Reception tips and ideas

Henry Hager And Jenna Bush Wedding
Your wedding will no doubt be the most romantic day of your lives,  it's a celebration of love and commitment.  But it's also the biggest party you'll probably ever throw.  So pull out all the stops and make it a night to remember.  We've researched the top wedding experts to find their best ideas for throwing a fun and unique  reception, while maximizing the romance and tugging at the heartstrings of your guests.  Whether you use one or 10 of them, we hope you will find at least a few new and creative ideas to make your reception even more fabulous.

1. If you're planning an outdoor event, don't forget to spray the grounds for insects about an hour before the guests arrive.
2. Skip the huge head table at the reception, share an intimate dinner for two, or share a small table with your parents or children.
3. Ask your caterer to prepare a late night snack for the bride and groom.  As more often than not you are too busy with guests when dinner is served.
4. Want to use those disposable cameras on the reception tables.  To avoid having hundreds of the same pictures by turning your guests into creative photographers with a photo hunt.  Leave a list of ten great photos you would like that table to take during the reception.  Photo ideas could include; build a pyramid, group table shot, funniest pose, a guest kissing the bartender or grandparents holding hands.
5. Don't like the  disposable cameras but still want to get memories captured by your guests?  Set up a docking station so guests can load their photos to your computer on the spot.
6. Offer your guests one or two signature cocktails that you've personalized with a cute name and your wedding colors.
7. Want the expensive look of calligraphy for your invitations without the cost?  Calligraphic fonts that look like the real thing are readily available.  Free font sources: searchfreefonts.com, highfonts.com, dafont.com
8. Have a graphic artist create a custom wedding logo that you can use on printed materials and other elements of your wedding to create a cohesive look. (If you’re artistic you can do this yourself. Another option: Purchase a logo at marrymonograms.com)
9. Tell it to the world!  Hire a skywriter to spell out “Congratulations, Trish and Jason!” during an outdoor cocktail hour.
10. Ask your camera people to set up a live feed of the bridal party’s photo session for guests to enjoy over cocktails and appetizers. This way, no one is excluded from what the stars of the day are doing.
11. Glam up the ladies room.  It will be an unexpected suprise for your guests and will add a touch of elegance to your event. 
12. Put your stamp on water, wine or beer bottles with personalized labels.
13. Don’t forget your youngest guests. Create an activity book—print coloring pages on your computer, for example—and place at each child’s seat. Personalize the cover with your names and wedding date.
14. Having a beach wedding?  Personalized beach towels are the perfect gift for guests.  You could adorn them with your wedding logo or motif or have each towel embroidered with guests’ initials.
15. Another destination wedding idea, give every female guest a single flower, say, a vibrantly colored hibiscus, to wear in her hair.
16. Research family traditions. For an Irish/Scottish wedding, for example, you or a group could learn an Irish step dance. (And then invite your guests to join in, to add to the fun.)
17. Give a short speech before dinner in which you thank your parents as well as your guests. Mom and Dad will treasure these words forever.  Weddingspeeches4u can help with the writing.
18. Surprise your parents and your new in-laws by having the band play the first songs from their weddings.
19. Instead of numbering your tables, name them. If France is your honeymoon destination, call one table “Paris,” another “Cannes,” another “Provence” and so on.
20. Groom’s cakes are back in a big way.  Select one that represents your new husband’s hobby, favorite sports team or hometown.
21. Place blank CDs in envelopes preaddressed to you on a table near the exit.  Enclose a note with this request: “When you download your pictures, please burn us a copy—and send!”  Or, set up a docking station so guests can download to a computer for you, right there before they leave your event.
22. Another clever touch that you might want to try, place a giant antique suitcase near the dance floor with a sign that says “For tired toes.” Inside the trunk add pairs of inexpensive slippers, for the ladies who want to dance but need a break from their high heels. 
23. Instead of the traditional sit-down dinner or buffet, opt for smaller food-serving areas where a particular entrée or side dish might be paired with a complementary drink—like sushi with sake or a carving station with a rich cabernet.  Stations get people up and moving, and that makes for a dynamic party, and they give guests something to talk about.  Or, consider having a family-style dinner.  Passing around platters of food creates a much more intimate feel among guests than a waiter-served meal would.
24. Vodka ice slides are a popular trend right now.  A bartender pours flavored vodka through a long tunnel carved into an ice sculpture, and by the time it empties into a glass held at the bottom, the vodka's been chilled.  It's a creative and interesting twist on the martini bar.
25. Give champagne an extra kick by placing fruit—peaches and blackberries are popular choices—in the flutes, because it'll stimulate the bubble action.  Fresh fruit works well, but frozen fruit provides even more fizz.
