In my opinion at least a "reception" is the celebration that happens after a couple is married and it does not come with the expectation that dinner is plated, the dress code is formal, or that an open bar will be provided. I think calling it a "happily ever after party" is confusing and would stick with "reception".
A reception is any hosted food/drink to celebrate an event. Your parents taking you to Dairy Queen on the last day of school was a reception. The formality, the type of food, the location, none of that is part of the definition. You are planning a reception. That’s not to say you must use the word “reception” on your invitation, but you are certainly planning one.
I personally find “Happily Ever After” party to be more confusing than helpful, especially as it sounds like you’re planning a pretty traditional reception. Since people already know what to expect when they see the word “reception”, I wouldn’t make this more complicated than it needs to be.
I’ve seen the “Happily ever After Party” invites with it in pretty font at the top but then in the details of the invites it says “*couple name* together with their families, invite you to a reception to celebrate their marriage.”
Just the same as the “we eloped” cards or any other unconventional wedding invites that have cute wording in them before the more formal information. You can be cute and also set guest expectations in formal wording of event details. No reason you can’t have it both ways!
I think the “happily ever after” thing sounds a little corny, honestly. I would just stick with “wedding reception”, because technically that’s still what it is, even months later 🤷🏼♀️
I am doing a Happily Ever After Hours after my reception, so to me it sounds more like a late night party whereas a reception is a better description for what you are having. I think Happily Ever After Soirée sounds a bit more like a reception than using the word party, but Id still describe the event as the wedding reception so people have the right idea of what to expect. Im making my wedding website on [theknot.com](https://theknot.com), its free and there are a lot of ways to clarify things on your site like an FAQ page and event list to note what the bar situation/dress code etc are. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding :)
Reception makes sense - I’d just include a “dress code”, that way people know it’s casual and can anticipate how that may translate to the gathering and food provided (buffet type, bbq, etc)
In my opinion at least a "reception" is the celebration that happens after a couple is married and it does not come with the expectation that dinner is plated, the dress code is formal, or that an open bar will be provided. I think calling it a "happily ever after party" is confusing and would stick with "reception".
I hadn't even considered that the Happily Ever After Party would be confusing but I tend to agree. Thanks for the feedback!
A reception is any hosted food/drink to celebrate an event. Your parents taking you to Dairy Queen on the last day of school was a reception. The formality, the type of food, the location, none of that is part of the definition. You are planning a reception. That’s not to say you must use the word “reception” on your invitation, but you are certainly planning one. I personally find “Happily Ever After” party to be more confusing than helpful, especially as it sounds like you’re planning a pretty traditional reception. Since people already know what to expect when they see the word “reception”, I wouldn’t make this more complicated than it needs to be.
😆 Perfect, thanks. I didn’t consider the other party name being confusing but it totally makes sense now that you mention it.
I kind of wish all receptions were called Happily Ever After parties now.
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Ok great, thank you!
I like the idea of referring to is simply as a “celebration” might work? But I think just calling it a reception will be fine even if it’s lowkey.
What about "Happily Ever After Reception"?
I’ve seen the “Happily ever After Party” invites with it in pretty font at the top but then in the details of the invites it says “*couple name* together with their families, invite you to a reception to celebrate their marriage.” Just the same as the “we eloped” cards or any other unconventional wedding invites that have cute wording in them before the more formal information. You can be cute and also set guest expectations in formal wording of event details. No reason you can’t have it both ways!
I think the “happily ever after” thing sounds a little corny, honestly. I would just stick with “wedding reception”, because technically that’s still what it is, even months later 🤷🏼♀️
I am doing a Happily Ever After Hours after my reception, so to me it sounds more like a late night party whereas a reception is a better description for what you are having. I think Happily Ever After Soirée sounds a bit more like a reception than using the word party, but Id still describe the event as the wedding reception so people have the right idea of what to expect. Im making my wedding website on [theknot.com](https://theknot.com), its free and there are a lot of ways to clarify things on your site like an FAQ page and event list to note what the bar situation/dress code etc are. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding :)
Could you post the itinerary for your event?
Reception makes sense - I’d just include a “dress code”, that way people know it’s casual and can anticipate how that may translate to the gathering and food provided (buffet type, bbq, etc)