Hi Guys,
Just a quick one. I am worried my reception is going to be dull. We have a ceilidh/disco but that's all. We were maybe thinking about a little quiz about us as a couple. I want something else but photo booths, chocolate fountains etc are so expensive. Has anyone got any cheap yet fun ideas?
Thanks.

I'm having a friend and his band plus a disco and some buffet food. I don't see any reason why we have to provide more entertainment for our guests after paying for a meal, buffet, band and DJ. If you have a good crowd who like a drink and a dance then you shouldn't have any problems. I've seen all these magicians and balloon artists etc at wedding fayres and I just think it's all gotten a bit out of hand. Our wedding day is supposed to be a celebration of our commitment to each other not an opportunity for my auntie and uncle to sit in a photo booth with big novelty glasses on.

You can set up your own photo-booth fairly easily and cheaply; just get a cheap screen and drape it with fabric (or set up against a neutral wall), get a box with a few fun bits (pound shops do things like feather boas, funny hats and glasses etc) and set up a camera on a tripod (you could maybe borrow these things from people if they have them).

Sweetie buffets can be cheap; buy some cheap glass bowls (try charity shops or car boot sales), and get some cheap sweets (again, pound shops often do big bags), a couple of scoops, and then make or buy paper bags. I was looking into it and reckon it's doable for about £30.

Also, and this might not be your cup-of-tea, but we've had a couple of Casino-themed parties for New Year, and bought a cheap roulette wheel for £30 online, and it went down a storm (we didn't play for money, just chips, but people really got into the swing of it lol)

Or how about a pub-style quiz if you like quizzes, maybe with a small prize (eg a bottle of wine) for the winners?

Or, what about a 'treasure hunt' if you have the space? Might be fun for the kids if you're having children there.

Otherwise, I really think music is more than enough; we're just having a band for our reception, who will play music from an ipod in between sets. My personal view is that if you choose your play-list carefully, you can be guaranteed to have a good atmosphere, with people dancing all night. You just need the right mix of music, with dancy tracks interspersed with slower ones (so people can have a rest), and sing-a-long numbers, and something for everyone (so you don't have huge groups standing around for 45 minutes while the DJ is playing solely RnB, only for them to then stand around while another group dances to 60s/70s rock and pop)

We're having a quiz before the evening guests arrive, but only because we have a lot of time to kill. The evening reception is just a dj! x

I don't think it sounds boring at all. If you are worried perhaps you could set up your own photo booth or have a candy buffet or similar. xx

We're "only" having a dj too, and initially I fancied a chocolate fountain but then we though people are going to have ben drinking for 3 hours already - the chances of them a)eating the chocolate fountain whatsoever and b)not getting it all down my white dress were fairly slim! Your guests will be happy and entertained just by being at your special day!

The last 2 weddings I went to only had discos in the evening. But I wasnt bored at all. You could dance when you wanted to or sit outside and chat to people. I didnt even notice the time fly by.

We're thinking of having a quiz entitled "Where the Hell are Grelle?" (I'm Grace, she's Elle and our friends have unfortunately joined our names together. at least it's not Merkozy...)

As we have travelled a lot, the concept is for there to be a series of photographs of us together on our travels and for people to identify where we are.

A bit lame, but it should keep people occupied while the photos are taking place. We thought we might make each table a team so that people can get to know one another before the meal- kind of an icebreaker.