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I didn't end up having a morning wedding, but morning ceremonies with a brunch reception (non-dancing) are becoming increasing popular! They're super affordable, since most places will give you a serious discount for the morning (especially if they can still use the venue that evening.)
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I did a morning ceremony (October 4th) and it worked out really well for us. We had a small wedding (70 people) and only a best man/matron of honor. We started getting ready at 7:30, made bouquets and got dressed at 9:30, did "first meeting photos" at 10:00, got back to the hotel to regroup and touch up makeup at 10:30 and walked down the aisle at 11:00. Our ceremony was brief (civil, outdoor) followed by a cocktail hour at 11:30, lunch was served at 12:30, and the event wrapped up at 2pm. Photos were done then, until 3:30(ish) and then beginning at 4pm we had an outdoor, backyard evening event scheduled that ran until just after 11.
There were a ton of pros to having a morning event - much cheaper, no heat to deal with (I got married in the South), more venue options in our area for "dinner only" restaurants wanting to make extra money on a lunch event (no rental fees at that time either around here), we had the whole day to enjoy being with our guests vs the whole day prepping and only the evening with our guests (which was super important to us as 95% of the guest list was from out of town).
A couple of the obstacles were that all guests had to arrive Friday night, our hair guy had to come in super early to accomodate us (not to mention we had to be very punctual in our getting ready process and get up early), and ceremony musicians were a little harder to come by for a daytime slot for some reason.
All in all, we loved the timeline and the way everything turned out!
Edit: I forgot to mention that we didn't do many of the traditional reception elements. No first dance, no toasting, etc which is how we wrapped up in only a couple of hours. Also, we didn't want a super casual event just b/c it was being held in the morning, so we opted for a "white-tablecloth" restaurant that provided an intimate dining experience vs a large ballroom type of reception.
At first, I thought morning weddings were cheesy but after been to my first one...I thought it was such a great idea!!
I felt like it was so nice to arrive early while the sun is still out. You get to take awesome pictures!! Also, it's nice to not have to rush home if you had plans the next day. After the wedding, we usually go back to someone's house and drink some coffee and talk about the wedding events that happened during the day.
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I love the idea of a wedding followed by an elegant brunch.
It could be so fun. However, I'm not much of a morning girl...I'd have to have the wedding at least at 11:00 am.
7:30 to be up and around is way early.
Plus are you having a rehersal dinner? People would have to get up about 530 to get ready after the night before?
I opt for an 11 am time slot for you followed by an afternoon brunch which is still less expensive.
We have chosen to have a morning wedding (Dec.31) because of a few reasons. The first is that although my family and our friends love to get their party on, his family does not. Most of them do not drink and most likely would not dance. Having an evening wedding with no alcohol and no dancing was not too exciting in my opinion. Getting married at 10:30am with a lunch reception to follow made it seem more appropriate not to have alcohol and real dancing. Even if everyone does drink, you can save a lot on skipping the alcohol with a morning wedding. Because it is New Years Eve, though, we will be having a "secret party" later that night with my family, our friends, and some others that we just didn't have the room for at the wedding. A morning wedding allows us to play ourdoor games (horseshoes anyone?) and really just have it feel like a family affair. I am worried about having to rush in the morning with hair and makeup, though, as well as getting everything done the night before. If something is missing or wrong, many stores do not open until 10am around us, so there may be no fixing it.
I am planning to get up as early as I can (5am) and to have hair and makeup people there by 7am. Ceremony is at 10:30 and reception immediately following. Hopefully done by 3:30ish , take a "nap" with the new hubby and prepare for the festivities later that night.
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I think morning weddings are beautiful, however...
What kind of a wedding are you going for? Do you want people to think wow that was lovely... or wow that was so much fun I had a great time! I just attended my second morning wedding this year, and while they are unique and lovely- neither were very much fun. Both weddings had DJ's, but no one wanted to dance. I think it takes most people a few drinks to loosen up, and most people aren't in the mood to drink at that time.
I like the idea of unique weddings, but I also think you need to think about your guest. If you are having a wedding where there's a lot of old people or the people you are inviting are pretty relaxed- then I think morning weddings are great (all the people 60+ loved the morning theme, and my friends who don't dance/drink), however if you're having a lot of people who like to dance and have fun- I may take the hit financially and change it to a night time event. Let's face it, a wedding is about your guests. You wouldn't put in the time and effort if you didn't care about your guests. Another con: peope won't want to stay as long at your reception. Most people are ready to go and hour or two after the reception begins.
Pro:
If you love the idea- do it. The day time weddings i've gone to are always gorgeous and very special.
It's actually traditional to have a morning wedding in a lot of eastern european countries...though their festivities go on all day long. the wedding ceremony is in the morning, then a breakfast/brunch....then it's just visiting at different peoples' houses all day long. something for everyone. I considered it but too many people are coming from out of town and probably wouldn't appreciate it for ours......plus they wanna drink (HOORAY!) GOOD LUCK!
Hi There! We got married at 10am on August 16th in NE Ohio and it was a perfect day. Our (church) ceremony ended at 11 and then the guests went to the country club where they had drinks and appitizers (lots of mimosas!). We took pics until 12:30 and then lunch was served at 1pm. The band started after lunch and the reception proceeded just like a night time party would have gone.
After the reception ended at 5pm, we invited everyone to come with us to a winery about 5 miles from the reception. We were able to spend the evening with our friends and close family. The party ended about 11pm when the winery closed.
We got a ton of compliments on the day. From the fact that we were able to enjoy the gorgeous sunny day to the relaxed atmosphere of the evening, many guests said they wish they would have done things our way. And we didn't spend an arm and a leg on our wedding either. (we had 100 guests). I say go for it!
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Ours will be a morning wedding as well. Our wedding is next August. Ceremony at 10:30. This is not to save money, however, but to save on time. Because we have a long day planned.
After the ceremony, there will be photos. Then guests of my parents will go back to my parents house for a brunch. Guests of my fiance's parents will go out for dim sum. The bridal party will do photos all over town as well as go out to lunch. Then we will be going to my fiance's parents house for a tea ceremony. Next to the country club around 4 pm for tea ceremony with my side of the family. More photos. Cocktail hour at 6:30. Dinner at 7:30. After Party at a lounge at 11:30. Phew.
We're doing a morning wedding on August 1 beacuse the space we wanted is already booked for an evening wedding. The ceremony is at 10am and the reception is noon - 4pm. We decided that we'd give people a chance to nap and get some rest, and then find small bar to have an after party at.
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We're having a morning wedding for several reasons, too. I'm getting married in Alabama in July, and our reception is going to be largely outdoors (yikes!). We're doing the brunch reception, no dancing, because it's going to be at my dad's house and he wants everyone out by two ;)
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Our wedding is going to be on March 10th at 11:00am. We're going to have a small brunch reception afterward in our churches basement. It sounds perfect to me. I'm not morning person but I'm also not a big fancy party person either. Since this decision has been made I'm not stressing about anything else at all!
I like the idea of a morning wedding with a delicious brunch. I love brunch!
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My fiance and I are trying to decide what time of day to have our wedding. We will hopefully be getting married in a garden mid-June in Ohio. My fiance prefers a morning wedding and I am leaning that way because it would be a lot cheaper for us (we are on a very tight budget). We are having a small wedding (70-80 people at most) with mostly family and non-dancing/partying folk. Anyone planning a morning wedding or already have a morning wedding? What does the time line of your day look like and what challenges are there? Any advice? Thanks for your help!