The wedding ceremony is when you say your “I Do’s”, but the reception is when you really celebrate the magic of your union. For most couples, choosing the details of their reception is the most fun part of wedding planning. Consider the following ideas for how to select a wedding reception.
Find a Venue to Match Your Overall Wedding Theme
Whether you have a garden, chic, formal, or cocktail wedding theme, most couples match their reception style to the overall theme of their wedding. Matching your reception with your ceremony allows you to coordinate design elements, such as colours, flowers, and décor, resulting in a more cohesive occasion. Matching your reception to your wedding theme also allows you to have the ceremony and reception in the same location or venue. An example would be booking a historic manor house for the wedding reception and having the ceremony in the adjacent garden.
And One That Fits Your Wedding Reception Budget
Choosing your wedding reception depends on how much money you have in your budget for the venue, food, beverages, music, décor, flowers, and service staff. Once you have determined how much you want to spend on your entire wedding event, you can allocate what you need to cover reception expenses. If you are on a lower budget, you may need to be creative with the theme and style of wedding reception you choose, such as a brunch reception in a family garden or a cocktail hour reception in a local gastropub. Couples with a larger overall wedding budget may choose to hold their reception in a more formal setting, such as a hotel, manor house, or banquet hall. These receptions would have catered, plated table service for the food and beverages.
Choose Your Colours to suit your wedding Reception
With all the colours of the rainbow at their disposal, some couples find it challenging to decide which colour combinations to use for their wedding reception venue, flowers, and décor. Your wedding reception colours can reflect the theme and style of your wedding and the type of mood and image you want your guests to experience. Darker colours like deep burgundy, blue, and black are usually offset with lighter colours for contrast and visual interest. Soft pastels are also common pairings, with light peaches, pinks, blues, and yellows being popular options. Ideas for choosing wedding reception colours also tend to match the season. Winter weddings often use a monochromatic blue and silver pallet, while summer weddings favour bolder, tropical hues.
And Compliment with Themed Food and Beverages
Apart from the couples and guests, the most commented thing at a wedding reception is the food. The reception is essentially your wedding celebration party. Deciding on the type of food you will serve is a large part of choosing your wedding reception. If you select a formal reception, your food and beverage will likely be provided by wedding caterers or the reception venue and served banquet-style with plated service. Formal wedding menu options often include a 3 course plated dinner, such as lamb, beef or Fish, as well as a vegetarian or vegan selection. Formal weddings usually have table wine, with alcoholic beverages offered as an open bar. If you choose a more informal option like an evening cocktail wedding reception, your menu may be catered to more hand-held appetisers and petit-fours desserts.
Whether you have a formal banquet reception with seated banquet service and live band or an informal BBQ-style reception with a DJ, there are many different options to make your wedding reception match your personality and vision for your special day.
