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A Wedding Hire Essentials Checklist

With an overwhelming amount of information available on wedding and bridal blogs from choices on invitations to picking a song to walk down the aisle to, photographers, seating plans, music, entertainment and more, planning a wedding can be overwhelming and stressful to say the least!

While the “I-do” to-do list might feel never ending, the best approach for planning any event is to break it down into sections. The simplest way to start doing this is by event type, i.e. engagement party, ceremony and reception. Once you've done this you should section your task list even further by themes, for example decorations, music, food, floor plan and event hire.

At Party Hire Group, we can't help you pick your music (although we have a lot of advice about audio set-up and hire), but we can offer our recommendations on the essentials for party and event hire. Here is our wedding hire essentials checklist for planning your special day event.

Tables and chair hire for the ceremony and reception

Once you've confirmed your guest list and capacity of your event, decide whether your ceremony will be partially or fully seated (i.e. all guests to sit or only some available), and make a floor plan for your reception.

Get in early to hire a table and chair combined package for the best prices and to secure availability. It's also worthwhile considering hiring a few extras to place in communal lounge areas for later during the night.

Linen hire for dining tables

Most caterers will provide crockery, cutlery and serving utensils, but don't include table cloths or dressings. It's easiest to arrange this in partnership with your table hire. This is usually the most efficient option logistically too as the hire company will have table cloths that fit the exact specs of the table being used, and the tables can be dressed at the same time as the set-up.

A Wedding Hire Essentials Checklist
Minimalist event setting with white Tiffany Chairs

Bar table hire

This one is often forgotten off the list, and it's an annoying experience to be standing at a wedding reception and have nowhere to rest your drink if you want to dance or are in conversation. A few bar tables scattered throughout a room are a great option to help open up the space so guests are comfortable to mingle throughout the room, to have somewhere to rest their drink, and bar tables also provide an option for those who may not be on the dance floor to still stand up, stretch their legs and feel a part of the party atmosphere!

A Wedding Hire Essentials Checklist

Marquee hire

If your event is outdoors, you'll need to look at marquee hire. Even for wedding receptions that are predominantly indoors with an outdoor space, a marquee is a terrific option to provide shelter (if there's no shade or it's raining), and to provide a more intimate outdoor setting.

Sound and lighting, including microphone and speaker hire

Arguably, unless you're an event planning veteran, hiring sound and lighting can be the most daunting. Check out our most common asked questions about audio hire blog post here. Don't risk speeches not being heard and make sure to hire a microphone. If you already have speakers available near where speeches will be, a cord microphone may be enough, otherwise a wireless mic and PA is a popular package to hire.

A Wedding Hire Essentials Checklist

A wishing well for card gifts

Most weddings today's offer a wishing well for card gifts and ask for this instead of presents. It's not quite the same touch however having cards swept all over a gift table! A wishing well is the most tasteful and practical way to provide your guests a way to contribute their card. It's also the safest way to be collecting these gifts than risking an envelope slipping off a table or getting misplaced.

A Wedding Hire Essentials Checklist

 

Whether you're planning a big or small wedding event, these checklist items will ensure your event has all the furniture hire you need on your big day. And while there will be many other touches and finer details to consider, having these most important elements are all you really need to know your guests will feel welcomed, be comfortable, and have a great time.