There are so many wedding traditions we still love to see here at Saint James Place. But, honestly, it’s your wedding – you do you. Want your pup to be the ring bearer? Bring him or her on in! (We recommend you put someone in charge of dog wrangling…) Bride and groom duet during the ceremony? We’ve got the acoustics for it! However, there are a few wedding traditions that still serve a purpose. Here they are in no specific order.
Printed Invitations. Sure – send the Save The Date via email. But for the big day? A snail mail printed invitation lends significance to your life event. Digital invites get buried way down in the inbox. A lovely printed invite sets the tone. No matter if your big day will be formal or come-as-you-are, the invite goes on the refrigerator and sits there for months reminding friends and family of the upcoming joy. And when they go for the ice cream, they remember to send the response card!
Receiving Lines. Lots of couples are nixing the receiving line and choose to move from table to table at the reception. We like that too. But consider this: Americans love a line – we’ll queue up all day long. People understand a receiving line. And they get to BRIEFLY meet everyone in the wedding party. Guests and the wedding party are more likely to mingle at the reception because they’ve already met. And nana will like it.
Place Cards. To avoid family and guest melt downs, we recommend place cards. Again, like receiving lines, people understand they’ll probably be assigned seats. They want to get the card, find their table, and go to the bar (are we right?). Guests worry when they’re not assigned seats – what if they can’t sit together? And what if Great Aunts Tilly and Mavis go straight to the bar and by the time they go to find a table the only places left are by the speakers? Keep Aunts Tilly and Mavis happy.
Parent Toasts. This is another one where you want to think about the guests and, most importantly, the parents or parent-figures in your life. If there’s no parent toast 1) guests wonder if there’s a rift, and 2) parents may feel left out (even if they say they don’t mind). Plenty of people HATE public speaking but there’s nothing more moving and joyous than a parent weeping through words of joy and love. Consider it.
Thank You Notes. Everyone – EVERYONE – wants to be acknowledged. That’s what thank you notes do, of course. Show your gratitude. Guests and family want to celebrate you but remember, they put great effort into getting to your wedding. People from far away buy plane tickets, pay for hotels. People buy dresses, suits, new shoes, ties. They go to the hairdresser and barber. AND they buy you a thoughtful gift. Get those thank you notes out as soon as you can. We recommend that you write out the thank yous as you receive the gifts (lots of people will send the presents before the wedding).
What are your thoughts? Do you think these traditions are still valid? No? Tell us why. And let us know if you’d like a tour of Saint James Place. Call us at (413) 528-1996.