Planning an After Party

Comment Written by natasha on July 7, 2009 – 5:00 am

One of the latest trends in wedding planning has nothing to do with planning the wedding OR planning the reception. Rather, it’s planning the party AFTER the reception!

bride at the after party in a bar!

WHY do you want to plan something else?? Well, a lot of people like hanging out afterwards, in a more relaxed environment. Some people even change their clothes between the reception and the afterparty, for maximum relaxation! And other people who cant have a big wedding reception would prefer that the afterparty be the big party!

WHERE do you plan an after party? Depends on what you’re looking for. After the last wedding I went to, the couple asked everyone to go to a local Irish pub to hang out. It added no expense to their costs and they got to hang out with everyone longer. Plus, most of the “grownups” didn’t go, so they really got to spend time with their friends.

Another option is to have people come back to someone’s house and have some snacks and drinks to hang out there. It’s obviously a little more homey and it costs a bit more, but it has the same effect of getting to see everyone just a little bit more.

If you want some clever ideas, how about karaoke or a swanky bar or asking friends to utilize their mini bar?

What if you dont want to do this in advance?? Well, if you dont want to plan in advance, but you want to gather people — play it by ear! After all, formal etiquette need not apply. Most friends who are at weddings together want to hang out afterwards, so everyone can just find a hotel bar to hang out at afterwards. I went to another wedding where the couple chose to join their friends at their hotel bar — even though the couple was staying elsewhere. It ended up being their very closest friends, so they really enjoyed having the extra time.

Do you have any suggestions for after party ideas? Share ‘em!

~ Natasha