Wedding Advice

[4everwarriors]

Another piece of advise is check the load in / load out terms.  My 3 sisters were at the Wisconsin Club (requires 1 year social membership) and they could drop things off Friday, pick things up Sunday.  My brother was at Discovery World and he was carrying things out at Midnight. 

Many event venues will limit your time.  Clubs are usually much more flexible.  Find someone to sponsor you if you're interested in that.  As an event guy, believe me...flexible load in / load out is key.

Speakin' of loads, make sure the venue has 'nough chitters. Neva saw sew many folks havin' ta take dumps and/or pisses all at once 'pendin' on da food and drink served, aina?

[The Sultan]

Until a live band can play Get Low as good as Lil Jon, I prefer a DJ.

[ZiggysFryBoy]

Here are my biggest tips:

80/20 rule is very accurate for guest attendees

Have some type of food available for guests at 10pm (Taco/Nacho bar, Pizza, etc.)

Live bands are worth the extra $

Look for a venue that has 2 bar areas, or at the least a very large bar area

I never liked venues where you have to clear tables for the dance floor...

White castle.

[warriorchick]

One bit about live bands .. we went to a wedding 10 years ago, the groom was a Chaldean (Iraqi Catholic).

They had this band that was literally, ear-splittingly loud.  The first song they played was a solid 25 minute techno-funk opera of some sort.  Most guests *had* to leave the room, it was that painfully loud, to seek refuge in the hallway.  How the bride and groom survived, I know not, maybe they had earplugs.

Did the couple not hear this band before they hired them?

I am so old that when we were looking for a band, we had to sit in a booking agent's office and look at VHS tapes of different bands.  The one we picked ended up being great.  And in a weird coincidence, some of its members were in the band that played during the main event at our 25th reunion.

[dgies9156]

Was it "You Can Call Me Al"?

Nope. 😎

[Herman Cain]

The Wisconsin Club worked out well. Was close to all the Hotels. The staff knows what they are doing which makes life easier.  They mark everything up , but that is the case everywhere.

One of the nice perks is instead of a venue charge they have you buy a Social Membership . You can use that all year at both the City Club and their Country Club. Gives you some limited access to Golf. Enough so that if you wanted to have fun Golf event for the Groomsmen or Out of Towners .

[Billy Hoyle]

If my wife and did it again, we'd do immediate family and other close family and friends only. Keep it under 50 people. A wedding is just you buying dinner for a bunch of other people.

[mubb3434]

One more thing....If the reception is not next to a hotel, provide a shuttle.

[wadesworld]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

[Skatastrophy]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

Consider your Scoop friends that aren't legally allowed to be within 500' of a child

[Dr. Blackheart]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

If from out of town, yes. Provide a sitter and negotiate an extra room for them to play/hand out in.

[reinko]

If from out of town, yes. Provide a sitter and negotiate an extra room for them to play/hand out in.

This, and it will be much cheaper than paying for multiple 4 year olds as a part of your headcount for the catering bill

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

We didn't allow kids at our wedding. As far as I'm aware it didn't keep anyone we wanted there from coming and near 100% of our guest list was there when the venue kicked us out. I've been at weddings where it looks half empty by 9pm presumably because people had to put their kids to bed. I've also been at a wedding where a child had a tantrum throughout the service and the parents chose not to remove them and address it outside.

[mubb3434]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

I'm OK with it, but the best way to deal with it is to get an extra hotel room or 2 and hire a babysitter for guests to leverage.

[Galway Eagle]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

We invited all kids none below 7th grade showed up. Unfortunately, the table of middle schoolers and high schoolers were the only table to get a refill on champagne on the bright side our teenagers were weirdly happy and laughy for being teens.

[drewm88]

Thoughts on whether to invite kids of guests or not?  We were thinking all would be welcome, but then her friend said that we should expect people to leave early.  My thought is that not enough guests would be bringing their kids anyway, so it might cause a few guests to leave early but I don't think it's going to be much of a factor.

*Figure out the parents you really want to be there and ask what they think.

*Our decline rate was nowhere near 20%. You probably know your guest list decently enough to have a rough idea once you figure out timing and location.

*Prioritize your $$ to what matters to you and screw the rest. For us, the band, the food, the photographer, and an open bar were important. The rehearsal dinner, cake, flowers, and lighting took a back seat.

*Late night food is a must.

*Pay attention to what you're asking of your wedding party. Travel, clothes, makeup/hair, bachelor/bachelorette parties, showers can really add up in time and $.

