Weddingbee Blog

Hi Hive!  I’m constantly amazed at how helpful everyone is on the Weddingbee boards! We thought we’d start not only featuring hot threads in the hive, but in addition, also feature great advice given by some of our most loyal advice giving gals.  Our first boards go-to-gal is Chelseamorning.  Chelseamorning’s been active on the boards since May of this year and was married last month.  Congrats, Chelsea!

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My fiance and I are on a pretty tight budget and for the venue we want, the per-head cost will double by adding a cocktail hour. The church and the site are about a half-hour hour’s drive away, so most likely people would not be waiting around long for the party to arrive. Is there really a need for a cocktail hour, or are there some receptions that just have dinner? Or, can we have hors d’oeuvres and not have the beer and wine until the start of the reception?

Ultraviolet1010

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Dear Ultraviolet1010,

The principle behind ”cocktail hour” is that there is something for guests to do when they first get to the reception and are waiting for the bride and groom to make their entrance. Usually this means having a bit to eat and drink.

How involved the eating and drinking gets is related to how long the wait will be between the start of the party and your arrival (given that dinner generally starts when the bride and groom arrive). The longer between when the reception starts and you arrive, the more obligated you are to provide greater and more elaborate food and drink.

It sounds like you expect very minimal waiting (maybe you plan to take pictures before the ceremony rather than after? Post-ceremony picture taking tends to be what delays the bridal party’s arrival). So I would say your obligation is relatively low. It would be a nice gesture to have something to nibble on and something to drink available. If you want to wait to serve alcohol at dinner, do that. You might have pitchers of water, lemonade, or tea out for guests to serve themselves and some basic hors d’oeuvres (cheese, crackers, and fruit) set out as well.

Chelseamorning

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