Wedding Blog
We had our follow-up meeting with our venue, Ravenwood, last weekend to finally get my list of questions answered. So what did we find out?
The last one made me flinch a little. So we can have china plates, but people have to drink out of plastic cups? She said that if we were really, really stuck on having glass that we could rent it and also pay an additional $250 security fee. I calculated how much it would be to rent glasses for dinner and the bar, and estimated about $250-$300. Is $500-$550 worth it to keep the elegance factor?
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Share this post: The Importance of Glassware?
Hmmm…I don’t know if it’s worth $500+ for glassware. If it were the plates, I’d say definitely yes, but in this case the venue might have a point about glasses tending to be more easily broken. I wonder if anyone would even notice or remember the plastic drinkware? Use that $500 to get a couple’s massage on your honeymoon! 
If it were china vs. paper plates? yes
If it were cloth vs. paper napkins? yes
But, I think plastic glassware is okay, especially if they use some that looks decent (clear).
Almostananderson is correct, people won’t remember what kind of glassware they used. I know I’ve used plastic at at least one wedding, but I couldn’t tell you which. It was really a non-point.
I think it’s awesome you can decorate the day before! I had to forego some DIY options because I can’t be in two places at once the day of! With everyone else you have going, I don’t think having plastic will take away from the elegance. It will be a great budget boost somewhere else, or a nice option for something “extra”!
Maybe you can get wine glasses or whatever kind of glassware you would want somewhere in bulk for pretty cheap and then have the glasses be the favors for your guests? Kind of kill two birds with one stone - elegance and a favor?
I think it won’t matter if you have plastic glassware. Your guests won’t notice, and when drunk Cousin Stacie accidentally flings her gin and tonic on the ground, you can just laugh at her and not worry about broken glass.
man. that would bug me too. im sure during the actual reception, you wont make the time to obsess over it. but perhaps you can check with another rental company for better prices on the glassware?
You can get glasses at IKEA for pretty cheap… then you can keep them after or give them away!
That is a hard one, I think I would pay for it. What do these plastic cups look like? One things that comes to mind is being all dressed up in my wedding dress photog is taking pictures or friends are taking snapshots at cocktail hour and we have have plastic cups in our hands. Or how the table photos would look with plastic cups next to the elegant flower centerpieces and table runners. I know it may not matter to some but I still would pay if they really change the looks of things.
I think you should definitely pay the extra fee for real glassware. Although I am surprised there is an extra security fee - normally, you would just pay a replacement cost for glasses that might get broken or lost during the course of the evening.
If you’re having real china, you should have real glassware to match.
Drinking wine out a plastic cup? That would *seriously* bother me.
I think it really depends on the quality of the plastic drinkware. I know there are some really amazing look-alikes in plasticware … Ever seen those silvered plastic forks? You can’t tell they’re plastic until you pick them up. So … if it’s something like that, clear and well shaped instead of Dixie cups or something, I think you’re fine.
Would the security fee be refunded - if say, no one broke anything? IDK… I think it’s a bit much just to rent. I think missteaberry might have a point. I’m totally blocked from checking it out from work, but dollartreedirect.com has some pretty fab deals on vases and candle holders, maybe they would have glasses? Worth checking it out.
I don’t understand the “security fee.” Is this some kind of damage deposit? Do you get it back if the place isn’t littered with broken glassware at the end of the night? What kind of golf club is this? Do they aways use plastic drinkware?
We also got married at our country club - in the clubhouse. We had real glasses. In spite of the hosted bar for the duration, rocking band, really good wine selection, and the guests going back and forth from the deck/pool and putting green to the clubhouse, there was no broken glass at the end of the evening.
FYI, we also had access to colored linens. If your club uses a linen service, it’s no more trouble for them to order colored linens than white ones - they just change the order for that day. I guess if they own their linens and are washing them on the premises, there’s no other option. But seriously, who does that? In the end it’s way more expensive than using a linen service.
