Rentals

The thing about having a wedding in your own home is the fact that you still need a banquet setting. We had plenty of room outside and if need be, cramped room inside. There was so much to rent and they had it all avlable. The rental company was great at helping me plan. They were the experts and they already had the list of items that are necessary for a wedding. (or picnic, or shower, or busniess meeting...)

The Successes...

The wedding was on Saturday, the delivery was on Friday and their pick up was on Monday and we were charged for one day! Basically, the timing of the rental was important since they're usually closed on Sunday and they had to deliver early. There was no pressure about what I "should & shouldn't" rent and delivery charges weren't terribly expensive. I read from another bride that it's well worth the delivery fee, especially after such a long weekend with family and guests. Besides, it's a lot easier for a couple of big guys with trucks & hand trucks to do the delivering of table & chairs for 120 people than it is us with a couple of cars! Even though trying to decide what we actually neede was very hard, once I'd made my decisions, everything else was easy.

I also wanted to add that we had to do our own clean up. That's my least favorite part of any party, but we were up for the challenge. The best part is that after the DJ wrapped up and a lot of our friends left, our families pitched in, broke everything down and everthing was ready for pick up an hour after the music stopped. That totally amazed me.

Another thing that I'd forgotten to mention was the mosquitos. (I know, it has nothing to do with rentals, but I wasn't sure where else to put it!)  1999 seemed to be the year for them. For a week straight, we fogged the backyard nightly. We bought the stuff you'd get at any home improvement store and as ann added precautionary measure, instead of giving everybody their own bottle of deet, or putting bug zappers all over the place (yuk, bug guts!) we lit mosquito coils. These work much better than citronella candles and weren't as obtrusive. That worked out really well.

The Glitch...

Well, I wouldn't call it a glitch per say, but I had a LOT of hoping and praying to do. I decided not to go with a tent. I thought that would defeat the purpose of an outdoor feel and it also cost a fortune! We already had a fenced in yard and I didn't want to close up the space. Not to mention the lighting and cooling of the enclosed space. I made sure we were ready with a tarp to cover the dance floor but if inclement weather decided to crash the party, I would've had my squad of attendants & helpers lead everyone into the house and we would've had a cramped party... but no worries, the weather smiled on us and for being the end of August, the temp was a comfortable 80 degrees.  :)

I also second guessed myself a lot. Regarding the dance floor, I was paying for each 3' x 3' parquet square so trying to decind whether a 9x9 floor or a 9x12 floor or even a 12x12 floor was keeping me up at nights! Same with the tent decision and the decision to go with china and glass instead of paper and plastic. But as I mentioned, everything turned out really well.

HomePage / Wedding Home / Budget / Our House / Our Pre-wedding Marriage / About Us / What Worked & Didn't