A wedding reception is no longer a meal with some dancing to celebrate the newly married couple; it has evolved into an unforgettable evening of fun and entertainment. Trying to find affordable ways to keep guests entertained can be tough, but there’s a lot you can do to keep everyone having fun and talking well after the night is over.
With more couples paying for their own weddings, brides have become quite savvy planning their event and getting the most for their money. Whether your budget is large or small, one common goal is that couples want their guests to have fun. You’ve spent months planning every detail of your wedding, of course you want everyone to remember it! All of the following ideas can be tweaked for any budget.
Wedding favors don’t have to be elaborate or expensive to impress your guests. Many brides skip traditional favors for fun ideas that take care of several concerns at once. A candy or dessert buffet is one way to tie your theme and colors together, get people interacting around the table, and keep guests occupied while you are out taking photographs. Themed buffets with vintage style candy will have older guests reminiscing about their childhood, while a display of colorful sweets will wow everyone walking by. A popcorn bar or ice cream buffet is another fun spin with the same idea. Just imagine the possibilities!
A photo booth or other DIY photo set up with props is a great way to keep guests having fun throughout the night, especially those with two left feet! Many couples are ditching disposable cameras for a photo booth, and using this timeless option as their entertainment, favor, and guestbook.
There are other ways couples make their wedding memorable, and many are choosing to have artists on hand to create caricatures of their guests, or paper fortune tellers to find the next bride to be. Don’t forget the little ones! A small pack of crayons and a coloring book goes a long way to keep them occupied.
In lieu of a traditional guestbook, place a blank book with a question on the cover for the guests to answer. Some of the questions can include: What’s the best marriage advice you’ve ever gotten? What’s your favorite memory of us? Where do you see us in 25 years? There are templates on the Martha Stewart Weddings website to help you create the book, or you can come up with your own!
On May 30 I celebrated my one year anniversary, and looking back there are a few things I would change, and other things I would never change. Like many brides, I had grand ideas, but was working with a small budget. What I learned is that big budget or small, you can modify your ideas and still have a beautiful wedding. In the end, the most important thing to remember is that this is your day, and you need to decide what is important to you, and how you want to remember it.
Alyssa Marsh is the owner of wink! photo booths in State College, PA. wink! combines photo booth innovation and modern design to create an unbeatable product and service for special events across Pennsylvania.
