Everyone wants their wedding day to be memorable. This means a lot of time, effort and money often goes into the planning of saying “I do”. In fact, according to Money Saving Expert, the average UK nuptial costs around £20,500. Luckily, there are things you can do to keep the total down. A great way is by planning your own reception. Not only will this give you control over your budget, but you’ll also be able to personalise your celebration perfectly. So, if you’re feeling brave and organised, here’s what you should consider whenplanning your own wedding party.
Budget
Before planning your reception, you need to know how much money you have. Wepreviously posted a wedding budget guide, which estimates how much you should expect to pay for things. In it, we explained that it’s wise to have back-up savings in case anything goes wrong or you forget to factor something into your initial budget. There are also often hidden costs when it comes to things like venues and catering, so get a clear breakdown of everything you need to pay from any companies you work with.
Once you’ve outlined a budget, you should decide which elements you can do without, scale back or splurge on. Then you can start with the planning.
Venue
Choosing the venue is the biggest decisions you’ll make, as it will set the tone for your celebration. First you’ll need to know how many people you plan to invite, as this can affect which spaces are suitable.
Usually, a venue will charge a hire cost, as well as an amount per head for food and drink. Therefore, once you know how many people are coming, as well as how much you can spend, you’ll know which venues suit your party. For 100 people or more, a room specifically designed for receptions might be best, as it will have everything you need.
Whether you want a sit-down meal, a cocktail party, or something quirkier like a picnic, you need to provide food and drink for your guests. Depending on the amount of work you’re willing to take on, you could supply everything yourself, or use a catering company.
We’ve previously written about unusual ways to feed your guests and some of them, like barbecues and afternoon tea, are quite easy to organise yourself. To make it as easy as possible for yourself, you can bulk buy food for large parties from a wholesaler, such as Costco. Also, if you’re going down this route, you’ll need to provide the likes of cutlery, crockery and possibly even cooking equipment. If this is the case, it’s best to hire or buy from a trusted catering supplier, such as Alliance Online.
Most importantly, the Food Standards Agency’s safety regulations must be adhered to. You might want your wedding to be remembered, but surely not as the night everyone got food poisoning.
Décor
You don’t need professional decorators to dress your venue. Websites like Sell My Wedding, Wedding Day Hire and Hitched are great places to buy and rent decorative pieces for your party.
Put together a Pinterest board of inspiring wedding images. Then, once you’ve chosen your venue, you can decide which elements to incorporate into your décor. Draping the ceiling of a space can completely transform it, while using coloured cushions, co-ordinated glassware and complementary table runners can be great for introducing your colour scheme.
If you’ve chosen flowers for your ceremony, these will also work for your reception. They’ll help to give your day consistency and ensure there’s a running theme.
Favours
While they aren’t necessary, wedding favours are a great way to show your guests you appreciate them. The likes of homemade baked goods, bags of sweets and personalised tea towels (if you’re feeling particularly creative) are affordable and sure to go down well.
Favours can also work as an extension of your theme. So, for example, if your wedding focuses on music, you could make mixtapes. Or, if your celebration is fairground-inspired, toffee apples would work great.
The cake
If you’re a whizz in the kitchen, making your own wedding cake is a lot of fun. Most people, however, enlist a professional to make theirs. If you want a no-fuss option, M&S and Waitrose have customisable cakes. Alternatively, if you’d like something more personal, a quick Google should help you to find local bakers who’ll be willing to design you something special.
To ensure your cake is in keeping with your theme, provide your cake designer with fabric swatches. You could even ask your florist to make a floral cake-topper to tie in with the rest of the wedding.
After food, your guests need to be entertained. There’s an endless list of ways in which you can do this, but music should play a part. Alive Network is a great place to search for live bands and DJs who have experience of working at weddings. Whichever music you choose, it’ll get people dancing and give you a chance to relax and enjoy yourself.
Additionally, why not hire a magician, a caricature artist or some casino tables? You could even enlist professional dancers to teach your guests traditional ballroom dances. Whatever you can dream up, there’ll be someone out there waiting for you to hire them.
Your wedding day should be the best one of your life, but you should enjoy planning it, too. Organising things yourself can save money and be very rewarding — just make sure you don’t take on more than you can handle. Congratulations and good luck!
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