WaW Wedding Tip Sheet: Anatomy of a Morning Wedding

[cs_content][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]While many would opt for a 10:00 a.m. slot, I decided to focus this post on the most ideal time slot, the 9:00 a.m. ceremony.

What’s the usual timeline? Read on.

2:00 a.m. – Wake up, take a bath
2:30 a.m. – Set up of HMUA stations (one for make-up, one for hair)
3:00 a.m. – Make-up begins (assuming you have the usual bride plus 2 or 3 plus groom; 1 hair stylist and 1 make up artist)
4:00 a.m. – Breakfast arrives (Check if the hotel allows such an arrangement.)
5:30 a.m. – Groom’s pictorials (The groom would still be in his prep clothes by the time the p/v team transfers to his room for his pictorial with family; the rest though – family and entourage should be dressed and ready to take part in the shoot by this time.)
6:30 a.m. – Bride’s pictorials (The bride would be in preps clothes at this point while the rest should be dressed and ready to participate in the shoot.)
8:00 a.m. – Bride leaves for church
8:30 a.m. – Arrival at the church; assembly and line up (also your invite time)
9:00 a.m. – Ceremony time
10:30 a.m. – Recessional
11:00 a.m. – Cocktail time
12:00 p.m./12:30 p.m. – Start of program (This makes the 9:00 a.m. slot ideal. Your program will not be too late for lunch.)
12:30/1:00 p.m. – Lunch
2:00/2:30 p.m. – Party time/End of program[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://weddingsatwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/WaWWeddingTipSheet_MorningWedding2-e1461933967395.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”right” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]What details do you need to take into consideration?

a) Your attrition rate could be higher when you get their responses via your coordinator’s RSVP report. Why? Because this time slot requires everyone to wake up pretty early and if your wedding is on a weekend, some may not be willing to get up even earlier than they would on a week day. Nonetheless, if you really wanted an intimate gathering anyway, the lower number of attendees would be ideal.

b) If your wedding is on a weekday, you will have to brace yourself for traffic, so you may need to allot more time for travel between the hotel and ceremony venue & between the ceremony area and the reception venue. It will help to book places that are really close together.

c) Note that the early preps would most likely require you to have extra space for your entourage to have their make up done there in your hotel. Maybe a 2-bedroom suite would be better than a 1-bedroom suite. You see, it’s hard for them to visit their friendly neighborhood parlors at such an ungodly hour like 3 or 4 a.m. Best to hire a team for your entourage. Do not forget to give the exact number of heads in advance so the HMUA team can bring the right number of people as well.

d) Given that their preps would cut into breakfast time, you can expect that some decided to forego breakfast in favor of getting dolled up. So yes, provide heavy cocktail food items to compensate for the breakfast they missed. These are especially necessary since your post-nup shoot + retouch & eating time will take longer than the usual cocktail hour. If you will go beyond the maximum waiting time of 1.5 hours — open the soup and salad station as well. Find out if the caterer/venue allows this kind of arrangement though, some don’t give in to such a request.

e) Expenses could go lower since you will not need to spend too much.
– On clothes (No need to have suits. Suspenders or vests would be fine; dresses could be knee length or may reach mid-calf only, no need for long gowns and bling.);
– On booze (In fact, no need for alcohol because people don’t necessarily look for an alcoholic fix during lunch.);
– On entertainment (no need to have a full band, strings would do);
– On lights (Especially if the venue allows the sun to filter in), and
– On food (It’s a lunch reception, so you can go with comfort food, not necessarily steak and other expensive dishes. You can even get away with brunch type meals.)

f) However, despite the savings, you may expect to spend on an LED wall instead of a projector and screen combo because it might not be possible to see AVPs on a projection screen if the sun filters into the venue.

g) This is a time slot that does not allow for punctuality-related problems. You can’t be late for preps because it would create a domino effect and guests won’t appreciate having lunch at 1:30 or 2:00 p.m. — although this time slot is one you can’t avoid with a 10:00 a.m. wedding ceremony.

