Familia Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 (edited) Carol in Cal. over in my post about vacation destinations for my men mentioned that her wedding reception was, "...in the Gold Ballroom of the oldest classic hotel in San Francisco. :)" That is cool. Our reception was an ice-cream social. We leased a student dining room at a college for a steal, played our own 'taped' classical music, rented ice-cream parlor tables/chairs for the wedding party, and hired caterers to serve ice-cream to our guests. The black tie wearing caterers scooped local gourmet vanilla or double chocolate chip into pretty dishes, while our guests topped it with hot fudge and/or strawberries. Although we also served iced tea and lemonade with pretzels, we thought that, perhaps, our family and friends might miss the typical champagne toast and alcohol availability. Not so, many went on to dinner after our afternoon reception and thanked us for the unusual treat. The most frequent complement we received from dozens was that the atmosphere was appropriate for conversation - not having to shout over loud dancing music :laugh: Edited title: I suppose what is typical for wedding receptions varies by region and culture. Go ahead, share any story... Edited January 23, 2018 by secretgarden 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 Here is what it looks like: https://www.google.com/search?q=gold+ballroom+palace+hotel&rlz=1C1GGRV_enUS752US752&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=p1Tz-qqtKf7W_M%253A%252CrghBxO2W01XQDM%252C_&usg=__X1a3wNhlTyB1wADSoXSwWixA8F8%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwijyqOZk-_YAhVpjK0KHV_WATUQ9QEINjAC#imgrc=p1Tz-qqtKf7W_M: Despite my joke in the other thread, we didn't pick it because it was gold. We picked it because our wedding was not big enough to warrant the Garden Court, a very special place to us, in the same old hotel. We did, however, head into the Garden Court with our photographer for a couple of wedding pictures, since it was empty that day. Our reception was sort of on the nice side of normal compared to the ones I grew up with. We had a sit down meal served at the tables. My grandfather said grace (we should have gotten him a mic). Toast from the groom's brother. Head table with the wedding party. Happy couple dance, then my dad and I, then the families in full, then everyone. The only thing that was unusual about it was that it was a luncheon instead of a dinner, so that our out of town guests would have an easier time with travel. Oh, and, I picked a jitterbug song for the dance with my dad, since that was something we both enjoyed a lot, instead of a slow song. The nice thing about having an earlyish wedding, which was pretty much unheard of then, was that we ended up all having such a good time that we asked the DJ to stay as long as he could, and paid him extra of course, and danced for hours and hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 At Citricos in the Grand Floridian at DisneyWorld. The restaurant used to be closed on Tuesdays so that is how we got it. Donald and Mickey attended along with a jazz combo band. Lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 I had a Filipino wedding reception, which was different for me but usual for dh and his family. A buffet of lots of Filipino food and an emcee with people coming up to make presentations. I made the mistake when given the mic of inviting everyone to come visit us. I thought it was a token invitation and didn't realize why dh was kicking me under the table. We had out of town visitors just show up unannounced for that entire first year. . . 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kassia Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 I love these and wish we had done something fun like you did! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raifta Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 I had always wanted to have a very casual wedding reception featuring my dad barbecuing in his backyard in his Hawaiian shirt. And that was what I got. We told everyone to dress casually - encouraged Hawaiian shirts - all the food was homemade - and we had to run over to the liquor store across the street halfway through. It was a really fun time - lots of dancing to the ridiculous pop music of the 70s and 80s and 90s and great weather, which was a bonus since we were outside. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 LOL yep pretty unusual. Dh's grandmother had passed and was buried the week before. She had a very long battle with cancer and was in a coma for the last month so everyone had said their goodbyes and were ready to let go. She was on hospice and passed at dh's mothers home. We planned our wedding in a week, everyone was fine with it so close to the funeral. We were just going to do a JP (I was PG) and go out for dinner. We were very poor so it didn't make sense to spend money on a wedding with a baby on the way. DHs mom insisted on having a reception at her house. She wasn't willing to pay for anything (even though she insisted on having it) so my mom (also poor) bought deli trays and a grocery store white cake that she stuck a bride/groom topper on. It was a split level house so the rooms are broken up, and while the house was small, we only had 20 people total, so we figured it would be fine. HIs mom and his family, all congregated in the bedroom that she had died in and left my family and our friends in the living room to fend for ourselves. Since it was split level and different rooms full of furniture, it was hard to mingle. She decorated with the potted plants from the funeral and didn't bother to remove the RIP picks from them. I didn't want any fuss and just wanted to sit and eat a decent dinner. Instead I got bazaar combination of family, funeral and luncheon meats. Honestly, it resembled a wake more than a wedding. