To be upset about my wedding venue?

[IfIDontKnowAndYouDontKnow]

Name changed
Basically have a tiny budget. We were going to cut our guest list but we don't want to. We love everyone on it.
Have been offered The British Legion as a venue for free. Best man works evenings there.
We have decided to take it so we can afford to give everyone a nice time. Its bloody ugly inside. Has lovely big field though/n pretty outside etc.
I know I chose this, and I am not wanting to save up for few years as I just want to marry dp and have all our friends and family there. And would be stupid to not accept such a generous offer.
Just venting I guess... and wondering what to do about the fading carpet, chipped paint, arcade machine...

Roughly £700 / £800

seconding catsrus went to a lovely wedding that had no gift list but each guest signed up to bring some food to share. For the far-flung guests just boughts crisps and things - but some brought beautiful pastries, nibbles, cakes and all sorts.

We signed up for and brought £20 worth of cheese for a cheeseboard that went down brilliantly well. The friends that travelled with us bought two huge boxes of crackers for cheese so we paired up nicely.

There was also loads of food left for guests to take away too!

(Instead of wedding cake find an industrious family member to bake cupcakes and pile high!)

Wedding dress wise - I got mine 85% off in the clearance sale at the wedding shop and my parents paid for it to be altered as a gift to us.

I think be honest with people that you are struggling with the budget and they are only too happy to contribute and muck in - especially if they don't have to buy presents.

Easy centrepiece for this time of year? Bare branches in glasses hung with ribbons, baubles and stuff with tealights around the bottom. One wedding we went to had the placecards handwritten and hung from the branches of the table!

Easy hall decoration - crepe ribbons starting at the edges of the ceiling and all going into the middle.

I think the chippy tea is option is a great one - really. Everyone loves a chippy tea, esp. if it comes with cups of tea, white bread and butter, and nice sauces, all served in paper on plates. A bit of wedding cake afterwards, or something sweet, and hey presto - wonderful!

Up here in Edinburgh we have our chips with brown sauce - a kind of runny, vinegary, HP sauce. First time I was asked if I wanted "salt n sauce" I hadn't got a clue what the chippy lady was talking about

SirChejin I told dp about the chippy idea last night when he finished work.. He thinks its brilliant and is really looking forward to it.

Also yy to chips followed by cake, was thinking of getting a chocolate cake anyway, to double as pudding. So many times we have been to a wedding, seen the cake cutting then nothing..? I mean where do these cakes go?

It is a brilliant idea . I think the key is to keep it casual, fun and quirky. People will remember that (and the fact that they are all together celebrating your marriage) far more than they will a bog standard hotel with the ubiquitous chicken and a pricey bar.

Mmmm - chippy tea followed by chocolate cake. Bliss

Ask guests to bring a blanket or outdoor chair to make if a casual outdoor do, love the idea of a chip van delivering fish and chips. Buy your own ice cream and sprinkles for pud x

So chips it is chips & cake. Cheap and cheerful.

Now just need to figure out about the tea part.. It seems that despite what I first thought the food can be done in the budget I set for it.

Scarer - ^What you need to do, is send out a few save the date cards to people you don't want at your wedding, then when they confirm they are free, tell them they are to be your unpaid decorating help for the day.
That'll sort it for you ^

Oh you are naughty!!! LOL!!!

IfIDontKnow - How do they normally rent out the room? Is there any way that you could make a donation to the BL if they have drapes/room dividers that they can loan you for the day?

Some clever lighting will draw peoples attention away from the fixtures and fittings & I'm sure you'll have a really lovely day!

Blankets- what a good idea. The Legion does have picnic benches, not enough though I think. So this solves it perfectly.
Seems though that delivery may not be the best idea? It works out nice and cheaply, however I will get a quote for the van linked up thread

WhatchaMaCalllit Normally just rented out as it is. People mostly have a disco for birthday do or whatever

I think the bring a dish type wedding that pp's have described sound wonderful by the way. Think I saw something similar a few years ago on a tv program

A tea urn?

Our Scout troop have a couple that seem to go everywhere with them. Maybe your local WI, Scouts, something like that would have an urn you could rent? Alternatively ebay have them which I may have discovered by accident whilst spending time planning your wedding rather than doing my very boring work

They do have a scout hut near to the church. Will ask.

Without wanting to out myself however if any of you are people I know in RL, you'll know anyway when you rock up at the wedding you helped plan we are getting married in Surrey, and live in Kent. We / the venue aren't far from each other at all. And majority of guests live in the town of the church.

Not far from Westerham in fact...

The suggestions made so far have been brilliant.

If there is a college that do photography/event management/interior design near you/the BL Hall, why don't you approach the lecturers there and ask whether anyone would be interested in helping out and that you'll let them use whatever images they need to for their portfolios going forwards?

I've been at a buffet style wedding and the only hot food they had was chicken curry and rice. They did cold meats and salads for anyone who didn't want the curry. There was plenty of bread rolls and butter to make up sandwiches if anyone wanted. Each table had a bottle of red and white wine on them and anything else you went to the bar to get your drink.

The most important part of that day was the dancing so if you're trying to work out where to spend your money, I'd recommend listening to a few DJ's or a couple of live bands and put your money there. People will remember the dancing afterwards, not the decor!

im the only naysayer to fish and greasy claggy chips then

Yep.

PervCat do you think that's how they will turn out? I would be upset if everyone ended up with that for their evening meal

I'm positive the only way to know for sure is for me and dp to bravely test the take away delivery ourselves time as soon as we get the chance

i think chips only nice fresh not lukewarm - a curry is a way better bet.

If you get a van to deliver the F&C then they will not be lukewarm or claggy. Ignore the voice of doom.

Curry is foul.

A bottle of each per table is good idea. However, sadly we don't have exclusive use.
I'm sure that it won't be busy as they normally put notices up a few weeks before an event there and people normally respect this and go elsewhere. However these are normally evening birthday disco's.
And they have a few regulars who would come any way I think.
I don't want to be paying for random peoples drink.. how do I do this?

Oops. A lot of normally usage there.

I don't normally repeat myself this much.