Last weekend, I was the disc jockey for a fun tent wedding at The Clifton Park Elks Lodge in Clifton Park, NY. And once again, the bride and groom did something I had never seen before and am now compelled to share with you.
If you are reading this, maybe you are planning your wedding. Are you tired of the same old traditional guest book and want to add some personality to your wedding reception?
Well, if the answer is yes, then here is an alternative to the wedding guestbook, perfect for those who like to be creative and different.
This neat twist on the wedding guest book is one where each guest “leaves” a fingerprint as proof of attendance. The finished product is a beautiful piece of artwork.
Guests Sign Their Fingerprints
It is really pretty easy.
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN WEDDING THUMBPRINT TREE
1) Provide a poster with a tree skeleton already mapped out.
2) Put out a number of lids of ink and also a scrap sheet for people to wipe excess ink onto.
3) You will also need colorful pens so that each guest can sign their fingerprint above their leaf.
4) Have the DJ announce the tree idea to guests throughout the evening.
To really make it colorful, provide different shades of green (or browns if you are going with a fall theme) so that the collection of prints will look even more like a real tree when it is done.
How can you optimize your dance floor experience at your wedding reception?Being proactive against distractions is one of the most effective way to keep your dance floor full at your wedding reception, bottom line.
By the term “distraction” I am talking about allowing multiple entertainment options or activities all simultaneously. When this happens, you subsequently split your audience all over the place, and in turn give your guests excuses not to dance.
It really is very simple. If you want a full dance floor in the last two hours of your wedding reception, only offer dancing as an option and play music that the majority of the population will enjoy.
One mistake is booking two forms of entertainment and creating your own competition. If you are planning and ask, “Wouldn’t it be cool if we had a DJ in one room, and a band or acoustic act in the other?” You may be right. This sounds like a neat idea, but it is important to not run them at the same times.
“Should we photo booth all night, even while the band is playing so that people who don’t like the band, or those who don’t want to dance have something to do?” Yes you can do this, but I have been to weddings where some people will do the photo booth thing all night and never make it to the dance floor.
Offering multiple forms of entertainment options simultaneously splits the audience. This occurrence can make people interact less, and will definitely leave guests out of the dancing fun who need encouragement. And overall, It means less people dancing and less people seeing the acoustic band play a great number. The solution? Run them at separate times.
Remove Distraction!I was recently at a wedding in Troy, NY at The Italian Center that was great fun, but some of the guests kept wandering off into a separate bar to see the big game. More people would have danced if the brode and groom had just shut off the TV!
Distractions can also be inherent in the actual venue’s layout. If there is a great smoker’s lounge, or a separate bar with a New York Yankee’s ballgame playing right down the hall, you can bet that a few of your guests who don’t take to dancing naturally may set up camp belly-up-to-the-bar. This will decrease your dance floor attendance, in the end.
“But I really do want to have a photo booth, or a band AND ALSO have a DJ. What do I do?” Chop up the time and have a the first cocktail hour be for the live band, or only run the picture photo booth the first three hours and leave the end just for dancing. When go this route, more guest we default to dancing for entertainment with no alternative distractions. Then, and only then, will you have full optimization or your dance floor.
Karaoke at your wedding can be fun, but it can also be dangerous! As some of you true-believer people may recall, Spiderman once said, “with great power comes resposibility.” If you are considering adding a little karaoke to your wedding for a fun activity, realize that you really should also set some guidelines so things don’t get out of hand.
Voice is power. Handing a microphone over at your wedding to anyone is giving someone the power on your special day. If you lose power at your own wedding, it may not turn out in the end exactly as you had planned.
Therefore, with that being said and not trying to come off as a total buzzkill, know that you can have karaoke at your wedding, but it really works best when you spoon-feed the audience only in little bits. If you are going the karaoke route for your wedding, just keep in mind that you need to control it, and just do a little bit here and there, or it could spin out of hand and become, “Uncle Jimmy’s Drunken Karaoke Concert,” rather than what you had dreamed of for your wedding night.
To avoid giving away your entire wedding reception to karaoke-hungry mic-hogging people who want to sing “Love Shack” and “Paradise By The Dashboard Light,” create a few simple rules that you can live by and everything should be alright.
I dj’ed a karaoke marathon wedding once at The Franklin Terrace in Troy, NY, and also went to one in Albany at The Elks that had a few karaoke mishaps because the bride said, “anything goes.” Since then, I make sure to mention the following guidelines to anyone I hear is thinking about having karaoke at their wedding.
1) SET A TIME LIMIT – Let the DJ know you only want karaoke at the very end, maybe the last hour perhaps, so that it doesn’t scare away guests who do not like it, and it doesn’t overpower the whole night.
2) ONE SONG ONLY – If you have a load of people who want to sing but only limited time, you can control the onslaught of karaoke requests from taking over the whole night, maybe by making a “fairness rule” that a person can only sing once.
3) NO DIRTY SONGS – A wedding typically has people of all moral walks in attendence. Therefore, don’t allow your DJ to accept songs with suggestive lyrics, and you won’t upset certain other people at your party. Grandma my not want to hear, “Shake That @$$!”
