Wedding Blog
I have a problem. It’s three weeks ’til my wedding and the venue just informed me that we can’t hang anything from the walls or ceiling for the reception. To save money (we are on a tiny budget), we are having our reception in the fellowship hall of the church where the ceremony is. (And after reading so many wedding sites, I feel like the only one out here having a reception in a church hall.) Anyway, they originally told me we could do whatever we want to decorate. It’s a very old church built in the 1930’s with a tiny old congregation to match and the trustees are scared we’ll ruin the wall or ceilings.
I’m so bummed because I was going to hang strings of globe lights and paper lanterns. I thought with those and some soft lighting, it might not feel so much like a basement.
I can’t think of anything way to hang them without building some type of poles or renting 12-foot trees of some kind to string them from across the room (though I’m sure we can’t afford either of those ideas, anyway). I don’t know if I should call and plead with them or give up.
Any ideas?
meredith
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I would take pictures of what you are planning on doing and the (very small) nails/hooks you would need to place to get that look. Then plead.
yea you should try try again. but if NO means NO for them, you could get some patio umbrella bases and poles (sans umbrellas) and string the lights from end to end of those. you’d probably have to dress up the poles and bases, but it being patio season now, you could find them easily. The bases you fill up on your own with water are less expensive.
ask them if you can use the 3M removable sticky hooks… they are supposed to come right off.
Someone posted their pictures on this site (a recently married bee, I think, from NY) who had very tall taper candles on her round tables as part of her centerpieces. The height of the lighted candle really provided depth to the large room. I think she or her florist had a mixture of a very long taper and a shorter one, alternating on the tables. You may want to pass the idea of attaching things to the walls by the vendor - mine won’t have it as it’s in a historic building. Also, if you go the candle route, be sure the vendor allows open flames, too. Sure, they say anything goes, but ask. Better safe than sorry.
My mom is a wedding planner and I have seen her turn many fellowship halls into magical receptions! On a budget!! The Key is to create a focal point that distracts from the basement like feel. You could get an inexpensive gazebo arbor in the patio section of like at big lots or even rent one and cover it in tule and white lights! accent the tables with votives or candles and your paper lanterns. Then you can turn the lights off and there you go! Maybe this will at lease get the creative juices flowing! Good Luck and Congratulations!!
Those 3M hooks are lifesavers–when I was living in a dorm a few years ago we used them to decorate. When you take them down, they really don’t leave any marks!
Try talking to your venue about drafting up a contract that says you can decorate, but any damage you do you have to pay for. Then take pictures of the current state of things for reference (sort of like when you move into a new apartment they have you take inventory and charge you at the end for whatever went wrong.)
Explain to them your limited budget and they might get how careful you really would be since you don’t want to part with the money you do have to pay for damages.
I 3rd the 3m hooks. We use them for hanging everything in our apartment…posters…hooks etc. They have never caused damage to walls or to the posters we’ve hung with them. Strings of lights would be easy too, becuase they have these special tiny ones that are clear plastic for christmas lights. I also really like tension rods for hanging curtains and things in windows.
Yup I agree. 3M hooks are the way to go — you can show how they simply stretch and lift off, leaving no residue. Those things are strong, too — we used them during college to hang curtain rods so we wouldn’t have to drill holes in the apartment walls and have to spackle them later.
I went to a wedding in a school gym (attached to the church) and it was one of the best weddings I’ve been to. The couple got large branches from their backyard and put them in large paint containers filled with cemement (very cheap!). The covered the buckets with fabric and hung white christmas lights around the “trees”. They were scattered around the gym and that, along with tons of votives on the tables, was the only lighting they used. It looked so romantic and magical. You could attach fake flowers to make it look like blooming branches or hang votive holders or your lanters. With the soft lighting, people won’t feel like they are in a basement!
Building on Alisa’s suggestion, you could use long pieces of PVC pipe (you can get a 10′ piece for less than $5) as ‘trees’ instead of branches and wrap them from base to top with pretty ribbon or gauzy fabric…put one in each corner and string the lights between them. You can put a notch in the top of the pipe as a guide for the light strings.
Hey, how about lighting that would rest on the floor and point upwards?
What about borrowing large potted ficus or topiaries the people have in their homes?
If the wedding is around Christmastime, could use Christmas trees?
Are there study overhead fixtures that you could tie fabric to and let it drape downwards (no holes, hooks or sticky things).
Or focus all attention on the center of the room and the tables, and let the ceiling and walls disappear.
Also, fishing line is lightweight, strong and virtually invisible, so maybe you can use it somehow to maximize connections between the few stands/hooks you might get to have?
Those 3M hooks are awesome. I’ve used them for the past few years in my dorm, and they have never taken paint off or left any kind of mark.
Perhaps you could see if you could hang streamers from the ceiling? I’ve been to a wedding recently that was held in a high school cafeteria, and they draped white streamers/crepe paper from the edges of the room to the center, and it was so beautiful and really gave the cold cafeteria more ambience.
I agre about the 3M hooks, they come off w/o damage. If it’s damage that they are worried about, perhaps you can offer to pay a damage deposit to dissuade their fears. It sounds like maybe a bride before you did some damage and made them rethink their policy? I’d try going in to talk. Technically they made a verbal contract with you, make sure you don’t have anything in writing that says you can’t hang things.
These people have good, helpful ideas - especially the remark about having a grand focal point. Here are some other, less helpful ideas that might spark your creativity:
Luminaries
Lots of candles on tables
Stringing light strands around the edges of serving tables
Glass blocks stuffed with Christmas lights (I really dig these. See how to make them at http://www.househacker.com/features/glass-block)
Lit ice sculpture
Fountain
Balloons
Potted plants (you are having a jungle theme, right?
Rice-paper shoji screens
~Q
meredith! i DEF understand your frustration of having to change something last minute because i was told previously otherwise- i will post about this soon. AND i actually had one of my receptions in the church hall! but because of budget reasons we did not decorate the walls at all. instead we focused on the center peices! we used lots of candles because they create an elegant, warm feel. and used baby’s breaths (because they’re cheap, but beautiful!)
in the end, remember. people aren’t going to say “i can’t believe she didn’t decorate the walls! they are so bare!” nope, they’re just going to be looking at you and your husband and be filled with so much JOY. that’s how they’re gonna enjoy the reception! don’t lose sight of the big picture- the wedding will be beautiful regardless of your decor! good luck!!
i’m also having my reception at a church fellowship hall b/c my father is a pastor & it’s really important to our families that we have the reception there.
at first, i felt a little disheartened that my wedding won’t be as glam as the other weddings i’ve been to. but at the end of the day, people will remember how happy and in love you and your husband are.
we’ll be “dressing” up the church with other things…like a collage/timeline of us…candy stations…possibly a cotton candy machine…lots of candles & pretty centerpieces…and other fun stations to keep people entertained. and since we can’t dance at church–we’re having an after party. i hope this helps a little~!
good luck!!
I need the cheapest price for a reception hall in kansas city
I am having the same issue. if your budget is really tight check websites for differenct cheap stands you can make (basically a pole stand, and eye hook. You can then hang your laterns from them
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