A bride and her mom spend a great deal of time on seating arrangements for the wedding reception. There is usually at least one person on the guest list who simply cannot be seated next to a particular person. That one separation can actually cause the maneuver of 15 other people to different tables. As a guest, you are just that, a guest, and should be aware of what happens backstage.
Please :: Send back your RSVPs (French acronym for Repondez, s'il vous plait = Please Respond) on time. You have probably known the couple was getting married for at least a year. You received your invitation two months before the wedding and were given at least six weeks to return the RSVP. Sending the RSVP back three weeks after the requested date is not the mark of a good guest.
Please :: Arrive for the ceremony on time. Again, you received the invitation two months prior and are well aware of when it begins. And please, do not be insulted when the wedding planner asks you to wait until after the bride processes to be seated (in the back). That is not the mark of a good guest.
Please :: Send back your RSVPs (French acronym for Repondez, s'il vous plait = Please Respond) on time. You have probably known the couple was getting married for at least a year. You received your invitation two months before the wedding and were given at least six weeks to return the RSVP. Sending the RSVP back three weeks after the requested date is not the mark of a good guest.
Please :: Arrive for the ceremony on time. Again, you received the invitation two months prior and are well aware of when it begins. And please, do not be insulted when the wedding planner asks you to wait until after the bride processes to be seated (in the back). That is not the mark of a good guest.
Please :: Do not take it upon yourself to find a table of your friends and then ask the wedding planner (or banquet captain) to bring you a place setting to the table you have decided is yours while you walk around to empty seats and disturb other guests by asking, "Is anyone using this chair?". That is not the mark of a good guest.
Please :: Be patient if you do arrive at the reception and find that your name is not on the seating chart or there is no escort card for you. (And please do not fake having sent it back. We have lists.) As soon as all expected guests are seated, the wedding planner and banquet captain will do what they can to find you a seat (if that is what the bride has requested. Many times I am instructed to direct these guests to the door. No surprises). If you are allowed to stay do understand, you may not be seated with the people you crashed uh, came to the wedding with. The seating chart was completed at least a week ago and it cannot be adjusted for every unexpected guest. Again, not the mark of a good guest.
These are issues my brides call me in tears over. Seriously. You have no idea the effects you are causing when you are not timely. This is a huge day for the bride and the slightest things can make her oh, so emotional. You would not want to make her feel that way, right? Right. Just think of 12 people showing up at your home unexpectedly to hang out for four hours. You would want to know they were coming.
4 comments:
Great post Andria!
Well said!!
Andria-
FABULOUS POST!!! I sat with one of our couples last night to organize her seating. Her soon to be Mother-in-Law and I had a conversation relative to your post. Amazing how many do not think about what goes into the seating for the wedding.
What a great post! I think you have summed up every wedding planners issues in one blog post when it comes to guests at weddings.
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