Reception Decorations Page

Today's wedding receptions take place on boats, in reception halls, in gardens, in restaurants, on outdoor terraces and in living rooms. But regardless of where your wedding reception is held, decorations will make your reception your very own.

Your reception decorations will depend on the mood or theme you've chosen for your wedding - casual, classy, whimsical or fun! For example, you may chose for a traditional style wedding ceremony and extend the motif of candles and flowers from the church ceremony to the reception.

Budget is also a big factor when deciding on decorations. Planning out your reception decor will avoid costly mistakes. This is why it's wise to take several photos of the reception site as a decoration reference when you're imaging and buying decorations.

If budget is an issue, it's wise to choose only one subtle motif to run through your entire reception theme, for example a rose motif on wedding invitations, centerpieces and as part of the cake decoration. Couples on a budget can further save by choosing a location that's already decorated to your liking such as the gardens of a bed & breakfast inn or a restaurant with exposed brick and beams. Locales such as these will require less decorating or even none at all!

Reception decorations can incorporate your wedding theme in several ways:

Your reception decorations should extend throughout your reception site, to:

Table Centerpieces

Centerpieces can get expensive because you may end up having to buy 10 to 20 of them for all of the guest's tables. The most effective wedding centerpieces are personalized gifts from the bride and groom that can be auctioned off or won as prizes by a lucky guest at each table.

The following are some uniquely inexpensive wedding centerpieces that will look beautiful but save you money:

© Paper Mache boxes can be found at dollar stores or even made into different shapes and colors. These can hold sea shells, dried flowers, pine cones, nuts, evergreen branches, flower seeds, small potted plants, homemade chocolates and Jordan almonds.
© Purchase plastic punch bowls from the dollar store and fill them gourds, Indian corn, pears, apples and nuts for a harvest wedding; or fill them with fake snow flakes, Christmas ornaments, plastic decorations and mini faux wrapped presents for winter weddings.
© Clay Flower Pots make great centerpieces when decorated with paint, potpourri, string beads, cloth butterflies, mini candles, Hershey kisses, glass marbles, herb plants, moss, lace, ribbon etc.
© Purchase mini teapots for each table from the dollar store. Surround each with flowers or ivy and place some tea bags inside with the lid slightly ajar.
© Pillar Candles from the dollar store are cheap and come in various colors. Decorate a pillar candle by pushing rhinestones into the wax, or group a few candles of varying heights and sprinkle rose petals, glitter or dried flowers around the base.
© A beautiful centerpiece should look good enough to eat. Purchase dollar store woven baskets for each table and fill them with a collection of fresh baked dinner rolls. Surround the basket with small jars of spreads - garlic butter, apple butter, cream cheese, olive oil and hummus.

An idea that is gaining wide popularity is to place one or two disposable cameras on each table with a note asking your guests to take shots of the event. This not only gets your guests involved in the reception activities, but is a great way to inexpensively obtain candid photographs of your reception. Disposable cameras come pre-loaded with film. When the film is used up, the cameras can be left on the tables, or dropped in a basket or other labeled container near the entrance to the reception site; and arrange for someone to collect them after the event. If you've decided to have a DJ or musicians provide music at the reception, ask them to encourage your guests to take photographs.

If you will be having a photographer film your wedding and/or reception, have the negatives transferred directly onto CD, with your favorite music, rather than having them developed into prints. Not only is this less expensive, but you can reproduce this "photo montage" and send it as a gift to your friends and family membersYou can then decide later if there are certain photos you want made into prints.

If you decide to have disposable cameras, remember that they come with and without flash. Cameras with flash are more expensive, but if your reception will be held indoors or in the evening, cameras with flash will be necessary.

Reception Favors

Wedding favors are thoughtful mementos from the newlyweds given to wedding guests at the wedding reception. Wedding favors are a token of appreciation for attending the wedding day celebration. In the past the most popular and traditional wedding favors have included:

However, today's couples are showing some innovative with more personalized and thoughtful wedding favors such as:

© Burning CDs with songs from the wedding - such as the bride and groom's first dance, the parent's dances and other favorite love songs. Place each CD in a clear case and slide a computer printed picture of the two of you into the front of the case. Prop a CD up against a candle and scatter loose flower petals or glitter around it on each table.
© Ethnic gifts showcasing the bride or groom's heritage like framed lucky shamrocks, hand-painted Cuban maracas or carved wooden Chinese chop sticks.

For newlyweds on a budget wedding favors can be easily handmade by you and members of your wedding party for virtually half the price of store bought gifts. The following wedding favor basics can be purchased at dollar stores:

...and filled with:

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Personalized table number
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