Ingredients for a perfect wedding cocktail

Wedding cocktail receptions are unheard of in the Kenyan wedding industry. But did you know that the wedding cocktail is a chic, cost effective way of planning your wedding and can save you time and loads of money as well? The wedding cocktail reception is held immediately after the wedding ceremony and is slotted for 1-2 hours. The wedding cocktail reception is the perfect reception solution for the bride who wants a simple, cost &  wedding reception.It is most appropriate for couples whose wedding guest count is less than 100 so as to allow for an intimate wedding reception atmosphere.

The ingredients of a perfect wedding cocktail:

1 great wedding venue:

The best place to host a wedding cocktails has to have the following characteristics;It should be intimate think friends backyard, or a small garden try find a space with some seating for the older guests. You can also host the garden wedding cocktail reception outside the ceremony space, you just need to have a little decor to convert the space into an amazing place.

 1 sumptuous cocktail menu:

Create a nice unique wedding cocktail menu. Remember your wedding guests are not going to have a full plate service so you better make your cocktail menu worth it. Have your wedding caterer design for you a theme wedding cocktail menu with your wedding theme color cocktails. Have light bitings and food stations for the guests to serve from. You can even have live food stations for them to enjoy fresh salads e.t.c.

Lots of amazing decor:

 Having a wedding cocktail is an out of the box idea in itself. Create a lounge for your elderly guests to have a seat and be comfortable. The lounge area can have pictures of you and your partner. Also have color coded cocktail tables to match with your wedding color scheme. These tables can have decor items like a picture of you and your fiance and a stem of flowers. Have a central space for dancing, which can be lit with candles depending on the timing of your event.  Have simple centerpieces and a cake space where you will have your cake cutting ceremony.

Simple wedding cocktail invites:

Design wedding cocktail invites for your wedding guests. Clearly indicating when your cocktail reception will start and also details of the menu i.e. " A cocktail menu will be served" so that your wedding guests are well aware of everything in advance! Cocktail invites can be slim, sweet & simple and needn't cost you an arm and a leg.

Cake& Champagne

Since the wedding cocktail will only last between 11/2- 2 hours you can have the cake & champagne toast ceremony as the highlight of your wedding program. Ensure that you have enough drinks for your guests to toast, and accommodate for the teetotaler by having non-alcoholic drinks as well. The cake & champagne ceremony can be crowned off by a toast from the bestman!

An out of this world program

Your guests may not be particularly thrilled about the whole wedding cocktail idea so ensure that you have made up for this by having an out of this world wedding program. Sit with your wedding planner to design for you a fun and interactive program that will ensure that all your guests will not want to leave. Include wedding games, toasts, activities, dancing sessions, cake & champagne session 15 minutes open mic and am sure all your guests will have a ball.

    Wanjiku Kariuki is a certified wedding specialist under the Waridikenya.com wedding plannersand has a passion for designing signature wedding themes.