The Receiving Line Tips.

Receiving Line Tips.

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One of the hardest things to arrange is the receiving line at the reception, usually it takes time to convince that she does not have the whole of her entourage greeting the guests. Especially if the whole affair is on a tight schedule for their departure on their honeymoon.

In the most formal of occasions the Toastmaster will take the invitation from the guests and announce them to the mothers of the Bride and Groom, the guests then move on to the fathers of the bride and groom. Then they will be offered a cocktail by the catering staff, and then move much further into the room where the Bride and Groom will be standing.

A tip for the guests! Do not indulge in any long family discussion, as you may be part of a very large guest list, on which time and schedules have been allotted. There will be plenty of time later during the reception.

Head Table Seating Plan.

Head Table Seating Plan.
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This is the formal seating for any head table at a wedding reception and can be referred to as standard protocol. Seating is viewed from sitting in an invited guests position and is as follows: The Best Man, The Father of the Groom, The Mother of the Bride, The Groom, The Bride, The Father of the Bride, The Grooms Mother and last The Maid or Matron of Honour.

Some Brides like to have their whole entourage on the Head Table and I always suggest that it is much better if tables adjacent left and right of the head table are used for this purpose, this is where Bridesmaids and Ushers may be seated. Also there should be enough room behind the head table for the bride to walk with ease, also that the catering staff can serve without hinderance.

Guest seating can be in several forms, either at round tables of eight or in spur form at 90 degrees to the head table. This of course depends on what the venue can offer.

The Italian Wedding Cake.

The Italian Wedding Cake.

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One of the most interesting weddings that I ever had the pleasure in organizing was for an Italian family living in north Somerset. Like most mothers of the bride she was very nervous and anxious for everything to go smoothly for her little girl. We had several family meetings where I went through step by step with what will happen at the reception from start to finish. I found out there were a few Italian traditions that had to be woven in to the proceedings. One of which was the cake.

The cake in the photo is the style that was made, except that it eight tiers altogether and the baker of the cake was on hand to cut up the cake after the initial traditional cut by the bride and groom. The reason is that the cake is nothing like the traditional English fruit cake with Royal Icing, but is a very light sponge texture with a soft cream icing. The making of the cake started in the middle of the night prior to the wedding. It is assembled by the baker at the reception hall and the final decoration is completed. When served it again traditional to be served with a small glass of Sambuca. So with all this pre-assembly by the baker, it is most sensible that he dis-assemble it and cut it into portions to be served to the waiting guests by the catering staff.

Towards the end of the evening the father of the bride took me to one side to thank me for organizing the reception, and in doing so passed the remark that he had never seen his wife so relaxed. To me that was an accolade that I will never forget.

Traditional Toastmaster

James Hatch

Professional Toastmaster.

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Although my long distant days of travel to attend various formal functions from cocktail parties to large civic functions have ended, I decided that I can serve a function by posting certain recommendations in this blog from time to time that will help people to plan for any occasion that should arise.

Do not confuse title of Professional Toastmaster with that of the organization of International Toastmasters, which is more attuned to that of public speaking, whereas my training is in the field organization and planning an event with the host with established protocol and then supervising the event like the conductor of an orchestra, bringing all the various parts into play as required.