So I recently got engaged and I am now facing the planning of my wedding. I want to do something fun and just a little bit different without being cheesy.
I am not into glitz and glamour, or traditions for that matter.
What I thought might be neat was a candy theme for the reception. Have a plain fondant cake decorated with different types of candy. Candy centerpieces, which then also act as the favors. Maybe even a candy bar for dessert complete with bags for people to take what they want home. I don’t really know anyone with kids so hyper toddlers is not an issue.
Now I think that this is a fun idea (the fiancée is working late so I need to wait to talk to him about my idea) but what would you, the teeming millions think if you went to a wedding serving fuzzy peaches and sour patch kids for dessert. Would you think childish and tacky, or fun and light hearted?
I also kinda want a slurpee machine and a popcorn maker as well. But that is just because I am obsessed with them.
Mmmm popcorn…
I also want to serve breakfast for the dinner. Come on who doesn’t like bacon and eggs. Or waffles with berries and whipped cream.
I would find that childish and tacky, sorry. It’s the sort of thing that could easily spiral out of control and the whole wedding would look like a 5 year old’s idea of a wedding.
I think it’s a pretty neat idea, if you think that your friends and family would enjoy it.
But then that said, my wedding was at the registry office then we had quiznos and cold rock icecream for the ‘reception’ before going home to play Resident Evil.
I guess I should give more information. Both of us work in theatre, so we are kind of goofy and creative to begin with. And both of our families are very laid back and fun.
Before I realized that I may well be overestimating just how big a role candy is playing in the reception and dinner. So take it with a grain of salt.
I think if your wedding party is for a small group of close friends that share the same interests, than what you describe could be great. If it’s a large deal with lots of extended family covering a wide age range, it may be awkward.
The popcorn machine sounds interesting, but eating popcorn just seems strange to me if everyone’s just sitting around at tables with family. It goes better if there’s some kind of activity for after dinner, where people would be standing and mingling around. The slurpee machine could be fun if you work it into the bar: replace the syrup tanks with fruit juices and/or alcohol and turn it into a daiquiri maker.
I guess it depends on who your guests are - your goofball friends who are as weird as you and would appreciate it, or aunts, uncles, and the family elders who have traveled from miles away, have to stay overnight, and at least are hoping to get a tasty catered meal to catch up with relatives over? Some families only see the far-flung clan when someone dies or gets married. It doesn’t help that I am hungry right now as I am contemplating this reply.
It’s pretty sugar-focused, of course. Wedding day is a lot of work. You’re gonna be hungry - if it was me, the resultant sugar crash after even a bit of that stuff on an empty nervous stomach would be migraine inducing at best. Elderly or diabetic guests would have something to eat?
You might stick with fun candy but jazz it up a bit - Godiva chocolate favors would rock my socks off if I was invited. You could have a chocolate fountain, those are neato. Appetizers before the meal could be fun goofy stuff - rent a popcorn popper cart, maybe hot roasted peanuts too? But I’d work a meal made out of real food into the affair for sure.
My sis in law just got married - they had little tins of custom printed M&Ms as favors. Those were cool! But it was definitely good to have real food, even if simple stuff, to balance off all the sugar.
Just chiming in to say that I think the dinner waffles are a fun idea. One thing, though: will the guests be expecting an open bar? Or a bar at all? Because drinking booze with breakfast is just weird. And mixing alcohol with all that sugar will leave you with some very upset tummies.
Candy centerpieces are fun, and people use those all the time. The candy “bar” idea seems a little silly to me personally, though, to be honest, especially the part about them taking some home in goody bags. Maybe a chocolate fountain, like toadbriar suggested, or a sundae bar with tons of toppings?
Hey, fried eggs are dinner, here in Spain. Dad used to have… TWO fried eggs! Us kids were only allowed one, either fried or in omelette. Ever tried chorizo omelette? Great invention. Now I’m having fried eggs for breakfast (something I picked up in England) and Mom thinks I’m weird. I mean, she’s always been convinced I was weird, this is just a case of weirdness that I happened to pick up in Parts Abroad.
