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Amanda
Featured August 2022 British Columbia

Splurge or Save: Cocktail hour?!

Amanda, on December 13, 2022 at 13:28 Posted in Wedding reception 1 23

Between your ceremony and reception, what will be on offer for your guests to enjoy while you and your husband and wedding party go and adventure taking photos?!

Cocktails? Hors d'oeuvres? Entertainment?!

Since my husband and I had an hour before our guests could head up to the reception area, we gave our guests a few options!

We had bar service, hors d'oeuvres of fruit and vegetable platters and a huge charcuterie board that was all catered by our venue! We also had our DJ down on the lawn while ceremony reception was going on!

Splurge or Save: Cocktail hour?! 1



23 Comments

Latest activity by Amanda, on December 23, 2022 at 20:44
  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    Love the outdoor games idea!

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    That sounds like a lovely cocktail hour for your guests!

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  • Joy
    Frequent user August 2023 Nova Scotia
    Joy ·
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    I had the idea of having somewhat of an "our story" video/slide show play. A lot of my family lives farther away, so that would be a good way to catch up and then both sides can get to see more about us. What one of my cousins did, was serve a soup and have hot apple cider as it was a winter wedding. I'm not sure what would be nice for some sort of refreshments, but so far a slide show and perhaps some games to help guests feel included.

    I'm doing things alcohol free, so we haven't discussed food or drink for that. Honestly, with the way the budget is going, it might be something we don't do too much for. Especially with family that would be flying in, I'm sure they'd want to say hi to people they haven't seen in a few years. I'm sure some would like to spend time talking outside after the ceremony (assuming good weather), and I don't want it to be too structured of a timeline.

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  • C
    VIP September 2023 Ontario
    Carine ·
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    We are having Cocktail hour and also there's outdoor games, we are also including our guest in a group photo, so they aren't bored waiting for our photos.

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  • D
    Devoted September 2022 Alberta
    Derek ·
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    For ours, we had bar service and appetizers, including smoked salmon, chicken kebabs and spinach dip (there was about 3 hrs between the end of the ceremony and dinner, so guests had lots of time). We had it start around 4:30 pm, an hour and a half before dinner.
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  • KELLY
    Super October 2023 Ontario
    KELLY ·
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    Right! we have 1 child at our wedding so the charcuterie boards are going to be a hit

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    I think charcuterie boards are a hit this year! I know they were with my wedding!

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  • KELLY
    Super October 2023 Ontario
    KELLY ·
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    We haven't committed but I think charcuterie boards will be the way to go- its all adults so I think that will be the best way to go. Our DJ is setting up a sound system for some jazz music for that area as well

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  • Julie
    Featured May 2023 Ontario
    Julie ·
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    I most certainly hope so 🤞🏽
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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    That's great! Have you decided on what kind of food you're going to have with your cocktail hour?!

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    I think your guests will love the photo booth!

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  • KELLY
    Super October 2023 Ontario
    KELLY ·
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    We have an hour between the ceremony and the reception for photos so we are going to have a cocktail hour

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  • Julie
    Featured May 2023 Ontario
    Julie ·
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    We are having cocktail hour as it is included in our package. Since our ceremony & reception are in the same venue, the staff will transform the ceremony room into the cocktail room. During that quick turnover, we are having some group shots before we go for our pictures. The guests will keep busy with the do it yourself photo booth, Mad Libs (my daughter wanted to incorporate LOL), 3 types of hors d'oeuvres moving around and the Open Bar.

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  • Kate
    Featured August 2022 Ontario
    Kate ·
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    Massive savings, that's awesome!
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  • Liberty
    Featured May 2022 Alberta
    Liberty ·
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    Definitely!! We had lots of Costco gift cards and they came in super handy!!
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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    That's awesome! 100 bucks is amazing!!!

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    Oh absolutely! Completely agree! You defiantly don't have to have cocktail hour if you and your future spouse don't want to!

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    That's awesome that you had a magician!

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  • Amanda
    Featured August 2022 British Columbia
    Amanda ·
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    I think that's still a great idea having a special drink and appetizers for your guests when they arrive!

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  • Liberty
    Featured May 2022 Alberta
    Liberty ·
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    For our cocktail hour we saved as much as we could! Our DJ used cocktail hour to set up but we had a speaker with music playing. For food we used Costco gift cards we got when we upgraded our phones to buy food for cocktail. A friend of the family who is a chef used the food from Costco to make charcuterie boards and other platters. I think out of pocket we spent around $100 total on cocktail hour!
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  • Kate
    Featured August 2022 Ontario
    Kate ·
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    Another thing to add! Obviously logistics can be a thing and if it's not all in the same area it's tough but I think if you can do a cocktail hour, it helps set the mood and tone and transition into the evening : )

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  • Kate
    Featured August 2022 Ontario
    Kate ·
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    I am a huge fan of a good cocktail hour! I think it depends on timeline but a pet peeve of mine is when I attend weddings and there is too much down time in between with not much going on... Our cocktail hour was an hour and a bit but we had 4 different appetizers going around, huge charcuturie board, live music from band, and a magician was doing strolling magic! I think it really helped welcome all the guests and put them in a relaxing party/evening mood!

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  • Brittany
    Featured August 2023 Alberta
    Brittany ·
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    I am technically ditching this. My wedding ceremony takes place at 3:30 pm and its on the other side of town and the restaurant does not open till 5:30, so when they arrive they will be greeted with a welcome drink and appetizers.

    So I guess kind of? But not the usual timing.

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