Do I invite the...

[akw94]

I''m almost finished w/invitations

but have a few things to sort out.

Do I invite the:

1- photographer (will be there before the ceremony begins to take pics and through most of the reception)
2- officiant (no relation to this person, he''s a judge not a religious person and I was referred to him by a local office)
3- hair stylist (she''s coming to the location to do my hair and I''ve known her since about 10 yrs old)

And by inviting them, that means that I include them in the food count, right? (sorry, probably a silly question but just need to be sure)

Also keeping in mind that our guest list is very limited and only family and very close friends are on there. But I don''t want to not invite people that I should be inviting.

Thanks!

 

[janinegirly]

its up to you whether or not you want to formally invite them (since it seems like some of them are friends, not just vendors), but techinically you do not have to give any of them a formal invite, but the photographer (and asssistant) is included in food headcount and also your band if you have one.

the officiant usually is invited--but i think they often decline. i''m not sure, but i thought that more of a verbal invite. others may know more on this.

i don''t know of anyone including a hairstylist, but again if she''s a family friend, etc. then i would look at it from that angle, not as a stylist.

 

[DivaDiamond007]

We invited the priest and deacon that presided our wedding. They both came to the reception and stayed for a little while. We didn''t formally invite any of the other vendors - although I think it''s okay to do so.

 

[cpster]

How far into the reception is your photoographer scheduled to stay? If s/he is covering the cake cutting that is further into the reception, I would offer him/her a meal. If the photographer is only staying an hour or so in, I don''t think it''s necessary for you to offer a meal, but it would be nice of you and the photographer may stay a little later than contracted. I just wouldn''t want the photographer taking a lot of time out eating if s/he is only scheduled to cover an hour or so of the reception. In both cases, I would ask them if they want a meal. Some may not. For my wedding I counted my photographer and her assistant but they didn''t even wind up eating.

I wouldn''t invite the officiant if you are already paying a fee since it''s a small wedding and you have no personal connections to this person.

Are you paying the hair stylist? Would you have invited her anyway if she wasn''t doing your hair?

Most caterers offer vendor meals at a discounted rate too.

 

[So_happy]

I was told you don''t send them an invitation but you do need to include all of your vendors in your catering head count.

 

[therighttime]

Does your photography contract say anything about a meal in it? I know that most photographers around here have a clause that says "will be provided a meal similar to that of guests."

I think you should count those people in your count to the caterer, but not send an invitation... since they are paid to be there they don''t need "invited." However, since you have known your hairdresser previously, then you might want to consider her more a guest than a vendor.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I sent an invite as a "reminder" and also so they could get a feel of the wedding/my style. My photographer insisted on a meal so we provided a small table for the two photographers and two videographers as well. For the DJ staff we had club sandwiches for them. A family friend married us so he was a guest of course.

 

[monarch64]

Date: 6/20/2007 10:04:39 AM
Author:dixie94
I''m almost finished w/invitations

but have a few things to sort out.

Do I invite the:

1- photographer (will be there before the ceremony begins to take pics and through most of the reception)
2- officiant (no relation to this person, he''s a judge not a religious person and I was referred to him by a local office)
3- hair stylist (she''s coming to the location to do my hair and I''ve known her since about 10 yrs old)

And by inviting them, that means that I include them in the food count, right? (sorry, probably a silly question but just need to be sure)

Also keeping in mind that our guest list is very limited and only family and very close friends are on there. But I don''t want to not invite people that I should be inviting.

Thanks!

1. photog...no invite necessary but provide a meal since he/she will be working throughout your reception
2. officiant...hmmm, not sure on this one, hopefully someone else knows the proper etiquette on that particular situation
3. hair stylist...since you''ve known her for so long I think an invite is in order here, and count her in with your guest list and seating argmt.

 

[Jaders731]

Dixie..

I dont know if this will help at all:

I sent invites to all of our vendors... but for our photog, dj and coordinator I got them "vendor meals" and didnt actually supply then with our formal dinner.

The florist and invitation designer and caterer.. well that was just a courtesy.. none of them RSVP''d nor did I expect them to.

I just really thought that the people who were involved in creating such elegance in our wedding... deserved a "piece of the pie" so to speak... Everyone of our vendors thanked us sooo much for including them..

 

[akw94]

Thanks everyone, that really helped!
I think I will invite my stylist and not officially invite my photog. and officiant but count the photog. in for a meal.

Cpster, the photog. will stay until about 3 and the reception starts about 12:30 so he''ll definitely be there during meal time. I''m not sure if I''m paying my stylist. We haven''t talked about cost but if she doesn''t charge, I''d certainly tip her. Well, I''d tip her regardless. No, I wouldn''t invite her if she weren''t doing my hair b/c the guest list is very small. It really is only family and close friends so although I see her every few months at the salon, we don''t socialize outside of there, etc... But I think I will at least invite her.

The guestlist never stops growing!
I will ask about a discounted rate for vendors. I never thought of that, thanks!

RT, I don''t have a photog. contract b/c it''s actually a gift from someone else. Given that, I''ll provide a meal just in case but not send the invite. I think you''re right about the stylist being more than a guest than a vendor.
Monarch, good point about counting her in for the seating arrangement!

Do I need to arrange for the photog. to sit at one of the tables during the meal?

Thanks so much everyone!!