Fellow Guppans, really need your help. I’m looking for any ideas organising and planning a small nikkah/reception ceremony for 80 guests- any ideas how to make the event classy, friendly, interactive and cost-effective? Haven’t got the budget to go for big and extravagant. Any ideas, video links or personal experiences appreciated.
Thanking you all in advance 
Small Intimate Weddings
No one?
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More details e.g. where are you going to host the event?
Small Intimate Weddings
Yaaaaaay! Someone replied! Want to host the wedding At home inshallah with a max of a 100 people. Inshallah.
Re: Small Intimate Weddings
get a marquee installed.
Re: Small Intimate Weddings
If it's a reception/nikah, I wouldn't go the route of having like a "stage". Have maybe a head table of sorts. It would be awesome if you and your husband could walk around the guests and mingle. Go for catering, or you could serve snacks to make up for a proper dinner/lunch. It would look lovely with home made stuff for table centerpieces. Keep everything low key and light to not make it feel like a stuffy event, especially since it's at home and would be a "smaller" venue.
Tons of great idea on pinterest for at home reception/backyard events.
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80 guests is a lot of people. Is it going to be an indoor event or outdoor? We recently did my sister’s nikah at home (indoor). About 50 people total. We had all the men/groom/molvi sahib sitting in the drawing room. We set a large food table for them outside. Kind of like buffet style. So they made their plates and went back to the drawing room to eat. The females and kids were inside in the living room, and a smaller food table set for them. We bought appetizers, drinks, and naan. A cook made biryani and qorma in a deg in the nearby masjid and it was delivered to our home at khana time. We made dessert at home. We hired two servers to help restock the food but just for the men’s side.
No video but we had a photographer take some photos. After nikah and khana, the groom came to our side for couple and family shoot.
To be honest, I’d say unless you live in a mansion, an indoor event for 80 people is going to look very crowded. We had about 30 females inside but even then with the kids running around, it was messy. Because we were serving the food (to the females) ourselves, we didn’t get to eat until after everyone had finished. It was hot with so many people inside and so the photos didn’t come out that great.
A few weeks later, we did my brother’s nikah. Again about 50 people total. This time having learned from experience, we rented a party room in a banquet hall / restaurant. We had 3 large dinner tables set against the walls and a swing/stage for the couple. In the center, we left space for the dance floor/videographers to film in peace. We hired a photographer/videographer but not an expensive one. We had a DJ as well so during nikah/dua, we had microphones and everyone could hear what was going on. After nikah, we played some music and did luddi/bhangra dances, etc.
All in all, it was a much better event. We as the hosting family were much more relaxed overall. We actually got to be in the photos and talk to people instead of worrying about the arrangements.
A third option is something like an evening backyard event at home. We did this for my khala’s engagement a couple years back and it was a really elegant and well-organized event. You can get food catered and have servers available during the event. Arrange for lighting on the plants. It looks great in person and in the photos. Set large dinner tables on the side, but still have a small stage (like a loveseat and two royal chairs - which you can easily rent for the night). The stage is important because people will give you salaami and want to take photos with you. If you’re sitting on a dining table, you’ll hide your dress and you won’t stand out as much from the crowd. You don’t have to keep sitting at the stage though; you can move around and interact with people after your nikah.
I love the idea of a do-it-yourself event because you can be very creative with the decor and lighting.
This one is a high-end event but I love how elegant everything looks.
BeautyFruityBlurbs: Bridal Diary: Valima
Small Intimate Weddings
Thanks for your detailed reply. The thing is, I've lived away from home for years and this event is going to be organised entirely by me. My family and inlaws and close friends will be in attendance only.
I'm also on a very strict budget and I don't want to spend thousands of pounds on small details- from experience, all these are forgotten by the time the next wedding comes along! I'd like to keep things very simple, Islamic and intimate where me and my husband are walking around, interacting with our friends as many won't know the 'other side.'
As for food, I want it to be catered from outside so people can help themselves and network/interact with each other.
Can it be done?
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I think it can be done - madz’s last suggestion is perfect if you have the garden for it and the weather. The details can be done cheaply and by family pitching in as tbh the most important thing in decorating an area is lighting. From battery operated fairy lights in your trees/plants to candles hanging in jam jars from trees or on rope between trees and paper lanterns (the arrangement in that link above is lovely but no doubt expensive).
Even though you want to keep it low cost, if you don’t have the garden/weather for a fully outdoor event I would advise a marquee and catered event. You can get marquees where they will also install a wood floor so guests aren’t tripping up. Decorating can be done yourself - my cousin had this kind of marquee for her mehndi and they decked it up really nicely themselves. Depending on the size of the marquee you can do everything there - so buffet tables set up, bridge & groom seating, guest seating. Or, you can use the marquee for food only and some extra guest seating - most likely the men folk will sit out here, and then concentrate on decorating the house. You’ll probably need to rearrange a lot of the furniture to maximise floor space though. You can do a lot with cheap lights, cheap organza type fabrics, fake flowers and paper pom poms - just be consistent with colours. Set up a decorated cake/dessert table.
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Small Intimate Weddings
Thanks ladies- some wonderful ideas and lots of reassurances! Would a marquee work even if it was the winter? Don't want the wedding to be remembered for all the wrong reasons (inshallah)!
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Yes but you’d need to think about heating. There are different types but this seems like the easiest option: Marquee Gas Heating
My nikkah was in Pakistan, at the end of December, when it was below 0C at night but we didn’t feel it in the marquee as it was properly heated.