Gazebo Designs

Planning a wedding at a lakeside gazebo in September! HELP!?

I have no idea where to start! We are planning a small, private wedding with only immediate family and our closest friends. We want it to be nice but not overboard and we don't want to spend a fortune! We are planning the wedding to be at dusk and I want the gazebo lit up with lights. Any ideas on how I can do that? What about food for after wards. Should we just do bbq or have it catered? How do I start planning this thing?!?!? Where do i start?

Public Comments

1. The easiest way to light it up is Christmas lights, plain white or clear ones. We are having a lakeside wedding in august in the morning but the reception we plan to last into the evening and I am using RV lanterns lights on strings to light our area. We are serving pulled pork sandwiches that a friend will smoke the day before, the pork buttes are only around $100 for two and we figure 3 will serve about 50 persons. We are asking our friends to bring all the side dishes and we are supplying the drinks including liquor. Start by making a list of everything you can think of, rent your gazebo or shelter first and schedule your pastor or officiant and go from there! Good Luck!
2. I started by calling all these banquets in my area and see how much it would be with food and drinks. Then I called restaurants for catering I compared prices. To be honest I found out a banquet was much cheater then doing it our self, because if you do it your self you have to think about food, drinks, tables, chairs, table cloths, plates, glasses, decorations, cake,etc. It added all up and maybe it was a little cheaper but compare to the time and effort. We decided to rent a hall they included everything and we still could choose the cake our way. If your really thinking your self bbq it's cool but to casual. Try catering.
3. Well first make sure the gazebo is available on your date & request any info on permit fees, restrictions, etc. Lighting would depend on whether there's a power source or not but you could still make it work with a generator. Same goes for music. You can have violinists or you could set up a sound system if you want dancing at the reception. Personally I would have it catered because someone will get the unfortunate task of grilling the entire time for quite a few people. To me the savings of DIY cooking just aren't enough to justify guests & family members putting in a bunch of time. If BBQ is what you want, my company just had an event catered by a BBQ company that was great so I'm sure you could find one in your area. The place we used will staff it if you want or they'll just drop off everything ready to go & that could save you some money. Start looking into florists, bakers, DJ's, etc. pretty early because they do get booked up quick for Summer weddings.
4. You can buy plain white Christmas lights or go to Joann's and buy bridal lights. They're about the same price. For an evening reception most people do a dessert recpetin, but do whatever makes you happy.
5. Lights are easy as long as you have access to electricity. You can use solar lights but you will need to make sure they are in sunlight all day. You can also use Tiki torches. Tikis are inexpensive. Also decorate with Tulle...It will soften the look of the Gazebo..also inexpensive. You can decorate with flowers if you want it to look a little more festive. Definately have it catered. Make it simple but tasty. Find a good restaurant in your area that is not expensive and see what they can do for you. Here are some ideas about decorating the gazebo http://www.wedding-flowers-and-reception-ideas.com/wedding-gazebos.html