Formulating the Guest List
Everyone looks forward to attending a wedding. It's an opportunity for family and friends to share the happiness that surrounds two people who are in love.
However, selecting which family and friends will witness that happiness can sometimes lead to tension. Although it may be impossible to invite everyone you, your fiancÈe and both sets of parents want to include, you can devise your invitee list in a logical way. As you begin to formulate your guest list, consider the following factors:
How many people can the facilities hold?
Both the ceremony site and reception location can legally accommodate only a specific number of people. If you want small, intimate venues, you are going to need a small, intimate guest list. If including more people is important to you, find venues that can hold everyone comfortably.
What's for dinner (and how much is it)?
The highest ticket item in a wedding is usually the reception meal. Catering fees are based on a per-person basis. Depending on the number of courses, the quality of liquor at your bar and the dining style, your price can range from $10 to $200 per person. The more people you invite, the bigger the chunk of your overall wedding budget.
Who's paying the bills?
It is only right that the individuals paying the bills help determine how many people to invite.
If the bride and groom are paying, they may decide to split the total number of guests between the two families or by three: the bride's parents, the groom's parents and the couple. If the bride's parents are paying, take their wishes into account and compromise.
Adding a few extra guests to a large wedding won't make a big difference. However, when you're trying to keep things as small and intimate as possible, each person adds up.
You may want to start the guest list process by making a "dream team" list of wedding guests, including each and every person the parents and the couple want to invite. Then look to the venues' maximum capacity, your budget, and whoever is signing the checks, to help determine which guests make the cut.
