Planning Tips For A Backyard At Home Wedding
Let's talk about your wedding! Did you know we genuinely enjoy answering questions and educating our clients? We even like talking on the phone! Our entire website is designed to help educate you. If you take the time to read through it, you’ll notice helpful tips sprinkled throughout. Every one of those tips comes directly from us, based on our own experience, not from outside sources.
Tent sizing is an art. Things like a food line, bar, wedding party, displays, DJ or band all takes up space beyond the guests at their tables.
Examples and guidelines:
-125 guests are comfortable in the 40'x60'
-150-200 guests is a nice number for the 40'x80'
-300 guests fit under the 40'x120 with a maximum of 450.
-A band on average needs a 12'x16' stage. They require more space for their gear, so a good rule of thumb is a 16'x30' space.
-Food lines are typically 2-4 eight foot tables.
-Bars placed in a corner of the tent works well. Factor in a 20'x20' space for their needs and so guests can come and go with ease.
-DJ's need a 5'x7' area to stand and mix music.
-The dance floor works well for the wedding party tables.
-The 40'x80' tent has 3,200 sq/ft of usable space. 10.5 sq/ft per guest at a minimum is needed when using 8' rectangle tables. 13 sq/ft per guest when using round 5' tables.
Rule of thumb for comfort
15 sq/ft per guest is quite comfortable for rectangle and round tables during dinner.
Our tent sizes range from:
40'x40' white canopy
40'x60' white canopy
44'x63' sailcloth canopy
40'x80' white canopy
44'x83' sailcloth canopy
40'x100' white canopy
40'x120' white canopy
The tents are called tension pole tents which means there are center poles with a clean canopy. They're tight which makes them quiet and impressive looking with the high peaks.
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We have wood side poles which give it an elegant rustic look. The white canopy style blocks all sunlight coming into the tent keeping guests quite comfortable. The sailcloth canopy let's in some light and has a sailing ship feel to it.
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Other styles of tents we don't have and why:
-Frame tent: Too much clutter in the canopy not high peaks, noisy when windy, need to hide frame poles with drapery.
-Clear canopy: Green house effect in the summer.
-Low peak pole tents: Not as elegant.
-Structure tents: To large for most properties, logistically expensive to set up.
-Circus tent: Dark, to many colors, strange, need elephants to lift.
-Amazon tent or pop up: Will fly away during storms, very weak, poor quality.
More Tips
The weather. Make two plans, the first is utilizing the tent for all activities. The second uses the outside space. Make a duties list for both plans so family or helpers can get to work without coming to you.
Delegation. Don't try to do most of the things yourself or worse yet a few family members. Create duties lists and ask for volunteers or hire professional staff. Keep in mind tasks end up taking 2x as long as you think it will take.
The Property. Have a goal of being completed with everything by Wednesday. This means improvement projects, moving junk out of the way, hanging lights, mulch in the flower beds, watering the lawn, painting, installing new items, washing the sidewalk, pulling weeds, planting flowers, cutting brush and trees.
Gather supplies early. If you're able to gather supplies, displays, tools, drinks, food items early instead of the week of the wedding you will be in a far better place. Don't wait until the last minute to order next day air delivery from amazon. This only adds stress.
Day of coordinator or vendor coordinators are a blessing. We offer vendor coordination because it frees you and family to enjoy the day without interruptions, decision making, problem solving, and added stress of being the main contact for vendors. You're more present, relaxed, and available to have a blast with your guests.
Keep your focus. It's easy for couples to spend way to much time on minor thing while putting little effort on things they actually care about.
Write down 3-6 goals/preferences for the day that reflect you as a couple. Then create a priority list of needs, wants, tasks. This list could be large but the top items are the priority. You family may add to this list but you are the one who decides where it goes on the list.
As you go through the priority list, reference your goals and preferences. If the item on the list doesn't meet your criteria cross it out. If you're spending way to much time on a lower priority item and higher priority items still need to be completed pause on the lower item and focus on the higher. If you run out of time which most do then cross of lower priority items.
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Added priorities. One of the most common things about planning and hosting a wedding is that new items become a priority. Some of the reasons are: You're getting closer to the day and realized you forgot something, family brings it up, vendor mentions needed it, plans change a bit, someone drops the ball. This is hard because it can add extra time, effort and costs you didn't anticipate.
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When added priorities come:
-Ask if it's essential or not?
-Will it make a better experience for everyone?
-How does it align with my goals?
-Who will be in charge or complete it?
-How urgent is it?
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From our (Ty's) point of view there are many things couples and families don't realize due to inexperience. A big part of our job is to help bridge the gap to help the backyard wedding be huge success!
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See how neat our mobile tent wedding venue is!
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Visit our FAQ page for other interesting tips.