Creating the Perfect Home Wedding, part 2 of 3

As we discussed a few months back, home weddings can be fantastic! But they are complex events with lots of moving parts. Our team of wedding planners have planned numerous home weddings over the years, from intimate affairs to soirees for 400+ on land where we build the "venue" from scratch. We are excited to share some tips, tricks and best practices when it comes to planning a home wedding. We've broken this into a three-part series, and this second installment gives you our top five do's when it comes to home weddings and particularly, receptions.

Top Five Do's

1.  Hire a professional - This goes for your caterer AND wedding planner. Hosting one of the biggest celebrations of your life in your home is not the time to try your hand at DIY. It takes a team of experienced, competent professionals to get a home in order for a wedding and reception. Your caterer will have a proper notion of staff-to-guest ratios, what and how many rentals to order and will partner with your wedding planner to map out an optimum plan. Find a caterer with impeccable references, the proper licensing and quality staff. For an event of this magnitude, you'll want a wedding planning team with the chops to pull it off with grace and aplomb so you and your family can enjoy your day.

2.  Have a back-up plan - In most cases with a home-based celebration, much of the festivities will take place outside. Ah, but weather is a fickle thing, especially here in North Texas, so you MUST have a contingency plan for bad weather. If there is no space in the actual residence, a tent can still be an option. They have become so advanced, with flooring and climate control, that your guests won't even notice the weather outside.

3.  Plan your space well - This is when having a pro by your side is exceptionally helpful. Wedding planners and caterers have a lot of experience laying out event space and mapping out flow. You'll want obvious entrances and exits, and you'll want your bars, cake tables and any food stations to be in ideal locations that work best for the space. You will also need plenty of space for the caterer and staff to set-up, prep, stage, store and more. This space should not be adjacent to but near the action - and they will need power, lighting and water, too!

4.  Make sure you have enough - You must plan enough time for set-up. It takes time to transform a house and yard into a wedding wonderland. You must plan for plenty of space - for rentals (you'll be storing them overnight), for vendor load-in/load-out, for the generator you are likely to need to rent. You must have enough potties. Portable restrooms have gone luxe and now you can rent trailers complete with flushing toilets, running water and climate control. And finally, make sure the homeowner and your vendors have enough of the right kind of insurance.

5.  Rent everything - An event for 150 guests who may be imbibing a bit is not the time to highlight your Nana's precious heirloom serving pieces; that's just begging for trouble. You may be able to incorporate a special piece here and there, say at the cake or sweetheart table, but you should plan to rent all of the dishes, silverware, serving items and furniture. And trust your caterer to order what you need, as well as how much. It's more cost effective to allow them to order that standard 10% extra than pay the staff you've hired to serve to instead wash dishes. Also, be prepared (and budget!) to rent items you may not have thought about such as coolers or warming ovens, and a generator to provide sufficient power for lighting, catering needs and the entertainment!

 

Creating the Perfect Home Wedding

A home wedding can be a wonderful event. If the home is accommodating enough with plenty of outdoor space, having a wedding ceremony and reception at a home - whether it belongs to one of your families or some extremely gracious friends - can be an enchanting option. But unless you're planning on an intimate celebration for very few guests, it is not the same - or as simple - as just opening your home for a party.

Our team of certified wedding planners have planned numerous home weddings over the years, from intimate affairs to soirees for 400+ on land where we built the "venue" from scratch. We are excited to share some tips, tricks and best practices when it comes to planning a home wedding. We've broken this into a three-part series and this first installment gives you some of the most crucial details to think about when considering a home wedding!

There are a multitude of logistical considerations you'll want to spend time pondering before you make the commitment to a home wedding. Below is a list of several - but not all - of them:

Space

For setup, breakdown, storage, layout and flow of ceremony and reception and for the wedding party to get ready and wait for ceremony to start

Parking
Valet vs. self parking, potential need for permits, room enough for all the cars and neighborhood issues

Necessities
Power, restrooms, trash, security
Rentals
Consider all that you might need: tent, furniture, linens, glassware, flatware, plates, food service items

Catering/Staffing
Timing, refrigeration, heating, staging, set-up, serving, clean-up

Again, these are just a few of the logistics to consider. To drill down on these issues a little, in the coming weeks, we will share our top five do's, followed by our top five don'ts when it comes to home weddings and particularly, receptions.

