The logistics of ceremony vs reception...

katerinasol

I am a little unclear as to what happens in the in-between bit and was hoping someone can enlighten me.

Basically, we finish the ceremony, become man and wife, kiss and skip out of the church, spend about an hour having our photos taken and... then what? Are we going to be the first ones to arrive at the reception? Because I really want to come into the venue and have loads of people cheer

I'm just not sure how to fit in:
Photos
Glass of champagne (has to be at the reception venue as church doesn't allow it)
Arriving after the rest of the guests



And also, how important would you say a greeting line is? MIL seems to think it's quite important but I really don't want to do it . Any pros and cons?

Mrs_Moore_To_Be

Well after the church me and OH are going to take a detour to have a couple of pics taken nearby that way it means we can also arrive after everyone else.

When we arrive to the guests we will have reception drink and photos then.

HTH?

x

4nnabella

Depends what time your ceremony is and then what time your meal/buffet/food etc is planned to start. You might have time for photos at the church and then more at the reception venue (as well as getting some champagne ) Most guests will move on to the reception while you're having the last few pics done at the church so you should arrive after them.

As far as a greeting line goes, we're not having one! I think the main point of them is to enable you to greet each guest individually but I personally think they're quite old-fashioned and if you have a lot of guests, can take forever! (we had a meeting with opur photographer the other day and he told us that one wedding he'd done previously had a greeting line that literally lasted an hour and a half, as there were soooooo many people to greet!) If you don't want one, then don't do it. You just have to make sure you mingle and say hi to everyone. A good way of doing it I think is to go round each table between the main course and the dessert, if you're having a sit-down meal.

minerva_windsong

I've been in a receiving/greeting line as a bridesmaid, and I didn't like it because it just felt too stiff and formal, especially as I barely knew half the people and felt a bit daft greeting people like my grandparents and parents' siblings and cousins. As an alternative, you and your OH could walk round after the meal and try to have five minutes or so with each person/couple.

In terms of when you arrive, what I would do is have your church photos (with the wedding party/parents/all the guests etc or indeed whatever you want) then go to the venue, which will probably be after most of your guests leave, and then get some more pictures outside the venue or in the lobby while your guests go inside and get a drink. That way you'll have the arriving to the roomful of people bit. Someone can bring the champagne out to you if your venue allows it and you could make use of that time with just you and your OH as it might be the only chance you get to sit down and be together.

SUESMITH_2

when we got married many years ago our day went something like this:
3pm service
4pm photos and stuff
4.30ish arrive at venue and mingle
5pm eat

most people will hang around for photos and then go to your venue and they will get there before you, sometimes your driver will take you for a good ride round or just the fact that it takes time to get into the car and ready for the off will give them time. dont worry about it!

we did have a line to greet people and we enjoyed it. it was organised so we greeted people as they went in for the wedding breakfast, and after all the guests were seated the toastmaster introduced us and escorted us to our seats to much cheering

ellay864

Yes, arrive at the reception venue after everyone else and then enjoy making an entrance
When I got married we went off for some photos at a local beauty spot, then had some taken in the grounds of the venue before going in where everyone else was gathered. I hadn't realised we were having a greeting line and wished we hadn't...felt far too formal for me and I just got the giggles :rotfl:

VintageBrat

We will be having a 'grand entrance' - This is even specified on our Order of the day's! Between us leaving the castle and getting to the reception venue we will be heading to our hotel to freshen up and get a little bit of us time, chat about the ceremony etc and give guests a chance to arrive then make our way to the Reception for our grand entrance (And hopefully a loud cheer! )

katerinasol

minerva_windsong wrote: »

I've been in a receiving/greeting line as a bridesmaid, and I didn't like it because it just felt too stiff and formal, especially as I barely knew half the people and felt a bit daft greeting people like my grandparents and parents' siblings and cousins. As an alternative, you and your OH could walk round after the meal and try to have five minutes or so with each person/couple.

In terms of when you arrive, what I would do is have your church photos (with the wedding party/parents/all the guests etc or indeed whatever you want) then go to the venue, which will probably be after most of your guests leave, and then get some more pictures outside the venue or in the lobby while your guests go inside and get a drink. That way you'll have the arriving to the roomful of people bit. Someone can bring the champagne out to you if your venue allows it and you could make use of that time with just you and your OH as it might be the only chance you get to sit down and be together.

Thank you, those are my thoughts exactly. We are having about 200 guests as well so it would take forever to greet everyone! Would much rather work our way around the room at a relaxed pace.

I think the pictures thing is a good idea, the ceremony starts at 4 and the reception is booked for 6 onwards, not sure how long the ceremony lasts but MIL reckons about an hour, with the photos etc it would be just about right time-wise, and I would definitely like to have some time with OH because like you and a lot of other people said, it might be the only time to actually spend together on the day.

Primmer

I don't think many people do the greeting line anymore as it's very formal and takes so long. I think its nicer for bride and groom to chat to guests during drinks and after meal when it's more relaxed.

katerinasol

Primmer wrote: »

I don't think many people do the greeting line anymore as it's very formal and takes so long. I think its nicer for bride and groom to chat to guests during drinks and after meal when it's more relaxed.

I think the MIL expects us to as it was the done thing when she got married but I would really rather not, most of our friends would just laugh if they saw it anyway. I may give her some magazines and sneakily underline the bit where it says that most people don't do them anymore.