I also should say - in my experience, plastic wine glasses are trouble. They are almost always top-heavy when full, and that results in way more spillage than you would have with real glassware.
I would agree with suzanno, all I keep picturing is those snap together plastic wine glasses/champagne glasses with always either fall over or fall apart and generally just make a mess. I know most people wont notice but I know I would and I think I would be like hmmm china + plastic?? odd…
I would also check into to security fee, does it mean not a single glass can be broken in order to get the money back or is the cost of say one broken glass just deducted from that amount and the remainder given back to you afterwards? I would say pay for it if you have the cash but that’s just me.
Could you negotiate and get glassware for the dinner, and use plasticware for the bar?
I have stepped on broken glass while dancing barefooted at wedding receptions. It is not fun.
Definitely definitely, please, I beg of you get the glassware! Dont to even think about having plastic cups at your wedding. Unlike others before me, I think people will notice and worse, remember it for a long time to come…”Last year, I was at a wedding, where they had…plastic cups!!”
Maybe I’m over reacting just a bit, but I think by having plastic cups, it will spoil negate all your other hard work of trying to make things nice at your wedding.
I agree with earlier posters - get the glassware, but buy it cheap somewhere like Ikea. You can give it away or resell it after to another bride.
You’ve done so much beautiful DIY work, the glass really will keep all of that feeling as fabulous as you want.
If its not in your budget, then dont do it. Who cares anyways? Everyone will still drink and whoever has a negative comment about your plastic is a bog nobody anyways! In the grand scheme of things, this is not a big deal. Spend the money on your honeymoon.
Oops, i meant to say BIG nobody! Sorry! I’m a baaad speller.
Don’t do it if it’s not in your budget, but also consider the wine/beverages you’ll be serving. If you’re not doing wine and it’s just beer, soda, and/or liquor then I don’t think it matters.
But if you’re serving wine and you put any thought into your wine choices, don’t serve it in plastic. Even if it’s a plastic wine glass and not just a plastic goblet or cup, it will still change the taste of the wine. And actually, this can be even more important if you’re choosing your wine based on budget - a cheaper wine can really be improved by serving it in a correct glass that lets it breathe correctly, etc. You may not care, but you may have guests that do, and plastic wine glasses can really affect what you serve them, not just the way it looks.
Yeah, I think if you can swing it, it would be nice, but it’s not in your budget, don’t sweat it. No one will really remember.
500 is a lot for glasses! i definitely say don’t do it. perhaps you can make some little damask cup bands (a la starbucks) for the plastic cups so they’re dressed up a little. either way, i’m sure your guests won’t mind. i definitely don’t think you’ll regret saving that money.
Wow, it seems like more people care about glassware than I do! So taking that into consideration - maybe consider who your guests are. The majority of my guests will be under 30, and the rest are family friends who definitely aren’t coming to my wedding to drink the nice wine I’ll be serving. In my case, then, plastic glassware wouldn’t cause any raised eyebrows.
But if your guestlist includes people who truly value quality drinks, and you don’t want to worry about them thinking less of you, maybe go with the glassware. Previous posters are right: Ikea has ridonkulously cheap glasses!
Plastic glasses certainly won’t make your reception LOOK bad; I think the only consideration here is whether your peeps are the swirl-n-sniff types, or the gulp-n-chuggers.
You guys are so helpful! I know it doesn’t really matter in the long run, which is why this is such a hard decision.
To clarify some stuff: The security deposit is through the venue. The rental company I’m looking at has the glasses for about 35 cents each, so I don’t think I could buy them any cheaper. The reason it is so pricey is because it adds up: water glass, tea glass, wine glass, beer glass, cocktail glass, etc. for everyone. Then there’s the flat $250 security fee on top of the rental charges. No matter where I get the glasses (renting or buying), I still have to pay it, and it’s non-refundable. I think it’s in case someone breaks a glass and then tries to sue them or something.
