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Originally when we started thinking about our wedding I imagined we would have a DJ. We weren’t really interested in a band (especially since we can’t afford one!) and I was convinced using an iPod or a laptop was a recipe for disaster. However, Mr. Knitting has always wanted to use a laptop because he likes the idea of us having complete control over the music and he also finds DJs irritating.
What Mr. Knitting thinks all DJs are like (P.S. if you haven’t seen the video of this guy yet click on the source link to watch. It’s pretty hilarious):
After a few months of him badgering me (read: mentioning it once or twice) about using a laptop, I have finally given in. Here’s (pretty much) how that conversation went:
Him: Seriously, a laptop will save us money and there won’t be an annoying stranger in the middle of our wedding.
Me: No one other than you thinks DJs are annoying. If we use a laptop we’ll have nonstop technical problems, there will be no music or it will be too quiet, and everyone will hate our wedding.
Him (out loud): I’m pretty sure that won’t happen.
Him (in his head): Why am I marrying such a crazy person?
Me: If that does happen can I blame you completely? Will I also not have to have anything to do with renting equipment or setting it up?
Him: Yeah, I guess…
I’m still pretty convinced we’ll have technical problems, but since this was one of the only things he’s asked for I figured I should give in. I think the big problem for me is that I’m so unskilled at anything remotely technology related so if anything did go wrong I’d have no idea how to fix it which is a problem for my control freak personality.
That being said, my sister used a laptop at her wedding and it worked perfectly and I’ve also been to another wedding where the DJ was so bad almost no one was dancing. Having a DJ doesn’t guarantee we won’t have any problems, just like using a laptop doesn’t guarantee that we will have problems. I think this is just one of those things I’m going to have to flow with.
What wedding decisions have you made that you’re a bit nervous about? And what side are you on when it comes to a DJ vs iPod wedding?
We are going the iPod route. We can’t even afford a DJ and we won’t be having dancing anyway. I’m a little nervous but as long as it doesn’t screw up where it counts, i.e. the ceremony, I’m all good!
We had a DJ for our real reception, and did the iPod with our Best Man MC-ing for our second reception.
Honestly, the music was better with our iPod and entertainment with the Best Man was better. Our $1000 DJ was not worth it.
We spent $140 renting speakers, a mixer and microphone, and about $20 on random music purchases from gomusic.com (just like iTunes, only cheaper– like 9-15 CENTS/song).
So, I’m on the side of iPod weddings, as long as you have a competent volunteer MC!
The MC is the one thing that frightens me endlessly about the laptop or iPod wedding scenario. As the bride, you are not going to be looking at your watching and going “Cake cutting time!” You rely on the MC to handle that. So I guess just make sure someone else is managing the time line of the reception and the MC duties.
I kind of hate DJs. I feel like too often they think they’re part of the wedding and say or do things that are ridiculous to draw attention to themselves.
At a friends wedding the DJ came around and was introducing himself and chatting us up while we were eating. My thoughts were “Dude if I want to hear a certain song I’ll come find you, let me finish my dinner.”
We’re doing a laptop but if we were having a fist-pumping bottle-popping club-style reception a DJ would be a must.
We are going with a DJ because we wanted someone to emcee the reception. If we had a friend or family member we felt comfortable asking to take on that task, then we would have just gone with an iPod.
If you’re doing a laptop or ipod, and you’re worried about notifying guests of key moments, there is an adorable idea by MS Weddings that features flags, borne by ridiculously cute, knicker-clod young’uns (http://www.marthastewartweddings.com/photogallery/decoration-templates).
We are definitely doing an iPod wedding. My sister did it for her wedding and it worked out great. I agree with Jordyn, though, that you need someone willing to emcee.
That, of course, was supposed to be “knicker-clad.” Knicker-clod is a whole ‘nother kettle of fish!
We used our best man as our emcee and had our DJ (who was a friend) just do the music for the cocktail hour and dancing portion. For dinner we hooked the ipod up to the inhouse speakers in the room and that seemed to work fine. our best man would adjust the volume of the music before he went up to speak or introduce someone.
i definitely liked having a DJ. he kept the night going, stayed out of the light and just played good music!
