When we were looking for a Minneapolis reception venue, I wanted a blank canvas. I had pictured a large open loft where I could transform the space, and the Day Block Event Center was exactly what we were looking for. The brick walls, exposed ceilings, and beautiful hardwood floors were a perfect starting place. I made bunting that we strung across the room with patio lights that I found at Target. We strung clear ornaments filled with gold glitter and tissue paper pom poms over the dance floor, which created a fun focal point.
Tables:: My favorite thing about the reception was the giant white balloons that served as table numbers. Each table had a navy and white runner, gold chargers, white plates, and pink napkins folded into bows. The balloons were tied around glass vases filled with gold wrapped chocolates.
Guest Book:: When guests first arrived, they were sent to cocktail hour, where drinks and horderves were being served. A friend had painted a room divider, and I had buttons made with photos from different stages of our lives. Guests were asked to take the button that represented how they knew us. I wasn’t sure people would be up for this, so it was a lot of fun to walk into the reception later and see everyone wearing their buttons. I used a large cookie jar that I painted part gold as the card box, and we asked people to highlight their favorite bible verse in the ‘guest book.’ Since about half of our guests were traveling from out of state, I created a map that showed the states that everyone came from.
Escort Cards:: I designed a custom Jones Soda Label for each table, with photos of us and the table number printed on the bottles. Guests had to find their name, and then find their table according to the number on their soda. It was a fun project, and served as a practical ‘favor’ that guests could drink or take home.
Cigar Bar:: I surprised my husband with a cigar bar at the reception, complete with cigars, bourbon, and lots of old cigar boxes. My favorite detail was the ‘For the Ladies in Your Life’ box that had mints, gum, and febreze.
Photo Booth:: I ordered large rolls of tissue paper and created a fun photo-booth backdrop using this tutorial. We had the paper pre-cut, and then taped it to the top of a photo back-drop frame.
{all images by Juxtaphotos}
Jessica says
Hi–I am doing the Jones Soda Bottles at my wedding in May. How did you alter the “MyJones” bottle to say “Mr. and Mrs”? Thanks!