When do you make the rounds?

[zoebartlett]

I''m not sure at what point during the reception we should begin visiting guests at their tables. What did you do or are planning on doing? Do you have to hurry up and eat so you can get to everyone? I don''t want to interupt their dinner. Will someone (like the coordinator) let you know when you should do this? I''m clueless.

 

[karasue91]

Are you having a receiving line? FMIL told me if we have a receiving line then we don''t really have to make a point to come around to everyone''s tables. Our wedding and reception are in the same place, so after the ceremony we''ll go off for some pictures for about 30 mins, then come back to the cocktail hour and have the receiving line as the people go into the reception for dinner.

After we have our first dances (our dance, mother/son/father/daughter, etc) I think we''ll leave the dance floor and wander around to talk to people for a couple hours. Then we''ll be back out on the dance floor!!

 

[Pandora II]

In the UK, it''s not usual to wander around during the meal. I fully intend to eat!

We do the talking during the cocktail hour (or two hours in my case) and after the meal. That said, most receptions here don''t end before midnight at the earliest, and most ceremonies start around 3pm, so loads of time.

 

[zoebartlett]

Date: 6/6/2008 10:26:19 PM
Author: karasue91
Are you having a receiving line? FMIL told me if we have a receiving line then we don''t really have to make a point to come around to everyone''s tables. Our wedding and reception are in the same place, so after the ceremony we''ll go off for some pictures for about 30 mins, then come back to the cocktail hour and have the receiving line as the people go into the reception for dinner.

After we have our first dances (our dance, mother/son/father/daughter, etc) I think we''ll leave the dance floor and wander around to talk to people for a couple hours. Then we''ll be back out on the dance floor!!

Yes, we''re having a receiving line. We weren''t going to but the venue''s coordinator strongly recommended that we have one. According to her, it gives guests something to do right after the ceremony, as they head in for the cocktail hour.

Etiquette-wise, I believe it''s still proper to greet guests at their tables -- whether it''s to check in or thank them once again for coming. I would definitely NOT skip it just because you''re having a receiving line. By the way, "you" is the general "you," not "you" specifically. Did that make any sense?

You might want to spend a few extra minutes with those who have traveled to attend the wedding, whereas I would think a quick visit to tables that have family or friends you see all the time would be okay.

 

[monarch64]

We did a receiving line, but we had an on-site ceremony with only a cocktail hour in between the ceremony and reception. My parents were the hosts, and they made the rounds. After the meal was finished, DH and I spent lots of time mingling with guests in between photos. We did not feel it necessary to "make the rounds."

I would mention your concerns to your wedding coordinator and see what he/she recommends.

 

[Pandora II]

I think the recieving line also depends on where and when.

My cousin did one coming out of the church and it took for ever. It was a freezing cold day and raining and we were all stuck in the churchyard for over an hour while they shook hands with everyone.

My hands started turning purple so I went and sat in the car in the end to warm up.

I''d have understood if it was a short reception, but the wedding was at 3.00pm, we were out by 3.30pm and the meal wasn''t until 7.30pm, so there was plenty of time to have done it at the cocktail 4 hours...

There were so many complaints about it and to why they couldn''t have been more flexible because of the weather. There were only 120 in total - but it took FOREVER.

My father categorically refused to have one at that point. I wouldn''t have had one anyway - FI''s parents are divorced and remarried, my mother has MS and can''t stand for more than a few minutes.

 

[noelwr]

I''m thinking that we will have two empty chairs at every table where we''ll sit to eat or drink so everyone can chat with us at some point in the evening. also doesn''t put us at the front of the room with everyone staring at us while we eat!

 

[karasue91]

Date: 6/8/2008 2:49:21 AM
Author: monarch64
We did a receiving line, but we had an on-site ceremony with only a cocktail hour in between the ceremony and reception. My parents were the hosts, and they made the rounds. After the meal was finished, DH and I spent lots of time mingling with guests in between photos. We did not feel it necessary to ''make the rounds.''


I would mention your concerns to your wedding coordinator and see what he/she recommends.

I''m with Monarch...also aren''t you having a rehearsal-type dinner/BBQ the night before? For some reason I''m thinking you were....that''s another reason that we''re not going to specifically plan to go to each and every table, we are having a BBQ the night before for all our out of town guests. So, we''ll see them the night before and visit a bit, then see them again in the receiving line, and then I''m sure we''ll see most of them during the reception too.

I really fought the receiving line because to me, it makes much more sense for us to make rounds to the tables since we will be having almost 200 guests. I''m not a fan of standing in them at all, especially since usually it''s right after the ceremony and the bar isn''t open yet so you can''t just mingle with people until it''s time to say hi to the bride and groom. At least that''s how it''s been at most weddings I''ve been to.

We are having our receiving line after we come back from pictures (we''ll be doing about 30 mins of pictures immediately after the ceremony) so then everyone has had a chance to get a drink, mingle a bit, and then we''ll set ourselves up near the door into the reception so people get the hint that it''s time to go in and sit down.

Anyway, I know your post wasn''t about receiving lines!! I''m not sure if you are having a plated dinner or buffet, but either way usually there are tables that are served first and therefore are done eating first. So maybe someone can just watch for when the first tables are done eating and you can visit them first, and then make your way around to try to hit each one just as they are finishing...