocktail hour)

4:50 Signed marriage license

5:00-6:00 Pictures/cocktail hour

6:00 Grand entrances/cut cake

6:10-6:20 (approx) Toasts and blessing; salad course served during toasts

6:30 ish plated entrees begin being served

6:50 ish spotlight dances while remaining guests finish eating

7:00 dance floor open

I think the cake was served between 7:30 and 8. We had asked for it to be set on one main table so people could help themselves as they wanted, but they took it to each seat. Not everyone knew it was there because the dance floor was PACKED all night, so some people missed out. I know my FIL ate at least 2 other people's pieces. :-p

Late night snack was brought out around 9 (although the hungry drunken mob devoured the pretzel bites before I even realized they were out! sliders were amazing though, and I dunked mine in the remaining beer cheese dip) and we closed the place down at 11.

lyndausvi · February 2015

Let's see time is a little off since it was so long ago, but I will try.

5:30 - 5:45 ceremony

Located in the same location so cocktail hour started immediately after. We took pictures in between rain squalls

around 6:45-7ish (?)- grand entrance, first dance. (guests lined the dance floor)

everyone sat down at their tables.

BM's toast, Dad did a blessing. Salads were already at the table.

Dinner was served

** note people danced between courses

Once dinner finished people just got up to dance, hit the bar, general socializing

I think around 8:45 or so we stopped dancing and cut the cake.

While the guests were eating cake we did the parent dances.

Dance floor opened back up

Party ended at 11:30.

thelastdreamer · February 2015

Ours was:

4:30-5 Ceremony

5;5:15 Receiving Line

5:15-30 Travel time

5:30-6:30 Appetizers and drinks

6:30 Entrance and we did cake cutting immediately so they could cut it during dinner

6:40 Salad course served

7 p.m. Main course served

7:15 Toasts

Mingling

8 p.m. Dessert served

ETC ETC

missdelilah · February 2015

Thank you all so much for you help! Man, am I having issues with the reply box today!

So, we've got locked in:

Ceremony: 4:15 - 4:30 ish

Receiving line/socializing: until 5.

Cocktails and snacks: 5 - 5:30 at ceremony location, which is all of about a five minute walk from the reception location. This is when we take photos.

Guests arrive at reception room around or before 6.

theartistformerlyknownas · February 2015

missdelilah said:

Thank you all so much for you help! Man, am I having issues with the reply box today!

So, we've got locked in:

Ceremony: 4:15 - 4:30 ish
Receiving line/socializing: until 5.
Cocktails and snacks: 5 - 5:30 at ceremony location, which is all of about a five minute walk from the reception location. This is when we take photos.
Guests arrive at reception room around or before 6.

What's happening between 5:30 and 6 if it's only a 5 minute walk?

IMO, you've got about a half hour, 45 minutes tops between when the last cocktail hour nibble is eaten and the next course should be served. People tend to get antsy longer than this. So I would try to have your first course served as soon as possible after 6, if the snacks only go til 5:30. The venue should be able to time subsequent course(s) after that.

(And because SS's always seem to jump on this, it's not because I can't go without being fed for longer than 30 minutes, but because I don't want to wait around. You'd be pissed if you went out to dinner and it took 40+ minutes to get your entrees after you finished your appetizer; the same applies here)

theartistformerlyknownas · February 2015

And HOLY CRAP I just realized your ticker says 2 weeks to go! Ahh!

missdelilah · February 2015

@lolo883 I have no idea. That was all the venue's planning. I got zero say in the 5:30 - 6 part. People may well want to wander around. It's a very pretty site, and I believe there are a couple of museum buildings that they can check out.

Well, it's like nibbles, then appetizers, then entrees, but yeah, I was worried about striking a balance of getting everyone who wants to sticky beak around the venue up there and not making anyone wait too much.

Another Timeline Question - Which of you ladies wants to help me plan my wedding?

Re: Another Timeline Question - Which of you ladies wants to help me plan my wedding?

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