4) THE BANNING OF CERTAIN GUESTS – This idea would be good, but it usually doesn’t work without hurting someone’s feelings, and the last thing you want to do is to offend a person who may have a few drinks in them. If you really don’t want certain people to sing, you may not want to do karaoke at your wedding. It is very difficult and seemingly unfair to turn someone down who would like to join in on the fun.
5) FLIP THE KILL SWTCH – If it is starting to suck, end it right away. Limit young children who can’t read fast enough, or drunk people who drone on out of tune by having the DJ switch right back to dancing at the end of a terrible vomit-inducing track. This will keep the guests around who put in earplugs.
Stay strong, home boy. Following a few simple rules like these could allow for just enough karaoke flavor to your wedding to actually add something to your special night, rather than to take away from it. Good luck!!!
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(518)506-3305. Affordable Petersburgh, NY wedding DJ / Mobile disc jockey with huge library of new music & classics, Digital Photography & Lights!
NEW HITS & ALL THE CLASSICS: Thinking about Petersburgh Memorial for your event? Want top quality in music entertainment and disc jockey services for your event in Petersburgh, NY? Then look no more! TheDJservice.com mixes today’s best new music with all your favorite throwbacks and classics in Petersburgh, NY.
Want to have a hand in creating the playlist? No problem! Help create the playlist or leave it up to us!
#1 LOCAL DJ SERVICE IN PETERSBURGH: DJ Kenny Casanova and TheDJservice.com are WORLD FAMOUS in the massive Petersburgh area. Booked sometimes 2 years in advance for dates, you may want to lock in your date near Petersburgh, NY as soon as possible!
PETERSBURGH DJ SERVICES & WHAT WE BRING TO THE PARTY:
DJ Kenny Casanova -Call/Text 518-506-3305
•200,000 song library
•DJ/MC experience since 1996
•Professional Photography “The DJ Cam”
•Interactive events, dances, & activities
•Digital Slide Show Projector
• Music Video Package
•Voted #1 Karaoke DJ in Petersburgh
•Radio Personality Experience
•Ring Announcer Experience: WWF / WWE
•Biggest Laser Show in Petersburgh, NY
•Professional Gear Bose L1 Stick & Peavey
•Very affordable prices!!!
CONTACT US NOW FOR PARTIES IN AND AROUND PETERSBURGH NEW YORK!
PETERSBURGH WEDDING DJ SERVICE POINTS: If you want an affordable experienced DJ for your wedding reception with countless local venue hall relationships, our local Petersburgh office serves points around Bucks Corner off County Routes 40 and 41, Rensselaer Mills, Petersburgh Junction by the north town line, or out by Stillman, Northwest of Petersburgh village, by the Poesten Kill, Dyken Pond, Cherry Plain in the south part of the town, Cherry Plain State Park, Center Berlin on NY State Route 22, Stephentown to the south, North Petersburgh on Routes 22 and 346, aka Petersburgh, aka Petersburg, aka Petersberg, Routes 2 and 22, by the town hall, South Petersburg, or even out by Spring Lake, then we are a great local option to use.
Petersburgh, NY… Thank you for the call! Here is a video of a Typical DJ Kenny Casanova Wedding Intro, with the ring announcer energy many request!
(518)506-3305. Affordable Hudson, NY wedding DJ / Mobile disc jockey with huge library of new music & classics, Digital Photography & Lights!
NEW HITS & ALL THE CLASSICS: Want top quality in music entertainment and disc jockey services for your event in Hudson, NY? Then look no more! TheDJservice.com mixes today’s best new music with all your favorite throwbacks and classics in Hudson, NY.
Want to have a hand in creating the playlist? No problem! Help create the playlist or leave it up to us!
#1 LOCAL DJ SERVICE IN HUDSON: DJ Kenny Casanova and TheDJservice.com is a well-sought-after party service in the Hudson area. Booked sometimes 2 years in advance for dates, you may want to lock in your date near Hudson, NY as soon as possible!
HUDSON DJ SERVICES & WHAT WE BRING TO THE PARTY:
DJ Kenny Casanova -Call/Text 518-506-3305
•200,000 song library
•DJ/MC experience since 1996
•Professional Photography “The DJ Cam”
•Interactive events, dances, & activities
•Digital Slide Show Projector
• Music Video Package
•Voted #1 Karaoke DJ in Hudson
•Radio Personality Experience
•Ring Announcer Experience: WWF / WWE
•Biggest Laser Show in Hudson, NY
•Professional Gear Bose L1 Stick & Peavey
•Very affordable prices!!!
CONTACT US NOW FOR PARTIES IN AND AROUND HUDSON NEW YORK!
HUDSON WEDDING DJ SERVICE POINTS: If you want an affordable experienced DJ for your wedding reception with countless local venue hall relationships, our local Hudson office serves points around Ancram, Austerlitz, Canaan, Chatham, Claverack, Claverack-Red Mills, Clermont, Copake Lake, Copake, Gallatin, Germantown, Ghent, Greenport, Hillsdale, Hudson, Kinderhook, Livingston, Lorenz Park, New Lebanon, Niverville, Philmont, Stockport, Stottville, Stuyvesant, Taghkanic, Valatie, all on a regular basis for music entertainment disc jockey mobile DJ services.
Hudson, NY… Thank you for the call! Here is a video of a Typical DJ Kenny Casanova Wedding Intro, with the ring announcer energy many request!
