At The French Bee Events in New Bern, NC, we love nothing better than a good party. We also realize that a wedding is far more than a good party. It is a celebration of your commitment to join your life with another and we consider it, quite a sacred day.
The Question is, how do you honor the significance of the day and still keep it a high energy, fun party?
Bride Having Fun at her reception in Atlantic Beach, NC
The timeline is of utmost importance for a wedding for a multitude of reasons. If you have a well written timeline, it will make sure that the customs that you want observed are in your day and it will also keep things rolling so that everyone knows what is happening and no one is standing around wondering, “what next?”
At The French Bee, we usually get a lot of those traditional items done earlier on in the evening. Things such as toasts, first dances and so on. That way the energy of the party can build organically and not be interrupted.
Father makes a toast at wedding at Coral Bay Club in Atlantic Beach
Toast……………Toasts are very important and give people that are close to us a time to say things that are important to them and to you. They do not all have to be done at the wedding reception. Some can be done at the rehearsal dinner the night before. I actually don’t love public speaking so I took my son and daughter-in-law to a private spot and toasted them in private. Your guest may not enjoy sitting through speech after speech. During your reception, try to limit the number of speakers, and ask them to try to keep it short.
Music……..So, so important! Even during dinner, you want upbeat music. Obviously people want to be able to talk, but you never want dull elevator music. Everyone has different taste in music, but whatever genre you choose, they is always an upbeat choice you can find. It is your band or DJ’s job to get people out of their chairs and onto the dance floor at the appropriate time. It is quite the art for that person who is in charge of your music to gage your guest and create the best atmosphere for them to have fun. At The French Bee, we don’t do a lot of announcements or games to create that atmosphere, we depend on really great music to do that job. It is also important that they continue to build on that energy, we have seen too many receptions start to really be fun and energetic and for the music to slow down or play a bad song and guest will start to leave.
Lighting ……….People will not dance if the lights are bright. I don’t know why, but it is a fact! The correct lighting really helps create that overall feeling. Can you remember going to a reception in the hotel banquet room and the florescent lights were on, did you stay long?
Temperature ……..Remember when you get a lot of people together, it can become quite warm due to body heat. People don’t want to dance if it is too hot or cold Make sure to ask your venue to chill the room before you get there, or if is an outside wedding, try to take advantage of breezes and consider fans or space heaters .
Clear top Tent in New Bern, NC
People have short attention spans
People really do have short attention spans. Something should change every 15-20 mins. throughout the evening. It doesn’t have to be a big thing, It could be a new drink is offered that wasnt offered before or a new appetizer. The lighting can change, or some little thing that keeps your guest guessing.
So best of luck. Hopefully this blog has helped you a little with your upcoming wedding