A half hour before our wedding ended, my wife and I tried to sneak out. Our family and friends decorated our car, so there was no hiding our exit.
I feel bad when seeing couples staying afterwards to help clean up. It’s your day! Feel entitled to leave if possible, and if you want to. Go start life with your partner… consummate the marriage, reminisce about the day, get excited about the honeymoon; don’t start it by emptying trash cans.
Some grooms look so sharp, while others don’t.
Multiple things could be wrong:
Dress shirt becomes untucked (or was never fully tucked in to begin with)
Jacket, pants or shit is too big
Tie is too loose (not tied properly)
Tie or suit is out of fashion (chosen because it was on sale at Men’s Warehouse)
Ask yourself. Has my fiancé ever worn a suit before? In the past, men wore suits all the time. But if your wedding day is the first time he dons a tie, consider getting in some practice beforehand.
Have him try a few different suit styles so he’s comfortable in a slim-fit or tailored suit. Shop around to find a tie that’s newer looking than paisley. If you go, start dressing up for church during your engagement, or dress up for some fancy dates.
Dressing well takes time to learn what’s fashionable and find nice pieces that fit well. Don’t assume one visit to the college kid working at David’s Bridal will be enough. Spend time on this during your engagement.
Go onto TikTok and find the most epic way to walk down the aisle!
I had one Bride recently who planned out her walk perfectly. She played an instrumental version of a song while her family & bridal party walked in. Then the song switched to the normal version with words. She timed it so when she got to the end of the aisle, the song gave mention to her parents; she subtly gave them attention at this point (a sign of appreciation for getting her to this point in life) as her father then handed her off to the Groom. The song then played just long enough for her and her fiancé to take center stage as a bridesmaid fixed her dress (which was practiced more than once).
She knew exactly what she wanted, and I thought every detail was beautiful.
It happens every wedding. Guests circle around and start to cheer on an energetic dancer showing off their dance moves. Finally out of energy, or out of moves, the dancer flees the middle of the circle leaving an empty hole. Hopefully someone else jumps in (or is lured in) so the fun can continue. This usually lasts about five dancers before no one else is willing to jump in. This is when the awkwardness sets in. Right before it starts to get weird, It’s important for the DJ to help close the circle either using the mic, or jumping onto the dance floor to help out the guests.
He was drunk! The bar wasn’t opened yet, and the ceremony was still one hour away. Where was he getting his alcohol from? He kept retrieving beers from the back of his truck.
What’s the problem here? Yes, he may be a distraction during the ceremony and reception, but also he’s a liability. The venue can get in big trouble if he drives drunk and kills someone; he may lie and say the venue served him and didn’t cut him off.
The bar tender noticed this man was drunk, and went out to confront him. “You need to stop, this venue could face financial ruin for your actions. You cannot be here if you’re going to act in this manner”.
The venue and bartender were absolutely right to do this. I suggest maybe putting some groomsmen or uncles in charge of keeping the peace if you know some guests may get out of hand.
I love when Bride’s spend lots of money on real flowers, because I get to take them home to my wife.
While I’m cleaning up my gear at the end of the night, I watch as flowers get piled high on the tables. Family members and staff tell me to take them home because if not, they’re going in the trash cans.
I have no recommendation but to tell you what my wife and I did. We got our flowers from Trader Joe’s, mostly Baby’s Breath. My wife put them into old bottles and it looked great. There may have been some eucalyptus leaves in there too.
Again, I have no problem with you spending a lot on flowers. I’ll certainly be impressed because I’m there setting up before anyone else arrives. Maybe the question is, how much will you or your guests notice them amongst all the other activities going on that day?
Don’t get all your guests to kiss, just some of them.
The Kissing Game is a fun way to entertain guests during dinner.
The DJ calls for a couple to come up and do a kiss which the Bride and Groom then must replicate. Around four to six couples can be called during dinner, with around 10 minutes in between each.
If you’d like to do this at your wedding, give a list of couples to your DJ. Make sure to at least tell the first couple your plan so they’re on board and willing. Pick couples you know will have fun or be silly and enjoy!
As I write this, it’s seven degrees outside. But only a few months ago I was sweating during a ceremony.
This ceremony was undercover and protected from the sun, but the air was stagnant and hot. The bride and groom anticipated the heat, but the solution was handing out paper fans which don’t get rid of the hot air guests are sitting in.
If you stand under a tree on a hot day, it will actually feel okay if there is a slight breeze. If heat will be a problem, I recommend renting a large fan for your ceremony. Try to position the fan so that in helps cycle new air into the room. Some guests, especially the older ones, may arrive 30 minutes before the ceremony even starts. Seat them in front of the fans so they’re a little more comfortable. If you’re worried about noise, turn off the fans right when the ceremony starts.
When you did a taste testing, they probably didn’t overcook the chicken and it tasted great. But when they cook for 200 people, the meat tends to be overdone.
This is why BBQ sauce is so helpful, it covers the dryness of any overcooked meat. Did you ever get a plated meal at a wedding and wish they added more sauce to the plate?
With plated meals, they need to be kept warm while the staff runs back and forth. Plus, maybe the meat sat on a plate while the potatoes were finishing up. All this leads to dry meat. BBQ on the other hand gets cooked in big batches and just marinates in juice.
Yes, some plated meals can be great, but also consider BBQ is usually cheaper and all the sauce options are fun. And with BBQ, guests can enjoy seconds!
A DJ I respected plugged every piece of equipment into one circuit. He was going over-the-top, wanting to give the Bride and Groom the best experience possible. Then it happened. During the height of dancing, the lights and music turned off. He tripped the breaker. Too much was plugged-in.
This happened over and over again until I suggested he split the load between two circuits. I helped him do it and everything was fine from that point out.
This was early-on in my DJ career; I was also going to school for Electrical Engineering Technology. Ever since then, I always do my best to ensure a breaker doesn’t need reset at a wedding. No music is the quickest way to kill a dance floor :)
Okay, it wasn’t an outhouse, but a Port-A-Potty.
Being in NE Ohio, I DJ many weddings at barns; some of them don’t have bathrooms! Yes, this is rare, but you should double check.
A good bathroom provides many benefits to your guests. They’ll have a place to freshen up and make sure they look great. Some might get sick from drinking too much; having a dedicated stall in helpful. Parents may need an area to change their child’s diapers. And you can put a nice basket of breath mints and Aspirin for the guests.
Providing guests a small Port-A-Potty simply isn’t the right way to go. It’s small, not temperature controlled, smelly, and often dark once the sun goes down. There are vehicles that provide nice portable bathrooms. These are bigger, offer power, and are sometimes temperature controlled.
My wife, Megan, only had one requirement for our wedding reception, no drop ceilings. Fortunately I found a beautiful VFW venue that worked-out great.
Being a wedding DJ, I’ve been to many extravagant venues where the walls and floors are made of marble. Yes, they’re more beautiful, but the sound can suffer in these environments.
Sound bounces off hard surfaces so large marble rooms sound like echo chambers. Have you ever been inside a Cathedral? They’re usually made of stone and marble; it’s always hard to understand what the priest is saying.
Just remember soft materials like carpet or drop ceiling absorb sound, letting the music and toasts sound much clearer.