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 We had an Italian buffet in a historic hotel. People could take horse carriage rides outside the door. We had caroler's singing and holiday lights (it was thanksgiving weekend). It was nice. :) Bigger than I would have picked on my own but it was fun and we didn't go into debt or anything. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyoffive Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 Our reception was at a zoo. The zoo was closed and our guests got to go around by the train. We picked a habitat to have our reception in. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 (edited) Not terribly unusual, but it does have a good story attached :D When I was a little girl, every other year or so we used to go for a big extended family dinner to a fancy restaurant with a gigantic and very fancy buffet. It was also a banquet hall with beautiful gardens, and i used to look wistfully out the windows at the parties in the garden and say that when I got married, I was going to have my party there as well. Of course, when the time came the place wasn't even on the list because of the crazy prices. It didn't even cross our minds. Except that most of the other places we looked at were not much cheaper (or were even more expensive!) and were nowhere even close to as nice. So we did some guest list trimming, and we picked a Friday instead of a Saturday just a few days into the off season, and we were able to have our wedding at the place I always imagined when I was a little girl :001_wub: It meant a lot to my family. And holy moly, the food was fantastic! It was also a spectacular party. We had a great DJ and really good friends and a huge number of people there. At one point there was an extended medley of Grease songs with our entire wedding party-plus on the dance floor acting and singing the male and female parts. It was a riot. Even now, 20 years later, we'll see people we haven't seen in a really long time, and they'll bring up our wedding and say what an amazing time they had and how much fun it was and how every time they hear a song from Grease they think of us :lol: In fact, my aunt just sent us the Danny and Sandy Hallmark ornaments for Christmas. Apparently we throw a legendary party :D And we have it all on video, to my kids' delight. When I think back on how much it all cost, I kind of regret the spending, but I honestly don't know that I would change anything about any of it! Edited January 24, 2018 by ILiveInFlipFlops 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 We had a chocolate wedding cake with chocolate frosting. As in, our wedding cake was entirely brown on the outside. It's the only thing dh had an opinion on lol. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 We had a moon bounce, specifically so we could jump on it, and green gummy bears on our wedding cake 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 DH took me to meet some of his friends at a bar after we were done at the justice of the peace. Does that count? LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historically accurate Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 We had an outdoor wedding, which was immediately followed by a BBQ (catered by a local BBQ joint) and a bonfire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Familia Posted January 24, 2018 Author Share Posted January 24, 2018 These are great! Not able to 'like' right now...but "I do"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 Dd is planning a fun reception - she gets married in July. They're having the ceremony and the reception outdoors on a lake where her fiancee's family has a cottage. It will be an evening wedding with light appies served afterward. The cool part is that she's having a cake table - she's encouraging people to bring a cake. I will be making the cake that they will cut together - it's the chocolate birthday cake that we make for everyone's birthday. I'm also making Pioneer Woman's 4th of July cake. It will be fun to see what kinds of cakes show up. They've also planned to have a poutine truck show up at midnight. And they'll be serving local craft beer. And there will be a live band. Hopefully the weather will be perfect. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 Ours was sort of a surprise reception. We planned our wedding in about two weeks. Nope, I wasn’t pregnant. We had dated when I was in high school, DH is my first love, and we’d made a date to go ice skating at Rockefeller in ten years, no matter what. We were on and off during those ten years, he was always my gold standard, but we lived 2,000 miles apart. About two weeks before our date, we were deciding if we should meet there or go together, and decided we should just get married. :) So we got married with only our parents and best friends, on a bridge where we hung out as teens. I was so nervous that my best friend bought my dress, and I didn’t even see it till the night before the wedding, when I flew in. :D We had a party at a restaurant in Georgetown, which is where we met. Most of the guests didn’t know we were getting married, only that DH was moving to be near me. We drove off in a moving truck the next day. