At-Home Receptions--HELP!

[bestla]

Hello all!

Since DF and I will only have 7 people at the actual wedding, we feel obligated to have some sort of a reception once we return. We will be in our new home by then, so we're thinking we may have a housewarming/reception type shindig. We want it to be pretty informal..maybe even as an open-house (it will mostly be my ginormous extended family).

For those of you that are planning or have had receptions in your home town--please let me pick your brain!!

What type of wording did you use on the invites? Did you still use formal response cards? When did you send them out? Did you have the reception awhile after you returned? Did you send out seperate "wedding announcements" for people who you knew couldn't make it to the reception? If any of you had actual receptions in your home--what do you DO at such events?

Sharing time!! Sharing is caring!!

Can you tell this is stressing me out a bit??

 

[alissa2008]

Hello all!

Since DF and I will only have 7 people at the actual wedding, we feel obligated to have some sort of a reception once we return. We will be in our new home by then, so we're thinking we may have a housewarming/reception type shindig. We want it to be pretty informal..maybe even as an open-house (it will mostly be my ginormous extended family).

For those of you that are planning or have had receptions in your home town--please let me pick your brain!!

What type of wording did you use on the invites? Did you still use formal response cards? When did you send them out? Did you have the reception awhile after you returned? Did you send out seperate "wedding announcements" for people who you knew couldn't make it to the reception? If any of you had actual receptions in your home--what do you DO at such events?

Sharing time!! Sharing is caring!!

Can you tell this is stressing me out a bit??

We're doing an at home reception as well (for those that couldn't make it down). We ordered normal wedding invitations, but we're not including a "reception card" -- because the invitation essentially IS one. We are having a rsvp card, because it is a semi-formal reception (and I will be wearing my dress again ). The invite says something like "Come celebrate our destination wedding with a reception at blah-blah" I'm also going to send out wedding announcement cards to my extended-extended family who didn't make either cut. Obviously I don't want to mention we're having an at home reception, but I'm going to include a couple disney pics so people can see that we got married.

We're going to "pretend" we never had a "reception" (because our disney reception is just going to be dinner), so we're going to do all the typical wedding reception things, cutting cake, dancing with the dad etc etc... it will be almost as if we had just gotten married and that is our reception...because, like I said, we're not really getting a "reception" at disney.

 

[lurkyloo]

We had a really casual at-home reception thrown by DH's parents at their house. It was called an open house - it ran from 1-6pm and people could drop in whenever.

They put out sandwich fixings and a few people brought dessert. I made an hilarious attempt at recreating my parents' homemade wedding cake for dessert. We had our wedding video running in the background and - the biggest hit of all - I made two softcover books of our wedding photos on www.blurb.com that people could pass around. Everyone raved about them, and we gave them to the grandmas at the end of the day. Mostly people just chatted and caught up with each other, though we had a formal cake cutting and DH's grandma asked us to open presents (I wasn't too keen on that, but people didn't seem to mind).

We made a major ettiquette boo-boo and combined our at-home reception invite with our wedding announcement. We mailed them the day after our wedding, like you would a wedding announcement, but the reception was for 2 months later.

The announcement/invite said "Lurkyloo & Mr. Lurkyloo were married in Morocco at Epcot on Feb. 4. Please join us to celebrate their marriage at an open-house reception at the home of Mr. Lurkyloo's parents on April 19, from 1-6pm. Please RSVP to Mr. Lurkyloo's mom." People just called or emailed my MIL to say they'd attend.

Don't let it stress you out - it can be really casual and people will love it just as much as a formal one b/c all they really want to do is celebrate with you!

 

[alissa2008]

Don't let it stress you out - it can be really casual and people will love it just as much as a formal one b/c all they really want to do is celebrate with you!

I couldn't agree more! Plus, at this day and age (depending on your guests I guess), etiquette becomes pretty adaptable... I've been doing things all @$s backwards myself...

 

[bestla]

We had a really casual at-home reception thrown by DH's parents at their house. It was called an open house - it ran from 1-6pm and people could drop in whenever.

They put out sandwich fixings and a few people brought dessert. I made an hilarious attempt at recreating my parents' homemade wedding cake for dessert. We had our wedding video running in the background and - the biggest hit of all - I made two softcover books of our wedding photos on www.blurb.com that people could pass around. Everyone raved about them, and we gave them to the grandmas at the end of the day. Mostly people just chatted and caught up with each other, though we had a formal cake cutting and DH's grandma asked us to open presents (I wasn't too keen on that, but people didn't seem to mind).

We made a major ettiquette boo-boo and combined our at-home reception invite with our wedding announcement. We mailed them the day after our wedding, like you would a wedding announcement, but the reception was for 2 months later.

The announcement/invite said "Lurkyloo & Mr. Lurkyloo were married in Morocco at Epcot on Feb. 4. Please join us to celebrate their marriage at an open-house reception at the home of Mr. Lurkyloo's parents on April 19, from 1-6pm. Please RSVP to Mr. Lurkyloo's mom." People just called or emailed my MIL to say they'd attend.

Don't let it stress you out - it can be really casual and people will love it just as much as a formal one b/c all they really want to do is celebrate with you!

That actually sounds exactly like what I had in mind!! I was worried it would be too casual... But, I suppose with it being mostly my family..who is rather crazy and loud...they can have a good time just talking.

Still unsure about the announcement/invitation thing. I'm not really worried about etiquette..I'm just wondering if it would seem weird for relatives that live across the country to be invited to an open house type thing.