26. Here's a hot new trend, make your guests smile by renting a photo booth for your wedding so guests can take turns mugging for the camera. Place the booth in a corner of your ballroom, and get ready for all sorts of silly photo strips to come out of the machine—perhaps even one of you and your new husband sneaking kisses behind the curtain.
27. Hire an unusual entertainer to thrill party-goers. Some fun ideas: a juggler, belly dancer or a magician.  Have a favorite celebrity? Hire an impersonator to liven up the cocktail hour by performing, mingling with guests and posing for photos with them.
28. Make dessert a group activity.  Arrange to have pots of chocolate fondue delivered to each dinner table, along with pieces of pound cake, pineapple and strawberry for dipping.  Or, serve s'mores, camp-style—guests can roast their own marshmallows over mini sterno-fueled grills placed at the center of each table.
29. Carve out a little alone-time in the midst of your party.  Sneak away to a private room in your reception venue—you can ask your caterer in advance to have champagne and strawberries waiting for you.  Kiss, toast to your future, and relish the fact that this is your wedding day.
30. The salad course of your wedding meal can make a lovely statement.  Dress up the greens with edible flowers, such as nasturtiums or delicate peach blossoms.  Serving soup instead of salad?  Showcase your new monogram—in the soup. Serve a thick concoction (like pumpkin soup in fall or vichyssoise in winter) and have your caterer spell out your initials with heavy cream in each bowl.
31. Imagine taking your first spin around the dance floor while listening to the words that joined you together as husband and wife.  Apparantely it's relatively easy for your DJ to record your vows at the ceremony, and then splice them into your first-dance song.
32. Make the cocktail hour interactive by setting up a wine, champagne or liquor tasting.   A beverage expert or a sommelier can offer guests a sampling of libations and a little lesson on flavors.
33. Hire dance instructors to teach guests how to swing, merengue, boot-scoot or polka.  There's no better way to get everybody on the dance floor.
34. Hire a caricaturist to render on-the-spot drawings of guests (which they can take home, of course).
35. Love dress-up?  Have a trunk full of costumes and silly props on the dance floor.  Guests can try on hats, boas and oversize sunglasses, and "play" faux guitars.
36. Burn CDs of the songs you'll be playing at your wedding.  Ask the parking valets to put the discs in guests' car stereos, and to leave a note from the two of you on the front seat.  On the way home, guests can replay all the fantastic musical memories of the day.
37. Favors shouldn't be for guests only. Send yourselves off with a treat, too.  Ask your caterer to create a basket filled with champagne, cheese, crackers, fruit, cookies and chocolate that you can dip into when you're up in the honeymoon suite.
38. If certain guests—college friends, family members—are needed for a group photo at the reception, a clever way to get them all together with minimal fuss is to make a note on their place cards about the time and location.
39. The classic floral vase has given way to mix-and-matched clusters of vintage pitchers, vases, jars, and galvanized buckets. Other ideas: apothecary jars with colorful rocks, sand, or even candy; uniquely shaped glass vases featuring fresh fruits like raspberries and blueberries; and mason jars loaded with fresh flowers like daisies and dahlias.
40. Say good-bye to pale pastels and bright poppies. Rich gem colors like navy, plum, and amber are this season's hottest trend.  And instead of chocolate brown, look to a soft creme brulee hue, bronzes, coppers, and black. Yes, that's right -- black is the new black.
41. Plan an after party.  Any bride will tell you that the reception flies by.  But the last dance doesn't have to signal the end of the celebration.
42. There are wedding watercolor artists who will draw in pastels, or paint in watercolors, the reception as it unfolds. This can be a great gift for the bride and groom, but it's also some quiet entertainment for guests and especially good for weddings set in great scenery.
43. A luxury lounge can take your reception to the next level. Drape off seating areas around the dance floor or on the lawn for guests to rest their feet. Set up white couches, chairs and tables decorated with bright blooms, colorful pillows and throws for a club-like feel.
44. Consider wedding insurance.  Wedding insurance are policies specifically designed to protect you from financial loss in the event your wedding must be cancelled or postponed due to circumstances beyond your control, or if one of the major elements of your wedding (e.g., photographs, wedding attire, and/or gifts) is lost or damaged.
45. Arrange for an old fashion popcorn machine or ice cream or candy cart to park outside your reception at the end of the evening so your guests can munch while they wait for the valet.
46. Don't want to wear an heirloom dress but still want to honor your Mother or Grandmother?  Clip a piece of fabric to wrap your bouquet, or drape the escort card table for an elegant custom look.