9ahchick - The Reception

University and Whist Club

We're having the reception at The University and Whist Club (same place as ceremony).

I didn't realize it at the time, but I think the Whist Club could be quite a good deal. We were able to reserve a prime Saturday night with no minimum charges (as non-members, we had to pay $1000 deposit but we will not have a 100 guest minimum or anything like that). For around $100/person, you get a 5-hr premium open bar (3 different kinds of rum if you want!), choice of 2 entrees, wedding cake, basic centerpieces (I plan to upgrade), and butlered cocktail hour. They only have 1 wedding a day so you have the grounds to yourself and flexibility about start/stop times. The staff has been wonderful and very flexible so far, and we are grateful to have such a comprehensive package deal that lets us have a "respectable" wedding if our schedules don't allow us to customize more but is flexible if we do want to make changes. If you want more info on weddings at the Whist Club, click here.

Outdoor Cocktail Hour

After the ceremony, guests will walk a few steps over to the outdoor cocktail. The pic below shows the view of the ceremony and cocktail space from the bride's getting ready room.

The ceremony takes place underneath the tree, and we'll move to the right side for the cocktail hour.

For the cocktail hour, we'll have a station with the first 3 items and then the rest will be circulated by the waitstaff.

Seasonal Sliced Fruit with Raspberry Yogurt Dip
Cheese Presentation to include Jarlsberg, Smoked Gouda, Cheddar, Chevre, Brie & Blue Cheese Served with Stoned Wheat Crackers, French Bread & Champagne Mustard
Fresh Cut Vegetables with Two Dipping Sauces, Creamy Spinach and Ranch
Tuna Tartar on a Crisp Wonton with Pickled Ginger & Wasabi
Smoked Salmon & Boursin Pinwheels on Toast Rounds
Curried Chicken on Toast Rounds with Mango Sauce
Baked Brie in Phyllo Cups with Raspberry & Almonds
Spinach & Cheese Triangles in Phyllo

Reception Decorations

The formal reception will be held in the ballroom:

The ballroom will be the back-up space for the ceremony if it rains.

Table Runners

I'm making Chinese brocade table runners to add color to the table. I ordered the fabric from eBay, and it is shipping from Hong Kong. I'm a little nervous about ordering from so far away, but I couldn't find any fabric like this locally and the price wasn't too bad ($10/yd including shipping).

UPDATE: We received the brocade very quickly (5 days from Hong Kong) and in very good shape. I recommend the eBay seller highly (1188mall) and his eBay store name is A1 Silk Dress Fabric Dress Store. If you look at the wedding invite page, you can see the brocade as the background--it is a little more yellow than I thought it would be, but I still love it.

Chinese Lanterns

I am hanging battery-powered Chinese lanterns from the trusses above the dance floor. I bought 12 20" Ocean blue lanterns from the Asian Ideas .

UPDATE: Save money and have more lanterns!! Check out this cool way to light the lanterns easily using handmade LED throwies from WeddingBee for less than $1/per light. There is even instructions on how to make an on-off switch so you don't have to assemble them the day of. I never heard of LED throwies, but check out this video of the LED throwies in use by graffiti artists.

I am also getting a price quote from Lights of India on their "Blue Date Tree" star lanterns. These lanterns are 28" wide and 7-point stars with holes punched in the paper to let light peep out. I think they'll look great hung at a different heights with the blue Asian lanterns. As they sway and spin, I hope to get a classier version of the mirrored "disco ball" effect.

And since Lights of India can't seem to return my email, I'm now considering these Papillon Star Lamp Blue. I don't like them as much as the Blue Date Tree, but they're on sale and the company is based in Hawaii so maybe they'll take my money!!

Escort Cards

If time permits, I'd love to carry the Asian floral theme into the wedding with these origami lilies from WeddingBee. The blue example is from Thryn+Gabe's flickr site. Miss Bubblegum is putting them on stems so I don't need to get flowers for the card table. Video instructions here. Too perfect!

I'll need at least 60 flowers. I bought this 4" paper for 50 flowers from Origami Paper Store but will need to find some more paper for the remaining 10+ flowers:

Update: See the completed origami escort lily cards here.

Favors

We're getting chocolates from JohnandKira.com. JohnandKira is a local company (based in Philly) but only does business online. They specialize in artisan handmade chocolates using ingredients purchased from local and family farms. Their community activism make their favors the best of both worlds-- a delicious edible favor whose purchase supports a company dedicated to community activism. They were named Gourmet Magazine's favorite chocolate as well as coming in first in a Consumer Reports blind taste test. We ordered the Wedding Sampler package, which has all 10 flavors and samples of their packing. After tasting the samples, we selected the 2-piece Choice Chocolate Favor (the raspberry and pistachio cinnamon in a gold box with a navy blue ribbon). Naomi has been very helpful during the ordering process. They will not ship the order until a few days before the wedding we don't have to worry about storage issues.

Cake

A three-tier cake (plus an extra cake so guests have a slice to take home) comes with the package. We chose almond poundcake with raspberry mousse filling and a vanilla buttercream. I like square smooth cakes, and plan to cascade blue flowers like the photo below:

The Reception