The Home Reception

If you would like a reception that’s intimate, warm and very special, invite your guests to your home. Your family home will welcome and embrace those you’ve chosen to share your wedding day like no other venue.

Right now you’re probably taking a deep breath as you contemplate the idea. Will there be enough space? What about catering? Where will they park? How about the availability of uh … bathrooms?

Obviously you need to be realistic about space. Is there truly sufficient room for all your guests to be comfortable? There is? Then let’s get down to basics.

You’ll need plenty of time to prepare for a home reception. There will be a lot to oversee, and if you’re already very busy this can become quite stressful. However, if you have your heart set on it, your efforts will be rewarded by the end result.

Catering should be one of your first considerations. Will it be possible for a friend or family member to prepare the food? Remember that if they do, you won’t see much of them during the reception, as they’ll be busy in the kitchen. So unless you have a hoard of willing relatives to share the load, you really won’t want your mother, siblings or best friends to be consumed by this task.

By far the most popular and stress-free approach is to hire a caterer. A professional catering firm will cook the food, provide the necessary tableware, and supply staff. This leaves you and your family free to simply enjoy the event.

If you decide to hire a professional, first decide whether you want your caterer just to prepare the food, leaving all other details to you, or whether you want them to take care of everything, including the after-event clean up. Contact a number of caterers to discuss your requirements and menu choices. Ask for quotes and also for references from other clients. Once you have reached a decision, make a booking straight away.

A sit down meal for more than a few guests is probably only an option if you have unlimited space, or decide to hire a marquee. If this is the case, you are likely to serve a traditional three-course dinner as well as drinks, so you will probably have to hire tables, chairs, chair covers, linen, crockery, cutlery, and glasses.

If you have decided against a full catering service, serving the meal to your guests is another consideration. Do you have friends who can help you, or will you need to hire some extra pairs of hands? Another option is a cocktail-style reception with delicious finger food and perhaps a hired bartender to help make things more manageable.

You will want to create a special ambience for your home reception, and you can have lots of fun with this. Start with strategically placed flower arrangements, and after deciding on a theme, hire the additional props you need. With fairy lights, candelabra, chair covers and sashes, table lamps, and vases or urns, you can create a sumptuous look for a relatively small outlay.

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