AboutGary & Teri Expertise My main specialties are invitations, catering, and banquet locations or in general, wedding receptions. Started as a family business over 75 years ago I now own and operate a catering & banquet facility for over 30 years and have catered small cookout events to large formal ones with everything in between. I even had an event that was attended by the President of the United States. I have been involved with over three thousand weddings and have been told that I have seen and done it all. I must reply almost, because something new always pops up.
Experience I have preformed almost every service needed at a reception from invitations, hosting and catering the event to photographing, dj and honeymoon plans with the latter being special circumstances. I have worked and hosted weddings up to 750 guest and other functions up to two thousand. With well over 30 years experiance of consulting with brides I have seen much of what works and does not.
I have also been involved with many business and orginizational functions and also have been listed in "Who's Who" business and executive edition.
Question QUESTION: I am having an outdoor daytime wedding at 2:30 where we are inviting friends and family and having cake and punch after the wedding at a different location. Later that night a 8pm we are going to have a BBQ with beer and wine and dancing. My question is, since I live in what is considered the Bible Belt and a lot of people do not drink I am not inviting everyone that is invited to the wedding to the barbeque reception, just the cake. How do I need to word my reception invitations?
Also I am having my wedding outdoors on the land where my grandmother use to have a house that burnt down before she died. How would I word where the ceremony is taking place? I thought about "Property of the late ______. ______ St.
ANSWER: Hi Samantha, Without knowing how many people you are talking about I would suggest the invitation to invite everyone to the cake, then verbally invite the certain people you want to the bbq.
Your invitation wording to the ceremony is fine.
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QUESTION: There are 375 invited to the wedding but where my mom is a politician there are people that I really don't want to come but they will anyway. Out of the 375 I only want 150 to come to the bbq.
Answer Hi Again That is a big difference but unless you have a definite line on who should or shouldn't come I will stick with verbally inviting them. It is not as good as a written one but the only other option is to get seperate invitations to invite those you want. The problem is you are more apt to have hurt feelings to those you do not invite. The verbal one will soften everything.