I just don't want my family to be disappointed that it's not a "bigger" event. DF and I just aren't into having some huge production. Frankly, DF would prefer we didn't have a reception at all. Luckily he will do whatever I want.

But I agree--I don't think I should stress too much.

 

[lurkyloo]

If it helps, we invited *everyone* - people who lived across the country and even people who had come to our wedding, just so that everyone would feel included and even though we knew they couldn't come.

 

[alissa2008]

DF and I just aren't into having some huge production.

This is the key. Do what YOU want, and forget everyone else!! Its YOUR day(s)...

 

[Lynn5700]

Hey!!!! I am a stress mess right now too lol!!! Our reception is on the 4th of July..I sent my invites out in March I think.....ummmm we invited family and friends and have 71 people coming..I am wearing my dress again so everybody can see me in it,I'm going to do my own hair but I'm going to mac to do my makeup and I'm not wearing the veil again.

I just had people call me to RSVP...here is a picture of our invites..I bought them at Hallmark and we printed them ourselves.

Later today we are meeting with the DJ and caterer and we ordered our cake already and after the caterer I have to order table linens becuse I am a freak and refuse to not use paper table cloths lol.

I'm going to post pictures of the party in my TR after we have it so I can show people what I did and help others who are planning at home receptions.

 

[bestla]

Hey!!!! I am a stress mess right now too lol!!! Our reception is on the 4th of July..I sent my invites out in March I think.....ummmm we invited family and friends and have 71 people coming..I am wearing my dress again so everybody can see me in it,I'm going to do my own hair but I'm going to mac to do my makeup and I'm not wearing the veil again.

I just had people call me to RSVP...here is a picture of our invites..I bought them at Hallmark and we printed them ourselves.

Later today we are meeting with the DJ and caterer and we ordered our cake already and after the caterer I have to order table linens becuse I am a freak and refuse to not use paper table cloths lol.

I'm going to post pictures of the party in my TR after we have it so I can show people what I did and help others who are planning at home receptions.

Thanks, Lynn! I love your invites--I think I want to do a DIY thing too. So if you're having a DJ, caterer, etc....you're probably having a more formal kind of thing? Where are you hosting your reception?

I kinda wanna wear my dress again...because really, when else would I ever get to wear it? I'm planning a more informal thing...but the bride can wear what she wants, right??

 

[bestla]

Okay HELLO...try reading the invite a bit closer Rachel...

I figured out your reception locale. blonde moment...

 

[bestla]

I'm also going to send out wedding announcement cards to my extended-extended family who didn't make either cut. Obviously I don't want to mention we're having an at home reception, but I'm going to include a couple disney pics so people can see that we got married.

Oooh I like this idea! I'd like to include pics of us for those I know can't make it!

 

[Lynn5700]

We are having at at a hall here is the website
http://willingborofoplodge38.org/page7/page7.html

..It has a nice size dance floor and I love the fact that they have a projector screen to pull down,which is huge and it covers that ugly star on the wall LOL so we are going to have our wedding video play the whole time.

It's semi formal I guess,I just said no jeans and t shirts lol.

 

[alissa2008]

so we are going to have our wedding video play the whole time.

It's semi formal I guess,I just said no jeans and t shirts lol.

Same here... love the video idea - just had a panic attack and talked to bonnie and stan about it -- because the vid usually takes 12 weeks to get back and my reception at home is only 2 months after our vows in dis. But, we got it all worked out and Bonnie said they would do their best to take care of it (or I could use the "sneak peek" worst case scenario)...they were so sweet they're not even charging me extra! They do have a 1-week rush delivery fee, but I said...I don't need it in 1 week...more like 8...

STVS

 

[bestla]

The video is a very cool idea!! Too bad we won't have video..just pictures...

Maybe we can throw together a nice PowerPoint presentation. People would love that! Put in some nice fade in fade out effects?? Make it look like a window is opening? eh, eh??

 

[lurkyloo]

The video is a very cool idea!! Too bad we won't have video..just pictures...

Maybe we can throw together a nice PowerPoint presentation. People would love that! Put in some nice fade in fade out effects?? Make it look like a window is opening? eh, eh??

Seriously, though, I think your guests would love it. If you have a Mac, you can pretty easily make a slideshow in iPhoto (it's all about the "Ken Burns Effect"!) and set it to your first dance song, or whatever. Then you could have it playing in the background and everyone could see your pix!

 

[Lynn5700]

Same here... love the video idea - just had a panic attack and talked to bonnie and stan about it -- because the vid usually takes 12 weeks to get back and my reception at home is only 2 months after our vows in dis. But, we got it all worked out and Bonnie said they would do their best to take care of it (or I could use the "sneak peek" worst case scenario)...they were so sweet they're not even charging me extra! They do have a 1-week rush delivery fee, but I said...I don't need it in 1 week...more like 8...

STVS

I know they are soo nice!!!! I just asked Stan if we could have it back by then and he said sure.

 

[Lynn5700]

Same here... love the video idea - just had a panic attack and talked to bonnie and stan about it -- because the vid usually takes 12 weeks to get back and my reception at home is only 2 months after our vows in dis. But, we got it all worked out and Bonnie said they would do their best to take care of it (or I could use the "sneak peek" worst case scenario)...they were so sweet they're not even charging me extra! They do have a 1-week rush delivery fee, but I said...I don't need it in 1 week...more like 8...

STVS

I know they are soo nice!!!! I just asked Stan if we could have it back by then and he said sure.