Don't Tell the Guests

Date set TICK

Guest list created TICK

Venue..... 

Never underestimate the organisation of other brides.

Tip number 1 when seeking a suitable venue for your reception.

I swear that some brides must book the venue 5 years in advance, even before the ring gets on their finger (and probably unbeknown to the future groom!!!)

No matter how laid back you may be, chances are that venues are going to be snapped up in advance so if you have your heart set on a place, you might wanna say yes, update your Facebook status to engaged and pick up the phone to call your parents  the venue of your choice!!!

Okay just tricking, but you get the gist!

Just how do you decide on a venue?

While some people may have had their wedding pre planned in a hidden away scrapbook for years, others, like me, come as prepapared to this wedding saga as a nun would to an engagement proposal!

So first of all, you might want to consider the actual location; have you always pictured being married in a garden surrounded by buzzing bees pollinating joyous flowers, or did you picture your guests being swayed by the calming noise of waves encroaching on the sand?

Do you want your ceremony and reception to be close together? How would guests be transported from one location to another (particularly if guests have had to fly and therefore don't have a car)?

Are you willing to pay for a bus to and from locations?

Is there suitable accomodation surrounding the venue for guests?

How much does the venue charge per person? Will it cost you an arm and leg per head?

And then, once you've selected a suitable location...the next big question comes as your heart is a fluttering and your fingers start fogging up the screen on the phone as you dial the numbers and pray that the venue is free on the date you've chosen!

You may find that you have to go back to the drawing board again and again and again!

At first my partner and I tossed around the idea of having a fair styled reception out on his parents farm under the gumtrees in a marquee with fairy lights hanging from the branches. We thought we'd save money by sourcing our own oysters and roasting meat on spits for the main course.

It didn't take us long to work out that the amount of work, time, stress and money that would be involved in this set up, was just not feasible for us ( think 5000 for the marquee, hiring portaloos, tables, chairs, eskies, buying ice, hiring a caterer, setting up and packing up, transporting guests etc etc).

Yes, the reception would've been AMAZING but we decided the stress that it'd place upon both us and our parents while organising it all just wasn't worth it to us.

So instead, we opted for a place where we could rock up, party the night away and then leave, with minimal fuss.

We soon had our butts whipped into gear when people told us we'd better start looking for venues 18 months away from the big day.

To my surprise, it turns out that there are two other weddings that I know of on the weekend we're tying the knot. Coming from a small town, this sent my heart into a flutter; oh dear, there's just not that many venues around!

After two "we're sorry but we're already booked that weekend" responses we finally got a "yes' we're free!"

It turns out that the venue is just perfect for us; it has a lovely relaxed atmosphere with big glass windows overlooking the bay of Port Lincoln and we managed to score a well reknowned caterer!

Yay!

Reception booked.

Now to work out where to hold the ceremony...

How did you go when trying to find a venue? What are your tips and tricks?

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxx