2013 At Home Receptions (AHR's)

[EVKnowsitall]

Originally Posted by MissBubbles205 

 

YAY.. I can finally post again!!!  Now if only I could respond to my huge pile of PM's. (

Okay... So here's my take on things..

 

I def want an at home reception. I know many of our family and friends wont be able to attend our destination wedding so I think it's a perfect excuse to get our two families together and all of our friends together to meet each other and have fun. And of course celebrate us as newlyweds. )

 

I love the Champagne and Brunch idea to welcome the Newlyweds. LOVE!  As far as days to hold the event, I would have preferred a Friday night to lower costs but my family lives in AL, Fiance's in GA and the reception is to be held in GA. So, we have to do a Saturday in order for my family and friends from home to travel. Max of 2 hour trip to my venue options from my home town. and 30 min drive or so for the Ga locals.

 

I am looking into two venues.. Both of which include all the basic set ups and I plan to just add chair sashes that I will also be using at our DW for a splash of color. The catering prices vary, but also offer their own caterer and no outside caterers are allowed. I was thinking of heavy hor'dourves but some prices I've seen it's actually cheaper to go with a plated dinner. One of my venues offers a plated grilled chicken and veggies for $15pp. And we plan to do a wine and beer if possible because it is soo much cheaper than a full bar. Many of our guests don't drink and I don't want anyone to get sloppy and who doesn't like wine? One of my venues even offers an bar that once you reach your set budget of say $500 of drinks they then turn it into a cash bar. (Maybe this could be an option for you also.)

 

We plan to have pictures from the wedding out and maybe even a slideshow and our wedding video possibly. With of course me wearing my dress, dancing, and wedding cake.

 

That's a great price! I wish we had something like that in NY but the cheapest I've been able to find is like $35 per person for open bar and hors d'oeuvres or $45 pp for a full plated dinner but with wine and beer only. It was the reason we decided on a destination wedding in the first place. NY is just beyond expensive when it comes to receptions. And those are the cheap spots! When we were having a stateside wedding we were going to shell out $95 pp (and only bc we got a great deal because our friend knew the catering manager of the place we chose) I found a few places that let you rent the facility and then you can cater and bring your own drinks but they are quite a distance for most of our guests and not necessarily a cheaper alternative. We don't want to spend more than $3,000 on an AHR and even that is pushing it. That's why I thought about canceling it altogether. We will see. Ultimately it will depend on how much we can save. My MOH and mother wanted to throw me a bridal shower and I asked them to pitch in for an AHR instead. If we had help paying for it then it would be possible. 

 

I like what I'm hearing though. Sounds like there are no rules when it comes to an AHR. My biggest concern was our family and friends thinking it was "cheap" since we would not be investing the money into it the way we would if it were a full reception. I agree WHO DOESN'T LOVE WINE???? (We need a wine emoticon). I keep telling my fiance that we can compromise on the open bar. Especially if we go with a brunch option or a Sunday AHR- just doesn't seem like there's a need for that much alcohol. I'll keep looking. I'm not all that motivated to though haha it's more work than I think I feel like committing to. 

[didir1010]

We are getting married on a Carnival cruise and there are quite a few people who can't join us and at the same time quite a few people we couldn't invite.  But like you said, the whole purpose of a destination wedding was the fact that we were saving money on the wedding.  So I had read somewhere a while back that someone was having a "Just Married" party.   Instead of calling it an AHR, call it a "Just Married" party.

 

Maybe it is me just being cheap, or maybe it is wishful thinking, but if I call it a Just Married Party then it is a totally casual party where I can do what I want with it and no one expects it to be like a regular wedding reception!  We found the Orlando headquarters for the American Legion rents out their space for either $500 or $800 (those are the rooms I am looking at, one fits 100 and the other fits 170) for 6 hours and it includes the tables and chairs and set up and clean up!  I've seen their pictures online and it is clean and a brand new facility!!  I'm going to tour the place the Monday before Thanksgiving.

 

Since it is going to be a very casual party and early in the afternoon so I don't have to worry about a full course dinner, we are going to get buffet style food from Costco, beer and wine from Costco and probably a cake from there too!  Nothing fancy.  My friends know that I just wanted to celebrate with them and I wanted everyone who couldn't make it to feel included.  I'm even considering just going with paper tablecloths and the cheesy white paper wedding bells for decorations!

