Wedding day? Help!! I have no idea!

Hi Twinie. The wedding breakfast is called so as it's the first meal of your married life together. This tends to be after the ceremony/photos/drinks reception etc where you have your meal with guests and speeches.

People often then have extra guests in the evening arrive and you feed them as well as your day guests later on. Of course all of this can be played around with depending on what you want for your wedding!

The wedding breakfast is typically the meal/food served after the ceremony (not sure why it is called breakfast though, does anyone else know?)

It all depends on the timings of your day, as for me our "wedding breakfast" is a BBQ that will be served about 15:00 and then our evening food is just a buffett for the night time.

Some people's wedding breakfast is more traditional and they are having the sit-down 3 course meal, with food later in the evening for night time guests.

How this helps.

To give you an example -

Wedding ceremony at 1pm

Followed by Photographs and drinks reception

Wedding breakfast 3.00pm untill 6.00pm (We're having a three course sit down meal)

Evening guests from 6.30pm

First dance at 7.00pm

Evening food from 8.00 (We're having a buffet and a cheese cake)

Some people decide to have a later start to the day so they only have to feed people once which keeps costs down. Pretty much anything goes in terms of catering but it depends on what options your venue gives you.

To give my timings as an example:

12.00 - Civil ceremony

12.45 - Reception drinks and photos

14.30 - Guests sit down for wedding breakfast and groom and FOB speeches

15.00 - Wedding breakfast

17.00 - Best Man speeches

18.00 - Evening guests arrived

19.00 - First dance (approx timings)

21.00 - Evening buffet

23.30 - Last orders

24.00 - Everyone back to hotel

Talk to your h2b on what you want for a wedding. Buffet sit down meal BBQ etc. decide on the amount of guests and a budget. Then go and look at venues. Book one you like making sure that you call the registrar or the church or wherever you are getting married to see if they can do that day. Some people decide to marry early or afternoon. Again that depends on what you want. We've gone for a 3 course sit down meal in a renovated barn and marrying at 2pm by the registrar. The meal being at 4pm and evening food about 8-9pm. It is called a wedding breakfast as it's the first meal as man and wife. Keep us updated on your planning xx

Ah right see I thought with it being called a wedding breakfast that that's what it actually was a breakfast but it isn't now I understand it now.

We only just got engaged a week ago but I have got so excited I am looking at things now, I just want to no what's out there really.

Personally I would like things to go alittle like this

1.00 horse and cart to pick me up

1.30 marry in church

2.30 photos

3.30 arrive at destination of reception have drinks and sign the guest book and speeches (wedding breakfast which I have now just learnt lol) and eat.

5.30 evening guests arrive.

Do you think that sounds ok?

Have I missed anything or would anyone advice to change anything?

I think 5.30 is a bit early for evening guests. If you're having a 3 course sit down meal with speeches after then you should probably allow 3 hours for this (hopefully other hitchers can advise as we aren't having a sit down meal). Another thing to think about is whether the venue need time to change the room around before evening guests arrive.

I believe the first thing you need to ask is your favorite time of day and then the guests, what time of day would most of your guests be present? and then after that, the food, if you were a guest at a wedding, what would you like to eat. something like that. hope it helps! Good luck!

Depending on how far your reception venue is from the church you'll need a bit more time for photos. How far is it in a horse and cart?

Do you want all the photos at the church or some at the reception venue? Some people opt to have most of them at the reception venue so the guests can have a drink while milling around.

You'll need a bit more time than that for the wedding breakfast, I think.

I wish everyone had your timings ?

Thanks everyone

the church is only a 5minute horse and cart ride away from my house, photos will take place on the lovely church garden, then the reception venue after will be a 15minute horse and cart ride away from the church.

I wasn't sure on when the evening guests should arrive I was thinking around 7ish but I didn't want a huge gap from the meal till then.