HaselBride

{Help!} Location, location

I need a moment. {FYI, this is going to be long.}

From the moment Nick and I got engaged, our reception location has been a huge topic of conversation. I knew I wanted/had to get married in my childhood church, but as I've mentioned my hometown is pretty small. The local reception halls leave a bit to be desired; most of them are men's clubs {Elks, Moose, etc.} complete with 1960s wood paneling and a lingering smell of stale cigarettes. Classy, right?

There are two nicer, more formal locations: the country club and a newer building in the park. However, the country club seats 250, less than comfortably I might add, and the other building doesn't allow alcohol. So we began looking to towns nearby for a place. At first, I had my heart set on Dayton {and the lovely Art Institute}. Nick lived there before we moved to Mississippi and we LOVED it. However, our parents thought that was too far of a drive, so we turned to a town in between.

My mom and step-dad checked out a few locations after we decided on a date and we chose the only hotel with a ballroom. They both thought it would be the place I would like best. They also liked the idea that our guests wouldn't have to worry about getting home if they were drinking; they could just stumble up to their rooms. They took some photographs to send to me, but we went ahead and booked the room before I saw them. When they sent them to me, I was seriously disappointed. I couldn't get past the dropped ceilings and red linens. They both assured me that the ceilings were only low in the area where the buffet is.

While I was at home, my mom and I went to the hotel so I could see the room in person and meet the salesperson and coordinator in charge of setting it up. I was, needless to say, unimpressed with both the room and the salesperson. The room is small; they aren't sure they can fit 300 at round tables; the ceiling is low and tiled; it is just nondescript and has no character. {In my dream world, our reception would be in a building with a ton of character that didn't need a lot of work. This needs some work.} The salesperson was so uninterested in ANYTHING I said. She didn't take a single note about the linens I requested, the Christmas tree decorations I asked be removed, etc.

Bottom line: I'm not thrilled, but we're stuck have the reception there. In an effort to prevent mistakes on their part, I am going to micromanage like it is my job. I'm considering hiring a day of coordinator to prevent any unforeseen mishaps. There is also the option of putting a family member/trusted friend in charge of making sure the hotel does as instructed.

I'm very curious...with all the diy nowadays, how does it all come together on the actual day? Our wedding ceremony begins at 2:30, which makes it virtually impossible for me to be on site the morning of setting up. How did {or will} it all come together for you? Did you hire someone? Put the centerpieces together before {would be difficult with candle based centerpieces}? Did your reception site take care of all of it for you? Have a trusted family member/friend in charge?

Do I sound a little frantic...maybe because I am {just a little bit}! I don't want to be worrying about this the day of. I just think about all the money we might put into centerpieces/decor and I don't want it to go to waste. Plus, our fabulous decor will make me not notice the low ceilings and other eyesores.

Thanks in advance for letting me pick your brain. My mom and Nick's mom just keep saying it'll work out, but I need to know HOW it will work out.

To Assign or Not to Assign: that is the question.

Great discussion going on over at the Weddingbee boards: to assign or not assign seats?

This has been an ongoing conversation in my mind and with my mother, and I have to agree with many of the people who are for it. It creates more work, but also adds another way to incorporate the colors and them into the reception site.

I am leaning more and more towards assigned tables, but unassigned seats. I want to be sure our families are able to sit together because I am planning a group photograph of my mother's entire family immediately following the wedding. My mother has six brothers and sisters and we haven't taken a professional photo since one of my older cousins was married six or seven years ago. My cousins are beginning to have children of their own and I want to document the occasion with a photo of us all. I know it will take some time and wrangling and I want to be sure they still sit near us at the reception. I think the best way to ensure this is to assign tables.

My reception venue (a hotel) wants us to have someone at the door to make sure people can find their correct table. With a giant chalkboard like in the wedding featured in New York magazine's Winter 2007 wedding issue, how could they miss it?

Image © New York magazine, photography by Shawn Connel for Christian Oth.

ABC easy as 123.

Looking for letters to decorate a door? Pottery Barn has great mismatched letters on clearance that could be hung from a door by simply attaching a ribbon around the top or affixing a ribbon to the back. They aren't super cheap, but are still a great deal and worth it {to me} for the more typographic look they provide. That giant serif A is just screaming for me to buy it with an N for Nick. Looking for a more floral letter? Darci from With This Ring, just compiled a great post about the different options for decorative letters. She picked up wooden letters at JoAnn Fabrics for her reception tent doors.

I'm a type geek and I love the look of vintage letters in signs, etc. My dearest friends chipped in for my 21st birthday to buy me a gorgeous neon lowercase a salvaged from a gas station sign at an antique store. I took a photograph of it in the window and a few months later it was mine! My friends are awesome.

Top image from Pottery Barn. Bottom image © HaselBride.