We had a “pot luck disco” where we asked all friends who fancied themselves as DJs, to bring their records. (Well, actually we only asked specific friends whose music we knew we liked!) It worked perfectly for a fantastic and varied mix of amazing music all night.
My hubby and I had also recorded CDs of our favourite songs that we thoughts would get everyone on the dancefloor (ok I admit, my mix was pretty cheesetastic), but unfortunately they failed to play on the day. I learned that this was because if you burn your CD on a modern system (like a new MacBook), sometimes older CD players/PA systems (such as the one we borrowed from a friend) will refuse to play them. Go figure. Anyway, all was not lost because there were still plenty of tunes and wannabe DJs keen to spin their stuff. But bear do our lesson in mind if you plan to run a home-burned CD - check your system is compatible.
We toyed with the idea of an ipod wedding but didn’t want to have to deal with the stress of it and finding a family member to emcee. So we’ve hired a DJ. As for things I’m nervous about, we’ve given complete control to our venue staff to set up and I’m freaking out about it. My FMIL doesn’t want me anywhere near the venue when they are setting up because she says “you’re supposed to relax and let others worry about it!” What she doesn’t understand is that my control freak self is going to be doing nothing but worrying and stressing out if I can’t control what’s going on during the set-up…
Does your venue provide you with a PA system? Part of the reason we went with a DJ was the equipment he would bring along. Plus, we’re music snobs and only really own a few genres of music; not much of that would really get people on the dance floor. We had a long talk with the DJ about what mood we wanted, how little talking we were looking for, and how to keep people on the dance floor. I made a mix CD for dinner music that he faithfully played and the rest of the evening went so smoothly I couldn’t even tell you what he played.
before my FI’s platoon SG offered to DJ our wedding as a present, i was still going with a professional. i like the idea of someone else being in charge that (unlike me) HAS executed a wedding before… for example, i’m still super nervous about having a closed reception while two of my family churches are invited to just the ceremony. nervous about potential awkward questions…
as long as the technical issues can be addressed by some savvy person the day-of, i think you’ll do great with a laptop! seems way easier for guests to hav a say in what gets played that way too
We’re going the laptop route, and we’re asking a couple of reliable friends to man it during the cocktail hour and dancing. We’re asking both his BIL and my BIL to MC (i.e make announcements as opposed to provide entertainment… although we will leave it to them to do that too if they feel like it :). This is important to us as it is a way to get them involved in the wedding in a significant way since we’re pretty to close to them.
we arent sure about a dj either. the venue alone is over our budget but then everything on top of it. its so hard to find a nice cheap venue in phoenix
I’m onboard with the Ipod/ laptop idea however I don’t want to have to worry about it like you said. And I don’t want one or both of us always having to do something with it or being in charge. That’s where the DJ comes in as a perfect solution (& really our only thought) because I won’t have to think about it & he can just play all night. To get the control freak part in we’ll also be giving him a list of “to play” songs & “DO NOT play” songs hehe
We had an Ipod reception and it was fabulous! We had a great groomsman/MC who did a few “DJ” things but other than that, it was all ready ahead of time and it was exactly what we wanted. Now, we relive our whole wedding (musically), all the time at home; cocktail, dinner and reception playlists. Just have your “dances” on separate playlists so there’s no chance of confusion and remember the DJ rule is 7 dancier songs to 1 slow song, to give everyone a chance to breathe every once in a while.
[...] I’m a Little Bit Nervous… | Weddingbee [...]
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Mrs. Knitting, Toronto Age and Occupation: 24, Student Recruitment Assistant Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Neuroscience PhD Candidate Engagement Date: October 2009 Wedding Date: December 2010 Venue: University of Toronto Faculty Club About Me: I'm a pearl wearing, etiquette book reading Toronto girl who loves cooking and baking, museums, charm bracelets, and collecting books on Jackie Kennedy (a lot). I've been known to spend Sunday mornings at the antique market, Wednesday evenings at sister sushi dinners, and any bit of spare time reading. After six and a half years of many late night walks, watching DVDs together in bed, travelling to places like New York, and Tobermory, doing Sudokus together on the couch, lots of Indian food, the occasional yoga class, moving in together and so much more, Mr. Knitting and I are planning a cozy Christmasy (it's a word!), vintage wedding in Toronto complete with many DIY projects (eek!) and lots of help from our amazing group of family and friends.
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