Wedding etiquette

Children Attending a Wedding

As a popular NJ wedding venue, we’ve answered our fair share of questions for brides-to-be over our many years of partnering with happy couples to plan their special day.  But when it comes to wedding invitation tips, one of the questions we get asked most, whether planning a large NJ wedding or a small NJ wedding, is “How do I let my wedding guests know their children aren’t invited?”

You’ll be glad to know that the answer is simple. Well, not quite. Read more…

So you’re ready to write your wedding thank you notes, but what is the proper etiquette for what to say? As a popular New Jersey wedding venue, we’ve tapped the expertise of wedding professionals to offer some wedding etiquette tips for writing thank you notes.

The guidelines here are fairly straightforward:

• Be sure to express your genuine appreciation, but avoid being so over-the-top that your gratitude seems false.
• Thank your guests for attending, and if there was any notable distance or effort involved in getting there, do acknowledge it. (If they didn’t attend but sent a gift or other well wishes, acknowledge that instead.)
• Reference the specific gift(s) given and personalize your thoughts about it (Perhaps a specific use you’ll have for it or how you already enjoy it, how you’ll think of them when you use it, something specific you enjoy about it, etc.) The recipients will be glad to know that you safely received their gift (especially if they came via mail) and that you are aware they are the ones who gave it to you – and ideally that the thought they put into the purchase (even if it was from your registry) was appreciated. Read more…

Gifts

As a popular New Jersey wedding venue, we’ve received so many gracious thank you notes from our many lovely couples. Some have come quite quickly and others in good time. Regardless of the timing or the manner in which they come, we were are always appreciative, but never expecting to receive these thank yous.  Your wedding guests, particularly those who have given you a wedding gift, however, will most likely be anticipating a thank you in response.  And proper wedding etiquette dictates that sending a timely thank you note is a must.

Because the note writing process falls after the day itself, it is one of the more overlooked parts of your wedding duties.  But it is no less important, because your response is a direct reflection on you (and if you wait too long, you may soon start hearing from your mother or mother-in-law that it is a reflection on them as well).  Good timing also goes a long way to show your guests that you are genuinely appreciative that they were part of your special day. Read more…

Wedding Cocktail Party

When guests travel in from out of town to attend a wedding, it’s become a new wedding must to plan several additional activities and events for them to enjoy during their stay. While your beautiful wedding will of course be the centerpiece of the weekend, there are many more hours to fill with fun events that give guests (and you!) more quality time together. Read more…

Restroom Amenities Baskets

Offering an attractive, well-stocked amenities basket in your wedding venue restrooms allows guests much-appreciated comforts during any type of wedding celebration. At any time during your reception, a guest might get a stain on his or her clothing, and be very relieved to find stain-remover packets in the ladies’ or men’s room. In the past, these comfort amenities baskets included just a half dozen basic products, and now the new wedding trend in amenities baskets is to fill them with dozens of different items, all arranged on an elegant platter, or in a wedding theme-matching basket, even a tiered display holder fronted with your wedding logo. Read more…

Wedding Programs

Several years ago, brides and grooms looking to plan a budget wedding cut out many of the prettiest details from their day, thinking that would be a smart strategy. They soon regretted not having these extra-special wedding décor ideas  and sentimental pieces. Now, wedding couples are back to including such items as wedding  programs in their ceremony plans. Read more…

Wedding Favors

Guests at a wonderful wedding, having enjoyed fine cuisine, top entertainment, top vintages of wine and champagne, and the joyful company of friends and family for your happy occasion would say the experience itself was all the gift they need, but it’s a top wedding etiquette idea to offer a take-home wedding favor they’ll love.

In years past, brides and grooms gave our small wine bottles with their personalized labels on them, and now the top wedding trend for weddings in our Northern New Jersey area is edibles…particularly something sweet.

Here are the top trends edible favors, welcome at the end of your wedding reception: Read more…

Gown and Accessory Trends

Inspired by celebrity wedding trends, today’s brides wear not one wedding dress, but two or more, changing from a ceremony dress into a chic, stylish dress for the reception. At our wedding venue, we’ve seen brides wear cultural wedding dresses for the ceremony, then change into either a traditional wedding dress or shorter, sleeker dress for the reception.

Here are some additional 2^nd-Looks for your wedding reception, garden wedding, or cocktail party wedding:

• Go romantic and lacy with your first wedding dress, then change into a sparkly dress suitable for the nighttime reception lighting.
• Wear a sleek, fitted wedding dress for the ceremony, then change into a dress that’s easier to dance in for the reception.
• Wear a traditional white wedding dress for the ceremony, then change into a colorful dress for the reception.
• Wear a traditional wedding headpiece and veil for the ceremony, then remove it and change into a tiara or jeweled hairclips for the reception Read more…

Wedding Bar

Put the perfect finishing touch on your wedding reception with an exquisite collection of after-dinner drinks. Our New Jersey and tri-state area wedding couples make it a high priority to treat their wedding guests to indulgent wedding drink menu offerings, and even budget wedding couples can enhance their wedding reception package with a list of excellent after-dinner drinks.

It’s become a top 2012 wedding trend to offer guests top-shelf liquors and liqueurs, in addition to coffees, and our wedding bar menus offer some of the top choices in after-dinner drinks. Here are just of the top-trending wedding drinks that can end your perfect wedding reception:

• Espresso
• Cappuccino
• Cognac
• Brandy
• Sambuca
• Ouzo
• Sabra
• Kahlua
• Jameson
• Frangelico
• Anisette
• Bailey’s Irish Crème
• White and Milk Chocolate Liqueur Read more…

Wedding After Party

One of the top wedding trends is continuing the wedding celebration even after the reception is done, by planning a fun and festive after-party. In the past, the bride, groom and their friends would simply go to the hotel bar to keep the party going, and now there are new party plans that our New Jersey and New York City wedding couples are making to turn their after-party into unforgettable celebrations. Here are some after-party plans to inspire you:

• Arrange for the hotel shuttle to take you and your friends to your favorite nearby nightclub or bar, then return everyone to the hotel safe and sound.
• Invite your closest friends to your hotel suite for a small-group celebration.
• Invite guests to join you in an outing to a great local New Jersey jazz club or other specialty spot.
• Parents are inviting their friends and close relatives back to their homes or hotel suites for a champagne and dessert party. Read more…