 

I think it is up to you how formal or informal you would like to make your AHR.

 

Good Luck!!

[MrsBklovn]

I'm considering the AHR only because a lot of my moms side of the family won't  be able to make it but as pp mentioned it defeats the purpose of having the DW. I like the idea of just renting some party space (I'm in NY too so I know how ridic the prices can be) and having the family cook and bring alcohol... there are sooo many things to consider.. 

 

Don't fret on what day to have the AHR (Saturday, sunday, etc..) Its your day for you to celebrate with family that couldn't make it. Keep me posted on your decision... I'll keep you ladies posted too!

[Mady28]

EVKnowsitall -

 

1) I think that having a beer and wine reception is perfectly fine considering that this is not the true formal event, and you are trying to cut down on costs. Open bar can get pretty pricey.

 

2) I would opt for a Sunday AHR because the prices at a lot of places are cheaper for this day, and it may just be me but the beer and wine bar option sounds really good on a Sunday lol.

 

3) Everyone should be able to understand that this is not the main event, but that you are still doing this for them. Maybe the invitations could be made to look more formal? I am having some issues with this as well. I want my guests to dress nice, but I don't know how I'm going about telling them. Maybe when my website is up I can mention something in there.

 

4) If a ceremony is included in the package I say go for it. It's free and your guests will get to view something they didnt the first time around. I have heard of some brides going as far as wearing their wedding gowns at the AHR. Personally, I would just opt for a nice reception dress.

 

I noticed that you're getting married at Jesus Maestro, have you been able to get good picttures of the church? What are their requirements?

[EVKnowsitall]

Originally Posted by Mady28 

 

EVKnowsitall -

 

 

I noticed that you're getting married at Jesus Maestro, have you been able to get good picttures of the church? What are their requirements?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those are the only two I have, I used them for my website. If you Google search images or the web you can get photographers who have photographed weddings there and you can see actual ceremonies. I love it- just has a clean look to it. I'm not really going to decorate much. I think its a waste- I'm saving my decorations for the reception.

[Mady28]

Thanks for the pics! Did you ever speak to them directly? The wedding coordinator for my reception said she could take care of it if I want. Also, there is another church that said in their requirements that you need to bring the copies and the originals of all the paperwork, rather than sending it by email. Are they doing that there too?

[EVKnowsitall]

Originally Posted by Mady28 

 

Thanks for the pics! Did you ever speak to them directly? The wedding coordinator for my reception said she could take care of it if I want. Also, there is another church that said in their requirements that you need to bring the copies and the originals of all the paperwork, rather than sending it by email. Are they doing that there too?

 

Hey Mady,

 

I did email them directly, only to receive a "package" about the paperwork from the resort saying all contact must be through your wedding coordinator. They never responded to the email anyway. I imagine aside from running their own ministry they are inundated with DW requests so absolutely let your coordinator handle everything. It took about a week and a half because they are a little slow in responding. 

 

You have to send the copies of all necessary documents 2 months prior to your wedding, but also bring the originals with you to verify the authenticity on the day of your wedding. They keep the copies, compare them to the originals and will hand you back the originals the day of your wedding, so you leave the church with them. They will also give you the certificate of marriage the day of. I do not believe I can send anything in by email, I think it needs to be a hardcopy or a fax.

[brgephar]

I thought about having an "open-house" style celebration when we return rather than a "reception" and possibly having a Mexican theme. Since we are getting married in Mexico I thought this could help those who couldn't make it there still feel like they're there if that makes sense. Plus most of fi's family is Mexican and can make some amazing food that we can serve up buffet style to save money. We definitely won't have another ceremony - but if it were included we might consider it! :-P

[Mady28]

brgephar - what is an "open-house" celebration. It sounds cool and we are also trying to save money so I am interested in any good ideas!

[brgephar]

I was thinking of the open-houses I've had for like my high school and college graduations. we would have a party from maybe 6-10 or something like that and people could stop by at their convenience to say hello, grab some food and/or drinks, look at pictures from the wedding, etc. That way people don't have to spend their entire evening with us if they don't want to, and we could save money by booking a smaller venue and serving buffet-style food.