ouples tend to pick their wedding venue based upon how it will look and function as a reception space. The ceremony is often an afterthought.
Having both the ceremony and reception at one venue makes great sense, at least conceptually. Couples may save money by eliminating the church or ceremony location. You may save money on floral and decor and coordination services. Parking, transportation, scheduling and logistics will likely be simplified.
Once the decision is made to have both ceremony and reception at the same venue, the issue of which venues make sense to host both will need to be confronted. This seems simple enough, particularly since most venues will try to convince couples that this is not a problem at all. But it's actually fraught with problems.
The appearance
Perhaps the most obvious issue is whether the venue meets the appearance threshold for a wedding ceremony. Weddings tend to be a solemn affair and a certain amount of grandeur is demanded. But most venues have a manor home, lawn, barn, warehouse, lobby or some such place for the ceremony. With these spaces, couples often don't realize that they'll need to dress them up with drapery, florals, tents or other items of decor. This lipstick will often cost a good deal and require some time to set-up and take-down.
Conversely, if a venue is chosen primarily for it's ceremony appeal, the space may be considered "too churchy" for a reception (or not allow alcohol!), and others may fall into the high risk category of the outdoor ceremony (more on the outside in this article).
It's our belief that very few venues are ideal for both a ceremony and reception from an appearance perspective, and our other venue, Ruby is one of them. In Nashville, we can only think of a few reception venues that really look like they should be hosting a ceremony. We will argue that the photo of Adelaide Hall above will not require the bride to make excuses for her ceremony venue.
The logistics
Even if the venue can be made to be visually acceptable to a couple for their ceremony, the logistics need to be considered. By logistics, I mean the manner in which the ceremony transitions to the reception and its overall workability. Sometimes there are separate ceremony and reception spaces at a venue, however, most venues will transition the ceremony space to reception use. There are three primary logistical issues to examine.
- Logistics of the flip / transition
- Nature of the cocktail hour space
- Dressing rooms and layout
Logistics of the Flip. A flip of the ceremony space to the reception space is a big ordeal. The furniture and decor for the ceremony is removed and the reception furniture set. The band/DJ, food, florals, etc. all must be set.
The big issue with the flip is that it absolutely must be completed in an hour or less. Even with drinks, appetizers and access to beautiful outdoor areas, guests will lose their patience after one hour. After all, it's called the cocktail hour.
For the space to be transformed in an hour, the venue must use a rental company that knows the space very well. More importantly, the reception furniture must already be in the room at the time of the ceremony. At Clementine, we have a large storage room in Adelaide Hall for this purpose. If furniture has to come off a truck outside the venue during the flip, an hour is not enough time.
Nature of the cocktail hour space. While the ceremony space is being flipped, guests will be in a cocktail hour space. The size and attractiveness of the cocktail hour space should be considered (along with access to bathrooms and other essentials). For outdoors cocktail space, never count on its use if either uncovered or unpaved.
Something most couples overlook is the proximity of the cocktail and ceremony spaces. Will your guests be in the middle of the sausage making? Flips are loud and frantic and having guests see or hear the process is not something we recommend. So if the cocktail hour is in the same room or, as is the case with several venues in Nashville, merely separated by a curtain, then your guests will not have a great experience.
At Clementine, guests enter Little Bird Lounge, a beautiful circa 1915 brick space, for cocktails and appetizers. Guests have access to plentiful restrooms as well as a paved private outdoor courtyard that we call Brash Courtyard. The oversized doors separating Adelaide Hall and Little Bird Lounge are closed and guest do not see of hear the flip as it occurs. While in the lounge, guests will have drinks, appetizers and access to ten restrooms. Once the flip is complete, the doors latch open and the two rooms essentially become one.
Dressing rooms and layout. At the ceremony venue, the couple will require at least two dressing rooms, one for each the bride and groom. And these dressing rooms should be located such that the bride's room is at the head of the aisle and the groom's room is located at the end of the aisle. Ideally, the dressing rooms would also be separated to an extent that the bride and groom will not run into each other before the ceremony.
At Clementine, we offer three dressing rooms (one for a band) and the bride's and groom's dressing rooms are located where they should be. Couples will often use them even if having their ceremony at another location.
Deciding to have your ceremony at your reception venue is a far bigger decision that it first appears.