 

And if the idea of weighing the pros and cons of a home wedding overwhelm you, make an appointment with our experienced wedding planners to learn how they can help walk you though the process - and you'll have fun along the way!

Amor Verde

There is a Native American Proverb that says, “We did not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” Such is the philosophy of our featured wedding couple, who held their intimate wedding ceremony and reception at their own completely green home in Dallas this past spring.
 
Many of the materials making up the beautiful home of Donna Wilhelm and John Gunn are renewable resources, having been repurposed, reclaimed or recycled. Naturally, this couple, who is passionate about protecting the environment and the earth’s natural resources, took the same approach for their wedding – starting with the 100% cotton invitations from Crane’s.

Donna and John were wed by Reverend Marty Younkin in their spacious living room with approximately 100 friends and family members looking on.

  
At the end of the wedding ceremony, the guests were invited to take a small stone from baskets near the pond in front of the home. They were asked to make a wish for the newlyweds and throw the stone into the pond, leaving a memory for the couple. This “blessing stone tradition” led by Reverend Younkin was so touching, and the couple enjoyed secretly witnessing it by peering from the house through a nearby window, unseen by their guests. Donna and John took great pleasure throughout the evening asking their friends and family what wish or advice had been cast into the pond for them.

It was time for the reception, starting with cocktails…next door. All the guests strolled on a pathway of greenery to enjoy the cocktail hour at the new, equally amazing eco-friendly home of the bride’s daughter (who also served as Matron of Honor) and son-in-law. The guests noshed on hearty passed hors d’oeuvres of beef Carpaccio, salmon tartlets and onion squares before heading back to the bride and groom’s home to continue the celebration.

As guests returned, they were treated to the couple’s first dance and cake-cutting ceremony before the buffet opened and the casual, lively celebration continued. This was an encore wedding for both Donna and John, and they wanted to add special touches unique to their life together, including bringing in their love of travel. Guests were treated to food and music from all over the globe.

Chefs Jonathan Calabrese and Brad Dickens from the trendy – and very eco-conscious – Savory Catering Company prepared Mediterranean chicken with olives and wild mushrooms served on creamy Parmesan polenta onsite while guests toured the beautiful and interesting house, taking in the green elements and fascinating art and sculpture.

The couple had a miniature tiered wedding cake for their cake-cutting ceremony but the guests enjoyed a delightful assortment of cupcakes and tarts for dessert.  All of the food was served on earth-friendly bamboo plates and all the utensils were also made of bamboo, one of our most plentiful, renewable and biodegradable resources.

Music performed by the percussion-driven “Duriye and Friends” drifted throughout the house the entire evening as guests of all ages danced on the patio to the jazz, funk, Latin and Afro-Cuban rhythms, again in tribute to the couple’s international travels and love of various cultures.

The décor was all about nature. The muted pastel color palate was a wonderful way to bring the outdoors in, from green and ivory linens to the natural wood containers filled with lush white, green, peach and yellow flowers fresh from the garden…Junior Villanueva’s garden, that is. Junior of The Garden Gate did a fabulous job of keeping all the décor earthy and in balance with the couple’s lovely eco-friendly home, with his usual stunning style.




As the evening wound down, guests were sent home with hugs and small pots of fresh herbs, which the happy couple hoped they might plant in gardens at their own homes, bringing a little more green into all of their lives.

Vendors

Bamboo dinnerware: Smart Living Companies

Catering: Savory Catering

Florist: Junior Villanueva, The Garden Gate

Linens/chairs: BBJ Linens and Ducky Bob’s Event Specialists

Minister: Reverend Marty Younkin, Love Notes

Music: Duriye and Friends

Photography: Graham Hobart

Wedding cake/ Cupcakes: The Cupcakery

Wedding Planners: Marsha and Staci, StarDust Celebrations