A wedding is a time for family and loved ones to join in the celebration of marriage. Families are joined by two people who are making a long-lasting commitment to one another. When searching for the perfect venue for your family-centered wedding, consider the accommodations, ceremony space, and dinner seating arrangements. This will help to determine how to plan your wedding to have loved ones feel included.

The Preston Barn is an all-inclusive wedding venue that offers everything you need to plan a family-focused wedding in beautiful Upstate NY. Our historic farmhouse accommodations at the Old Drovers Inn and Carriage House are included in the site fee and offer the perfect stay for out-of-town family members. We know how important family is to couples. This is why we have a complete guide on how to plan a family-focused wedding in Upstate NY.

1. Family-Focused Wedding Attire

● Wedding attire is the perfect opportunity to include “something old”. Brides might have the option of repurposing their mom or grandmother’s wedding dress by adding a piece of lace or fabric to their bridal attire.

● Sentimental pieces of fabric from ties, or special garments can be sewn to the inside of a suit jacket. However, this is only possible if the suite is purchased not rented.

● Family photographs are another great way to make loved ones feel included. When planning attire, ask family members to choose colors and fabrics that will complement one another in group photographs.

*Both Mom’s Wedding Gowns on display at this wedding. Look how happy they are!*

2. Family-Focused Wedding Ceremony

● There are many ways to incorporate family members into the wedding ceremony. Asking them to be ushers, greet guests, and hand out bulletins or favors.

● Choose a close family member to be the officiant of the wedding and share meaningful stories about the happy couple.

● Ask two family members to be witnesses of the wedding and include them in signing the marriage certificate.

● If you don’t have young children in the family to be flower girls, ask the grandmothers to walk down the aisle and throw flower petals instead.

3. Family-Focused Moments

● Family-focused weddings help to build a strong bond with in-laws by showing appreciation for raising such incredible people. A personalized keepsake is a great way to honor parents at the wedding reception. Plan a special gift for your in-laws to make them feel special and included on your big day.

● Plan to give a gift to the longest married couple and ask your DJ or band to play a special song for them to honor a long-lasting marriage.

● Mother and Father dances are traditions that we all love but also consider grandparent dances. Choosing songs for each generation or dedicating a song to a family member makes everyone feel included. Start with the family dances early in the evening and then switch over to current upbeat music to keep the party going for the younger generation.

4. Family-Focused Decorations

Decorating the reception space for a family-themed event can add a special touch to the decor. Many couples display photographs from their childhood on the tables. Although adding family wedding photos is a sweet and caring touch. Great grandparents, grandparents, and parent wedding photos displayed can initiate wonderful stories to be shared with family and friends.

Some venues offer the option of a picture slideshow to include photographs of family members and friends throughout the years to be showcased during the wedding reception. The Preston Barn has three TV screens available to do this!

5. Family-Style Wedding Table

Family-style dinners are a great way to bring everyone together and to feel connected. It can bring back family memories from sitting around the dinner table during the holidays from years past. Everyone is served at the same time and still able to pick and choose what they would like to eat. Most venues charge the same amount for a family-style meal as a sit-down dinner since they are placing all the food on the table to share.

Although there are things to consider when choosing a family-style table, such as decorations and the type of food being served. Oftentimes when you think of family-style meals you think of comfort food along with easy-to-serve items. We recommend working with your venue or caterer to plan food accordingly to make sure everything goes smoothly when planning family-style meals.

Along with the serving platters and bowls on the table, you have to think about the decor. Keep the decor to a minimum. If you would like extravagant flower arrangements consider having tall thin vases placed in the middle of the long tables. This way the vases will not get in the way of passing serving platters and obstruct the view when talking to one another.

To help you decide which dining style will be the best fit for your wedding check out our other blog post: 3 Wedding Dinner Styles & How To Decide Which Is Best For You

When planning a family-focused wedding, consider ways to include loved ones and to make them feel special. This can be as simple as incorporating a piece from their wedding attire or adding a family member’s wedding photograph to your decor. Asking them to have a special part in the wedding ceremony and creating special family-focused moments. When planning seating arrangements consider the pros and cons of having a family-style wedding table and choose what is best for your family dynamic and wedding decor.

At the Preston Barn, we can offer any dinner option of your choosing and a full custom menu to fit any family-style meal. We offer long beautiful wooden tables that are easy to arrange to create a family-style wedding table to keep the conversations flowing throughout the night. Our rustic barn venue and farmhouse accommodations create the perfect atmosphere to bring the whole family together. If you are looking for an all-inclusive wedding venue in Upstate NY please contact us for package rates and to book a private tour.