crazy wedding/reception ideas?

Question

ok, some i'm getting married next june, and i'm wanting some ideas for our reception.
we want to have a normal(esque) wedding and a really goofy, off the wall reception. we're not big on fancy stuff and impressing people with matching table decorations and $800 cakes like some people i know, and a few months ago we started joking around about getting a ball pit and a bounce around, and having some friends dress up in bear costumes and serve food.....well now we're kinda really wanting to do it...serioulsy. we think it would be hilarious and fun for everyone. it would also really reflect our personalities (he's a drummer, i'm an artist)
so anyway, we need some ideas to go along with our reception (decorations, food, location, etc)
i'd prefer people not to just answer out of meaness either, but to the people that are being genuinely helpful, THANK YOU!!!

Answer 1

It sounds like a circus or carnival theme would work. You could do really awesome food like funnel cake, cotton candy, hot dogs, pretzels, root beer kegs, etc. You could evern have some games like Pin the Ring on the Bride (Pin the Tail on the Donkey style!) a ring toss with giant diamond rings (fake of course!), and stuff like that. It'd be pretty cheap if you were able to do alot of it yourself like making up games and you could use regular helium-filled latex balloons to decorate. In fact you could even have some printed up with your names and date and give them away! This reception sounds like it'll be fun no matter what you do. Very creative, I love it!

Good luck!!!

Answer 2

I think it's a little tacky as well. It is a super cute idea, but other places can be considered that would accomodate your crowd. Even if you were to have the reception at a local park or similar venue, you could purchase entertainment or rides for the kids, which would still be a lil in-appropriate but not as much as hosting an entire Wedding Reception at Incredible Pizza. It is definitely different but the cost factor will add up to the equivalant of just hosting it at a more occasion suitable place. If you do still decide on Incredible Pizza, I would suggest you inquire about their lock-in rates. This way your older guest would not be offended by random kids visiting and you would have the entire facility reserved for just you and your guest. BTW....my 3 year old is having his party at Incredible Pizza in May, I love it! I'm just saying if you want a similar atmosphere, maybe pick a place that is kid friendly but that a 3 year old would'nt go like the Main Event or Dave & Busters.

Answer 3

So many ideas come to mind. I got married 5 years ago and I did the pretty traditional thing. Sometimes I look back and wish I had done something a little more fun that represented who we are. I always wanted to do a Halloween themed wedding. Guests dressed up in costumes and place decorated accordingly. How off the wall would a Halloween in June wedding be! Whatever you do have it represent you and your hubby. Go to party supply stores to get ideas. Have fun with it! One thing to keep in mind though. Make sure if you do decide to have an off the wall reception and a pretty traditional ceremony be sure to let your guests know, on the invitation or something, so the can be prepared and dress accordingly. Good luck and congrats!

Answer 4

Looks like you've got a ton of great suggestions already. I'm having a pretty standard wedding, but I was considering hiring a balloon animal guy for the reception. Maybe that would work for you too?

There are also a TON of fun food options. Like an ice cream sundae bar, a cotton candy machine, snow cones. Mmmm - all my favorite carnival foods. You can also rent photo booth (like the ones at the mall) so everyone can take pictures for your guest book.

Dont forget some wild and fun transportation too!!!! Maybe a clown car to whisk off the happy couple?

Good luck!

Answer 5

Well, we're not going quite as far as you, but we wanted to have a fun, not completely traditional, reception, too. We're having a lovely, dignified, short ceremony and then the reception at the zoo. So, we've glombed onto the zoo as a theme. The cocktail hour will be held in the African Savannah habitat. The reception tables will have animal names instead of numbers, and the place cards are wooden cut-outs of the animal of the table (elephants, giraffes, monkeys, etc.). We got foam animal masks that we're going to put at each table place and have asked our young-adult nieces to take photos of the guests, cajoling them into wearing the masks. The favors are goody bags with zoo-themed items (some practical: like animal-cut-out notepads and animal pens, some fun: gummy fangs, and some that the guests can play with at the table: jumpy frogs and parachuting animals--we thought those might help break the ice at tables where the guests don't all know each other). We also found balloons in animal print that match the patterns on the goody bags. We're making our own invitations, and the reply card is a postcard from the zoo (they had extra promotional ones that they gave us!). We're incorporating Simon and Garfunkel's song "At the Zoo" in our program, and to be played as guests enter the reception room. Instead of clinking glasses to make us kiss, we're asking guests to imitate a zoo animal. That kind of stuff...

So, you might define a theme (a kid's party, or a circus, or a masquerade ball, or the county fair) and build around that. We're having a lot of fun planning our wedding, and expect that the reception is going to be a fun event! Have fun planning yours, and best wishes!

Answer 6

One of the best crazy weddings I have ever seen, had a Wild West theme. People dressed as gunslingers and saloon girls.They played poker for reception food *lol* It was a blast.

This is your wedding, do what you feel will provide the most fun. After all, this wedding will only happen once.

Answer 7

What about a circus theme.. other things for coustumes.

Have invitations say something like now that we will be married join us in our circus of life? You do need to keep in mind that if you are going to have older people or people who have dissabilities that they will not be able to participate and you should consider finding an alternate form of entertainment for them besides the ball pit. You could also include face painting, and see if you can hire or know someone who juggles. See if another artist friend could do fast characters sketches of guests. Or at least have one done of your wedding party and one of the lovely couple and then have all the guests sign around it. Run with it!

Answer 8

Be careful with the bouce arounds, you have to get special ones that are made to hold adults, most of the ones you see are made for under 75 lbs, so that may be an added cost to get the adult ones.

Definitely this would be something you would want to do in a park, but because of all the fun stuff you are wanting you may get stragglers who want to come in and play and kids who cry when their parents say they cant go in because its a private party, which may tug at your heart strings and make you feel badly. So you will want to talk to the park about security issues and stuff.

Also, be prepared, espcially because of the toys, the insuance costs for the day will be expensive, so be sure to factor that cost into your budget as well.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Someone I know had there wedding at an aquarium. I am not sure if they served seafood.

If you want unusual just think of the different casinos in Las Vegas. Everything from renaissance (Excaliber) to Roman (Caesars Palace) to a Circus (Circus Circus).

Not sure how expensive it would be, but have celebrity look alikes be the servers.

Answer 10

Pick a theme and go with it. Someone suggested circus theme and I love that. Your husband could be the ringmaster and you could be one of the acrobats or something. The servers could be dressed as clowns and that would be fun.

I still suggest amongst all the craziness to serve good food and good cake. There would be no fun in going off the wall with the food and everyone going home hungry.

Have fun and congrats!