At The Reception

With all of the stress that goes into planning a fantastic wedding, have you thought about doing something a little less traditional? Why not throw something fun and whimsical into your special day? Have some laughs and relieve some of the pressure. Here are some fun, unique ideas:

This is a great ice-breaker that will make it easy for your guests to strike up a conversation and have them laughing at the reception. Set a single flower at each place setting and wrap a ribbon around each stem with a small note. Type out a funny quote or joke specifically related to weddings. This will make for easy conversation, especially if a lot of your guests have never met. Visit my Wedding Jokes page for some funny ideas.

Instead of the traditional bouquet and garter toss meaning, put your own meaning behind it and be sure to announce it first. For instance, you can have a prize for whoever catches the bouquet, like a gift certificate or wrapped present. This way everyone can get involved! Or, you can tell your wedding guests that your bouquet was made with a new special meaning, like fame or prosperity instead of the bride passing on her fortune in marriage. You can also ditch the bouquet toss all together and replace it with another amusing game.

If you plan on having a lot of children at your wedding, set aside a separate, fun area for them. At my sister’s wedding she sectioned off a part of the reception hall just for the kids, with bean bags, books, snacks, games, bubbles and so forth. This kept them happy and occupied, giving the adults a chance to mingle.

Take some time during the reception to play a few games and get your DJ involved. My favorite is the Couples Quiz Game. Get at least four couples involved including the bride and groom. They are each given a small dry erase or chalk board. The DJ will ask a question and each participant will write it down. The couples with the same answers will get points for that round. No Cheating! Whichever couple has the most points at the end wins a prize!

Another laugh-out-loud game is with the use of barbie and ken dolls. This is a fun, not-so-serious compatibility test. Have the bride and groom stand together, back to back so that they cannot see each other. They will each hold a barbie bride doll (representing the bride) in one hand and a ken groom doll (representing the groom) in the other. The DJ will ask several questions, such as “Who is most likely to pay the bills on time?”, and the bride a groom will both lift the doll that they think is the best fit. It’s fun to watch what they think each others roles will be.

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to make a memorable wedding reception. Get creative and make it your own!