Meet and Greet
Your rehearsal dinner is a chance for the entire wedding party to be all in one place at the same time before your wedding day. This is a great time for everyone to get to know one another throughout the evening on a more casual level.
Rehearsing
…and by rehearsing, I mean rehearsing the processional and recessional of the ENTIRE wedding party.
This is after all, what ‘rehearsal’ stands for! Your wedding planner will have a list of your processional and recessional order, and they will be there the next day directing people where to go. This is also a time for your wedding party to become familiar with the wedding planner, so they know who’s direction to follow the following night. Eliminating any surprises is ALWAYS in your best interest.
Speeches and Toasts
Many couples are choosing to forego the traditional speech segment of their wedding night and instead are asking speeches to be made at the rehearsal dinner. Being surrounded by your closest family, and friends, who know all of the inside jokes can make their words even more touching.
Gifts for the Wedding Party
If you have purchased or made gifts for your bridal party, now’s the time to hand them out!
Your rehearsal dinner can be so much more than a stuffy formality. It’s a time for some quality interaction with close friends and family, since you will most likely be pulled in a few different directions the next day.
Fun tip: Plan your rehearsal dinner with your wedding in mind. You don’t want to take any of the wow factor away from your wedding venue. Think opposites if that’s helpful. If you are having an outdoor plantation wedding then about hosting the rehearsal dinner at a downtown location.
Happy Beginnings, Mike