h) People are also more inclined to go home after eating because they are sleepy or they have other stuff scheduled in the afternoon. They usually expect the event to be done by 2:00 p.m., and they aren’t usually in the mood to party since by 2:00 p.m., some may have been awake already for 10 to 12 hours.

i) You can’t have fireworks but you can always have confetti, which would cost a lot less.

j) This one is most important: get enough sleep. Do your best to check in on time, relax, and sleep earlier than usual. It won’t help to have too many people in your room. So do your best to have only a few individuals, and do not attempt to finish DIYs and forego sleep. Give yourself at least 6 hours of sleep so you can handle the rigors of your big day.
[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”http://weddingsatwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/WaWWeddingTipSheet_MorningWedding1-e1461934105696.jpg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]Other points to consider:

Ceremony Time Constraints:

If your chosen church only has a 10:00 a.m. slot or worse, a 10:30 a.m. slot, you might want to consider either of the ff:

1) Go for couple pictorials prior to the ceremony — check first if your parents are ok with this.

OR

2) Go for couple pictorials after the reception – you will have to make arrangements in advance with your photo, video, and HMUA teams.

Both measures are designed to make the waiting time shorter. Of course, you can always provide heavy cocktails for waiting time.

10:00 a.m. – Ceremony
11:30 a.m. – Recessional
12:00 NN – Cocktails
1:00/1:30 p.m. – Start of programme
1:30/2:00 p.m. – Start of meal time
3:00/3:30 p.m. – End of programme

For a 10:30 a.m. slot, cocktails will be at 12:30 p.m., programme will start at 2:00 p.m., and lunch will be at 2:30 p.m. End of programme will be at 4:00 p.m..

For garden & beach weddings, it is best to follow the timeline below:

6:30 a.m. – Invitation time
7:00 a.m. – Ceremony time
8:30 a.m. – Recessional
9:00 a.m. – Cocktails
10:30 a.m. – Program starts
11:00 a.m. – Lunch
12:30 p.m. – End of program

You may also adjust:

7:00 a.m. – Invite time
7:30 a.m. – Ceremony
9:00 a.m. – Recessional
9:30 a.m. – Cocktails
11:00 a.m. – Program
11:30 a.m. – Lunch
1:00 p.m. – End of program

However, if you’re having a garden or beach wedding, please make sure you have a covered, air-conditioned area for the reception. It won’t be fair to have people stay under the scorching and deadly heat of the sun for reception. Usually the heat can still be a bit bearable before 9:00 a.m.

Do provide fans and the like to make everyone a bit more comfortable during the ceremony. Reserve part of the budget also for getting a tent to ensure protection from the harsh rays of the sun.

BOTTOMLINE:

Overall, this is a time slot that is supposed to save you money. It takes away a lot of things you may find necessary given evening receptions. It also usually lessens the need to invite too many guests — it caters to those who want intimate celebrations.
[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]Note from the W@W Team: Having an afternoon wedding? Read the Anatomy of an Afternoon wedding here and the Anatomy of an Evening Wedding here.

Read more of Darlene Tan-Salazar’s Wedding Tip Sheet articles at www.weddingsatwork.com/category/waw-wedding-tip-sheet/.[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][cs_section parallax=”false” style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_block_grid type=”two-up”][cs_block_grid_item title=”Block Grid Item 1″][/cs_block_grid_item][cs_block_grid_item title=”Block Grid Item 2″]About Darlene Tan-Salazar, W@W Supplier of Year (2015): Darlene started out as a Planner/Coordinator of Perfect 10 Weddings. Since she needed more time for family matters, she opted to focus on emceeing, and has since started “The Wedding Tip Sheet“, a Facebook page that tackles the practical points in planning a wedding.[/cs_block_grid_item][/cs_block_grid][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]