How To Make Sure All Guests Are Invited
Your wedding ceremony is complete and you are finally able to enjoy the company of your family and friends. All the hard work you’ve put to ensure that your wedding reception is a joyous and festive affair has paid off. Unfortunately, when it comes to these kinds of parties, you can never really be sure that all of your guests were invited – there will be always wedding crashers.
Wedding crashers are usually people who do not appear on your guest list because they were not originally invited or were taken out of the guest list. The companion of your guests are considered wedding crashers especially if your invited guest did not inform you of their intent to bring along a friend or date. Maybe you won’t find out until much later how many uninvited guests attended, but it will reflect on the bill when it’s time to pay the caterer.
The best way to deal with wedding crashers is to cut the root of the problem. Inform your family and friends that due to the limited budget or seating space, they might not be able to bring a friend. You can always allot a plus one for single friends or relatives who would like to bring a date. Stress your point and do not worry that they will be offended. It is after all your wedding and you are paying for it. They will understand your decision, but you have to be firm. On your wedding invitation, write down the number of people that they can bring along and ask them to RSVP as soon as possible so you can reserve the slots for them.
Uninvited guests such as family members of your guests may also cause some problems. If you have chosen to have an adult only reception, you should inform them as early as possible of your plans. Flower girls and ring bearers are of course exempt from this unless you would like to forego with this part of your entourage as well. There are many reasons why couples opt to have adult guests only, especially if the reception hall has limited space. Another reason is that parents tend to go home right after the meal has been served because their children are tired or have soiled their clothes. Point out your reasons to avoid any misunderstandings.
Relatives and friends who did not RSVP are also considered wedding crashers as you might have already given their seat to another. To avoid conflict, contact those who did not respond to your invitation. Time consuming as it may be, it’s your party and you may have to call them each of the invited guests to make sure that they can or cannot attend.
Your wedding planner, if you have one, bridesmaid or another relative can be assigned the task of contacting guests early on in the process. You should not put yourself in the situation of having to pay for additional guests who, in the first place, were not invited at all.
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