Setting the Scene: The Reception.

My ideal reception area is in a beautiful garden setting outdoors. However, it is wise to have a Plan B in mind, in my case, an indoor setting that would provide the same (if not better) wedding experience for not only my guests, but the groom and I. An outdoor garden setting would provide a certain scenery that is not easy to imitate indoors (not unless you happen to have a ton of money to blow to create a whole forest inside). Although I'm known for my ever so dramatic tastes in numerous things, I have to make sure that it's simple enough for my own guests to be comfortable with yet dramatic enough to leave an everlasting experience that won't be easy for them to forget.

 If I could take away the shelter of the building and replace it with trees with the cloth and lanterns hanging from the branches overhead. I love the table setting the most with the candles and the moss table runner (which can be found in BraggingBags Etsy shop).
 

I love the misty look of this scene. I have even thought about using a fog machine for when I walk down the aisle and appear out of the "mist" (that's another entry for another time). While I don't want too many small branches surrounding the table (as shown above), I do like the overall idea of the setting.

This would make for the perfect night scene. Though the only thing I worry about is guests wanting to leave early because of bugs at night. Which would only make an indoor setting a much better option. But this would still even make for an interesting idea for an indoor setting as well.

This is my favorite outdoor setting so far. I love love LOVE the chandeliers hanging from the trees.

I love this spacious area with the tall trees and the sunlight streaming in. It's the exact feeling I want to give to my guests. That feeling of being free in the summer and just having a lot of room to do whatever with. 

This is a lovely whimsical indoor setting. There's not a LOT going on but just enough to get the idea.

This is probably the more simple of setups but softness of the colors enhance everything just how I would want them to be.

Between this and the next reception setting shown, the lighting is AWESOME. This setup is more regal looking and it's partially the theme I'm going for with my whole wedding. 

As I said previously, the lighting in this is awesome and this particular setting gives you more of a mystical garden sense rather than the regal one shown above. 

This one is a little bit simpler than the last two but my main favorite of this setup are the trees as the centerpieces. I love the way the branches look. They're not full looking but they're not dead looking either. They still have a garden type beauty to them.

While my ideal setup is more outdoors, I can see where problems might come in with an outdoor scene as well. Especially with acoustics, you would have to spend a lot of money just on sound and lighting whereas in an indoor setting, that stuff is mostly already there. So you have to look at what your priorities are. I intend on have a small wedding just so that I can put more into the wedding experience itself. So if the money is there, sure, I'll shoot for an outdoor setting. I can always get a big tent or something of the like. Another thing to keep in mind is the temperature as well. With my date being at the end of the summer, the temperature is still bound to be hot and stuffy dress clothes will cause plenty of discomfort among guests. If an indoor setting is provided, so will air conditioning. It's something to keep in mind as I go about planning for the next three years. :]