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 Dd is planning a fun reception - she gets married in July. They're having the ceremony and the reception outdoors on a lake where her fiancee's family has a cottage. It will be an evening wedding with light appies served afterward. The cool part is that she's having a cake table - she's encouraging people to bring a cake. I will be making the cake that they will cut together - it's the chocolate birthday cake that we make for everyone's birthday. I'm also making Pioneer Woman's 4th of July cake. It will be fun to see what kinds of cakes show up. They've also planned to have a poutine truck show up at midnight. And they'll be serving local craft beer. And there will be a live band. Hopefully the weather will be perfect. Wow, that sounds like so much fun!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILiveInFlipFlops Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 Ours was sort of a surprise reception. We planned our wedding in about two weeks. Nope, I wasn’t pregnant. We had dated when I was in high school, DH is my first love, and we’d made a date to go ice skating at Rockefeller in ten years, no matter what. We were on and off during those ten years, he was always my gold standard, but we lived 2,000 miles apart. About two weeks before our date, we were deciding if we should meet there or go together, and decided we should just get married. :) So we got married with only our parents and best friends, on a bridge where we hung out as teens. I was so nervous that my best friend bought my dress, and I didn’t even see it till the night before the wedding, when I flew in. :D We had a party at a restaurant in Georgetown, which is where we met. Most of the guests didn’t know we were getting married, only that DH was moving to be near me. We drove off in a moving truck the next day. What a beautiful story :001_wub: :001_wub: :001_wub: Did you ever get to go ice skating at Rockefeller Center? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 What a beautiful story :001_wub: :001_wub: :001_wub: Did you ever get to go ice skating at Rockefeller Center? Yes, on our 10th anniversary. We brought DS along, and both secretly told him we’d bought the other an anniversary ring. So at Rockefeller, he gave us each our rings. :) Our 19th is in two weeks. We’re pretty low key mostly, but I think we will go back again on our 20th, next year. :) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted January 24, 2018 Share Posted January 24, 2018 My son got married last night and we had the best time playing games. Games could not have been more perfect for our family, plus they had outside ones as well. I pretty much kicked butt and took names. Everyone now knows who the real competitor in the family is. :laugh: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Familia Posted January 25, 2018 Author Share Posted January 25, 2018 My son got married last night and we had the best time playing games. Games could not have been more perfect for our family, plus they had outside ones as well. I pretty much kicked butt and took names. Everyone now knows who the real competitor in the family is. :laugh: Congratulations to your son! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted January 25, 2018 Share Posted January 25, 2018 My wedding reception was normal, but really far away from a lot of my relatives. So we had an engagement party for my family, and that was pretty casual and fun. We rented a hall for the buffet meal, and my brother organized ice-breaker activities and games. He even brought little scooters with 4 castor wheels for relay races. It was a hoot seeing my aunts and uncles racing on scooters! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted January 25, 2018 Share Posted January 25, 2018 I got married in a Nor'Easter. It snowed 27 inches in Boston that day. I got married across the river in Cambridge though. We had the reception at the same hotel where JFK had announced his candidacy for senate. It was in Harvard Square. Neither of us went to Harvard but we were living there at the time. The reception itself was the nicest I have ever been to. It was a brunch buffet with a table service for the cake (cheesecake that was made at the hotel... we had a cheesecake sent from Juniors in NYC for us to cut). Needless to say between the snow and everything, no one that was at our wedding will ever forget it. My wedding was at 10 am and the whole thing was over by 5... which included the snow ironic enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted January 25, 2018 Share Posted January 25, 2018 Our reception was at a fire station, which my side of the family didn't consider unusual but dh's more upper class, midwestern family certainly did. They took sooo many pictures with the fire truck, lol. Then we second lined around the block and their night was really complete. We weren't going for a fire station theme, it was just cheap :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sdel Posted January 25, 2018 Share Posted January 25, 2018 For my second marriage we left the state and got married by a judge. No reception. No attendees. No big ass dress. Just me, dh in jeans married by a guy who looked like Wyatt Earp. It was awesome. :) I too eloped. It was my first marriage but DH’s second. Although, we were married by the Justice of the Piss instead of a JP. Yep, that slip of the tounge is still a big hoot. Then, a year later and we were sitting in the church for my cousin’s 70k wedding I leaned over and whispered....â€Now do you see why we eloped?â€. Reminded him again for my other cousin’s 50k wedding a few years after that. I think the only real regret I have is that I had to tell my mom that I was married so that I could tell her she was going to be a grandma.....(and no, it wasn’t a shotgun wedding). Stefanie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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