Mind you, I’ve also had “farm style” breakfasts, consisting of fried ham, fried chorizo, fried english-style ham, fried chistorra (a different kind of sausage), fried reg’lar sausage, fried eggs and French bread that had been generously used to suck up the olive oil from frying everything else. If fried stuff was as bad for your arteries as They say, every guy in that factory would be dead by now instead of being the kind of guys who, on their 63rd birthday, complain that their 30-some year old son is starting to beat them at arm-wrestling
And I’ve been in weddings were, after the official 300-ppl lunch, closest family and friends (c. 120 of us, but take into account that the groom’s father has 11 siblings) moved to another place and, having had enough time for lunch to go down, continued with roasted lamb chops, chorizo (roasted and raw), potato omelette…
If the dinner will involve a lot of serious people that you’re inviting only because you Have To, then it may be a bad idea. But it sure sounds a lot better to me than, say, hitting each other with cake :smack: (who came up with that notion, anyway?) And I absolutely love the notion of letting the guests pick up their own party favors: my sweet tooth is almost nonexistant, so I don’t like the most popular kinds of wedding candy.
To rephrase what others have said, planning a wedding requires balance. On the one hand you want it to be something that reflects you and your mate’s personality and tastes. You shouldn’t have to do what you don’t want to do. On the other hand, you are also the host of an important celebration and you have to keep your guests and their enjoyment into consideration as well.
In my opinion, as long as your guests are comfortable (comfortable temperature, comfortable places to sit and talk, clean, etc) and you have some good crowd pleasing food, everything else is secondary.
If you think that having all that sweet/junky stuff is all you are going to need to please your crowd, then by all means, enjoy! If you are going to have people of different types coming from all over, maybe you can have a table of some hors d oeuvres with wide appeal along with all your crazy fun stuff. I think that would be cool- have some fried mushrooms, a few fruits, veggies and dip, maybe some of those cream cheese pinwheel things, then go crazy with the popcorn and the slush machine. The candy bags sound fun too.
I think it’s a great idea. Fondant covered cakes are really the coming thing, there are so many fun and elegant things that can be done with their decoration.
It’s your wedding and reception, do what you like!
You might, as others have mentioned, give consideration to have a selection of non sweet items, some nice fruit trays, cheeses and crackers and so on, for guests who can’t eat all those sweets. And in place of, or in addition to, a slurpee machine, have a coffee maker, to balance the sweet eats.
I am a baker by profession, I’d love to take a crack at making and decorating a cake like that! Good luck, and keep us informed of your plans.
I think the combination of bacon and eggs and waffles and popcorn and candy and a slushie, along with dancing at a wedding, would probably make me feel like hurling.
Who are you inviting? Will they know what to expect, or will this be a fun surprise?
Don’t get me wrong - I LOVE SLUSHIES! And candy. And popcorn. Heck, maybe you could roll a movie while you’re at it and we can all sit on the grass… JK. If this was a whimsical touch that you added to a normal wedding-ish type meal, it could work. With breakfast foods? Nah.
I think it’s a cute idea, but I’m not sure you’ve thought it through all the way. Are there guests with diabetes or weight issues? They may not have fun at a candy-themed wedding.
I think I also have to agree that breakfast doesn’t normally come with dessert. I think you’re on the right track, but we need some fine-tuning of the idea.
( get some less sweet things too, like ‘low fat’ or ‘no sugar’ treats for the people with ‘issues’ and have a great time. I would add fruits I think, fruits and candy go good together and it would please the non candy fans. I’d definitely attend this wedding and buy you a great gift just for your creativity.)
Have a brunch buffet that includes traditional breakfast foods and more dinner/lunch choices too. I’ve been to brunches that have mussels fra diavolo next to the pancakes. Have the slushies and popcorn for those who want them and some more traditional wedding snacks for those who don’t and a cake that has some candy on it but is delicious if you pick the candy off as well.
I really like the idea – it could be fun and spirited. But as others have said, that’s a whole lot of sugar. I’d say either have breakfast for dinner, or do the candy for dessert. Otherwise it’s just way too much sugar. I’m not even diabetic, and I’d be on sugar overload quickly with that combo.