[UWW2MU]

I am coming up on 10 year anniversary and people still tell us how our reception was one of the best they've ever been to.  But the funny thing is, we didn't do too much to be unique.  You should just do little things that make it fit you. 

In our case, my wife loves vintage things... art, music, etc. so we used that as a theme.  A few things people still comment on:

1. We had a welcome drink (Southern Comfort Old fashions, a sweet and a sour because that is my favorite drink and fit the theme).  It really set the tone for the evening
2. Instead of a guestbook or picture for people to sign, we had two early 1900's typewriters for people to type messages on old looking paper.  The messages and typing errors were hilarious and we turned it into a book.  The book is a fun mix of sentimental and NSFW/Non-kid friendly messages!   One of the best decisions ever.
2. Venue - We were at the Prtizlaff right when they opened as a venue.  The whole warehouse look was brand new then and again worked with the theme. 

Point being, figure out what makes you guys happy and then have FUN with it and don't stress out trying to make it perfect.

Just remember, don't spend money just to spend money.  It's not worth it, the day should be about the couple, the rest is just an accessory to help celebrate! 


As a bonus tip, I'll just say that things are guaranteed to go wrong that day.  As someone who stepped on my wife's dress and ripped it early in the reception, cut the cake with a butter knife because we forgot the family heirloom cake knife, and had everything running late... people STILL had a great time.  Keep a good attitude and just focus on each other, the day goes fast and will be a blur!

[MU82]

Some great advice from UWW2MU and drewm88.

You don't need much more than that, wades!

[wadesworld]

Has anyone been to a wedding at the Pritzlaff Building? Between location, availability, and budget that seems to be rising to the top of our list right now. Any thoughts on it for anyone that has been to a wedding there?

Main concerns would be parking and the fact that they have two rooms for weddings right next to each other, so chances are there will be another wedding going on at the same time in the same building.

[JWags85]

Has anyone been to a wedding at the Pritzlaff Building? Between location, availability, and budget that seems to be rising to the top of our list right now. Any thoughts on it for anyone that has been to a wedding there?

Main concerns would be parking and the fact that they have two rooms for weddings right next to each other, so chances are there will be another wedding going on at the same time in the same building.

Ive been to 2 different weddings there.  Both were cool  Very different vibes, one summer and one winter, but its really flexible to your aesthetic and desires.  Plenty of space, good layout, good bathrooms, good location for meandering to after reception locales.

[wadesworld]

Ive been to 2 different weddings there.  Both were cool  Very different vibes, one summer and one winter, but its really flexible to your aesthetic and desires.  Plenty of space, good layout, good bathrooms, good location for meandering to after reception locales.

Yeah seems like you can do a lot of different things with the space. Just out of curiosity, were both weddings you went to in the same room? One is smaller and has access to the alleyway, while the other is larger but doesn't have much for outdoor space available. The larger one has a staircase in the middle of it.

[JWags85]

Yeah seems like you can do a lot of different things with the space. Just out of curiosity, were both weddings you went to in the same room? One is smaller and has access to the alleyway, while the other is larger but doesn't have much for outdoor space available. The larger one has a staircase in the middle of it.

They were both in the smaller, non-staircase room

[wadesworld]

They were both in the smaller, non-staircase room

Awesome, thanks. I think we both like that one better, and probably a better size for our guest list. But I believe they said they don't flip the room so the ceremony has to be out in the alleyway if we do it there, which could be chilly when we're looking (October). They said they have people rent heaters for the alleyway.

[MUfan12]

Has anyone been to a wedding at the Pritzlaff Building? Between location, availability, and budget that seems to be rising to the top of our list right now. Any thoughts on it for anyone that has been to a wedding there?

Main concerns would be parking and the fact that they have two rooms for weddings right next to each other, so chances are there will be another wedding going on at the same time in the same building.

We looked at it, the concerns you had were the reason we passed.

Our reception was smaller- I think we had 125 in attendance, so we opted for the Historical Society building which was perfect. Dinner upstairs, dancing and bar downstairs, photo booth in the old bank vault.

[UWW2MU]

Yeah seems like you can do a lot of different things with the space. Just out of curiosity, were both weddings you went to in the same room? One is smaller and has access to the alleyway, while the other is larger but doesn't have much for outdoor space available. The larger one has a staircase in the middle of it.

Clearly you didn't read my earlier post!   


But mine was in the third room that you're not referring to.   We had 275 guests give or take but we hired a valet.  The only issues we had were that guests of the other wedding that night were using our valet which caused backups during the peak arrival time.      However, some people parked themselves and said they had no issues finding parking.