Should You Consider a Home Wedding?
With the difficult economic climate today, it seems like a no-brainer to decide to have your wedding day at home. Making that decision immediately eliminates worries about renting banquet or reception halls, having to worry about booking locations, or being forced to arrive and leave at a certain time to accommodate yet another party ahead or before you. With a home organized wedding, not only are the costs reduced, there is a feeling of intimacy and familiarity with the environs and how best to make it work for your special day. However, as easy as this might sound, there are some key tips to making your home wedding a success.
The first thing to take into consideration is the number of guests showing up to your wedding. You must know how many guests can “fit” into your house, especially if you do not live in a palatial residence. It is believed that the average person heads to the restroom every three hours, which averages to about 70 guests per toilet. If you end up having more guests than you can handle, this could obviously cause a problem as you’d have them lining up for hours just to make use of it. Try to trim down the guest list if you can manage it, but if not, consider renting portable toilets which can be placed outside the home (preferably in the backyard).
Delegate greeters to several people especially if you have a lot of guests showing up. This is a nice way to welcome your guests to the ceremony. It is also helpful to have someone welcome and show the officiant around especially to a quiet spot where he or she can prepare for the ceremony.
When making the decision for the area where the ceremony is to take place, there are a few things to take into consideration. The space and layout is most important. Make it as intimate as possible. Allow the guests to be as close to the couple without crowding them. If the wedding is being held outdoors, then make sure the location is such that guests do not have to squint into the sun or the photographer has a difficult time trying to get the right shot. Have all props and flowers in place before the ceremony begins.
Having a wedding outdoors, especially if you live close to others in your neighborhood, can be quite noisy. You’re likely to hear cars passing, lawnmowers running, dogs barking, children playing or planes going overhead. Try to convince your neighbors to hold off any outdoor activities on that day, but if you’re unable to avoid some noises – like say living close to an airport or railroad – you might want to move the ceremony indoors.
Last but not least, consider the weather factor. Mother Nature can be quite unpredictable, so if your wedding day called for bright and sunny, but a sudden downpour begins, always have a back up plan. If it turns out to be a particularly hot day, where guests are at risk for sunburn or heatstroke, consider setting up tents or moving indoors and providing refreshing drinks or beverages to prevent dehydration.
