Cocktail Hour Cool: Your Guide to Hosting the Ultimate Pre-Wedding Cocktail Hour
What is the cocktail hour you ask? By definition, it’s the period of time after the wedding ceremony ends and reception begins. By our standards, it is the pregame portion to the celebration that preps you and your significant other for best night of your lives.
SO HOW DO WE MAKE IT EPIC YOU ASK? Here is the low-down so try to keep up.
Mingling is fun, but for some people it can be nerve-wracking being around others they may not normally spend time with. So, the best way to make the acclimation process easy is by having a space for your guests to feel welcomed, excited, entertained and, of course, well-hydrated.
Step one: PLEASE BE SEATED, BUT DON’T GET TOO COMFORTABLE.
This is the area and time-period of your event where you can be as creative and colorful as you want. Carve out stylish lounge groupings that bring not only additional seating to your event venue, but also a design element. Depending on your location and guest count you curate several seating areas to enhance guest mingling and grazing. A great lounge incorporates a “family style” seat like a sofa or couch, a few armchairs, side tables, a coffee table and punch of color with a pillow package. These pieces combined are sure to make sipping drinks and tasting appetizers a success.
CRAFTY COCKTAILS & HOR D’OEUVRES COMING RIGHT UP.
Since your dinner is geared toward pleasing the masses, cocktail hour is for you to highlight some of your favorites. Afterall, this is your wedding, right?! Inspiration can come from your travels around the globe, go-to date night spot or your staying-in comfort food. Choose bites that speak to who you are as a couple and add a little personal touch to them while you’re at it.
When it comes to a signature sip, don’t skimp! Your favorite drink is a spicy margarita? Easy! Spice up the presentation by serving it up in colorful glassware, rimmed with Tajin and topped with fresh fruit. Love a good Old Fashioned? Perfect. Serve this time-honored cocktail in a cut lowball, like our Colby Cut Crystal Flat Rocks Glass, Smoke Cut Double Old Fashioned Glass or Timeless Lowball topped with staple garnishes.
Step three: PUT THE WOW FACTOR ON DISPLAY
Signature cocktail, welcome champagne flutes, florals and décor – front and center! Let’s place these décor elements as something the guests walk past into the space to get their attention. It’s exciting for them to feel like VIP’s and catered to even when they may have to do it themselves. Bringing in beautiful shelving, backbars and freestanding Champagne Walls are sure to add an elevated feel to this timeframe.
Step four: STEP RIGHT UP, TO THE BAR
Let’s take your guests out on the town tonight! Choose an oversized bar that features your event’s style – from our Natural Rustic Bar to modern and minimalist Curved Morph Bar, there are so many ways to customize your bar setup. Vinyl decals or wraps of your monogram, initials or colorful print can easily enhance the look and feel of your bar, adding a personal touch.
Step five: DITCH THE LINEN FOR YOUR HIGH (and LOW) TOPS!
In the words of Rihanna “Yeah, I said it”. We have an amazing lineup of new cocktail tables, low and high, that will immediately call your guests over. Our new Cecilia Cane Cocktail tables (available soon in high and low iterations) feature an effortlessly elegant aesthetic with authentic cane webbing and a minimalist silhouette.
Last step: PAINT ME LIKE ONE OF YOUR FRENCH GIRLS.
Okay let’s not get carried away, we just want a classy way of having an alternative “live entertainment” other than a small band or magician. Choose an artist to live paint your party or sketch out custom drawings of guests in a fashion forward illustration. These can even double as wedding favors!
