At our wedding reception, Danny and I made a point of speaking with every one of our guests. Not just saying hello in passing, but going table to table, really engaging our guests in conversation, catching up on their lives, and making sure they felt appreciated and welcomed at our celebration. It’s one of the things Danny and I left our wedding very grateful to have been able to do, because it meant a lot to us to be good hosts.

But it also meant that I spent about ten minutes total on the dance floor with my friends.

Striking a balance between meeting with your guests and simply enjoying the party can be a challenge for sure, but there are a few ways you can make it work.

The smaller the wedding, the more time you’ll have for each guest.
One compelling reason to keep your guest list on the shorter side is because you get to truly spend the day with all your guests. You’ll get the formalities of saying hello out of the way early on — then you’ll all enjoy the meal and dancing and socializing together.

Have a first look and get most of your portraits done before the ceremony so you can join cocktail hour.
Our couples who have opted to get the majority — or all — of their portraits done before the ceremony have ended up having more time to spend with their guests, because as soon as the ceremony ends, they go straight to celebrating. Taking care of at least some of the portraits before the ceremony can give you an hour — or even more — of extra time to spend socializing.

Cocktail and dessert receptions offer more opportunities to mingle.
If you have a sit-down meal, you’ll be tied to your chair while you eat . . . or you might not end up eating. If instead of have a reception of heavy hors d’oeuvres or a buffet of desserts, you’ll be free to move around and meet with your guests while you eat.

Decide what is most important to you at your reception and plan accordingly.
Something to keep in mind is that, often times, wedding guests start leaving the reception before the bride and groom are ready to end the party, even if the guests know ahead of time when the party is supposed to wrap up. So plan your schedule accordingly — if you want to speak with all your guests personally, take care of that early in the reception and plan to dance the night away with your friends during the latter part of the reception.Remember that there is no right or wrong way to celebrate your reception.
If you don’t talk with all of your guests individually because that isn’t your priority, that’s okay. If you don’t spend any time on the dance floor because you don’t feel the need to, that’s okay too. Your wedding reception is your party — and you should spend it doing what you’ll enjoy most, both as it unfolds, and as you look back on your wedding day!

~ Laura