They do provide glass for the champagne toast, and we don’t need a deposit for that. Everything else they have, however, is plastic.
@suzanno: The have white napkins, but we are to rent other linens from elsewhere. I’m okay with white napkins, since they are already built into the cost. We’re getting black tablecloths.
@dani: I actually emailed them to ask that last week, but haven’t heard back yet.
I’m voting for real glassware and I love the suggestions of IKEA. Or how about a restaurant supply store? I imagine you can find them pretty cheap to purchase then keep them or even sell them back to someone?
Hmmm…what if you bought or rented real wineglasses and then used plastic for everything else? Could you negotiate a cheaper security fee if you rented them? It sounds like wine is really the only major no-no to serve in plastic (news to me, but hey, I’m a Franzia kind of gal).
I attended a wedding last fall where all of the glassware was plastic and I was sort of taken aback. I feel like… this is your wedding… if you don’t “do it up nice” now, when will you ever? Go for the nice glassware. I also don’t think you need all of those different kinds of glasses…
I think it is worth it at least to a point. You will get at least part of the deposit back, so that isn’t so bad and it really does make a difference in the look and less drinks ars spilled from glasses because of the weight making it harder to tip.
You could order less glass. Just get wine, water & champagne glasses. Mixed drinks and soda can be in nice plastic.
A compromise could be renting wine/water glasses for the tables and use plastic at the bar.
Glass would be nice but plastic won’t be the end of the world.
you can get lower cost glasses in bulk and use them as favors so guests can take them home?
also what kind of plastic is it, does it at least look nice, or is it like, the disposable really cheap plastic? I was once at a club and they used plastic shot glasses and plastic drink glasses that looked exactly like real glass. if its that type of cup, it shouldn’t be so bad?
Being younger, and unengaged, maybe I have a different view (I don’t need to ‘keep up’ with other people), but wouldn’t that $300-$500 help you pay your bills post-wedding? Even if it paid for a couple months of cell phone service or you need something replaced on the car, it just seems silly to work to impress these people who are supposed to already love and respect you. It’s not a popularity contest.
As to ‘doing it up nice’? It will be nice, regardless of what people drank out of. Who cares if people talk about it later? You’ll be married and happy. I’ve also read enough posts by now by bees who repeat again and again that people did not come for the details.. they came for the bride and groom joining their lives together. Best of luck!!
If you really want glass, buy them and then sell them afterwards in WB classifieds or Craigslist or something. There are always people looking for that stuff. That way at least you’ll get some money back, if not most of it whereas if you rent, you’ll never see that cash again. That said, if you forgo the glass altogether, no one will remember or really care. And if they care, are they worth it? Nah.
I just got married on 10.11 and struggled with the plastic cup thing, as well. We ended up staying with plastic because we just couldn’t justify the extra expense of renting/buying glass. I was really amazed at how nice the plastic cups were… they used the clear hard plastic ones, and they looked great! We had a very formal and elegant wedding, and it didn’t look out of place, at all (even in pictures, they look like glass). Maybe you can ask your venue to show you the type of cups they provide It worked out really well for us!
You know alot of Bars now use plastic– and I have never thought about it! As far as water glasses and wine… I might want the real thing. But in the end I bet no one goes home from the wedding saying what a great time they had.. too bad they had plastic!! seriously people accept what they are given! the economy is so tough right now that just skip this detail and move on to other things!
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Miss Fondue, Nashville
Age and Occupation: 27, Technical Analyst
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Network Admin Student/Senior Game Advisor
Engagement Date: December 25, 2007
Wedding Date: May 2009
Blogging Since: September 14, 2008
Venue: Ravenwood Golf Club
About Me: I’m your average computer geek marrying a gaming geek and trying to find a good balance of elegance and geek chic in our wedding. I adore The Sims, Nintendo, cosplay, (good) music, TiVo, theme parks, and our two crazy felines.
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