A friend of mine showed me a video of a wedding she attended a few years ago.  The wedding was absolutely gorgeous! The bride was stunning; the ceremony was romantic (I cried, of course); and my friend says the food was right up there with perfection. You would have thought that those details would be what my friend described to me the most, but they weren’t.  She was most affected by the handshake she received from the bride in the receiving line.  You see, the bride barely acknowledged my friend and her handshake was very limp.  I explained to her that the bride was probably exhausted and she probably wanted nothing more than a moment alone with her groom. But this made me wonder for a minute.  What if she wasn’t tired.  What if she didn’t know the receiving line etiquette for her wedding?  Here are some tips:

1. Receiving Lines Only Work If the Couple Is Able to Greet ALL of The Wedding Guests

Greeting approximately 150 wedding guests is not an easy task.  If you are unsure about your ability to greet the last guest with the same enthusiasm as the first guest, skip it. Instead, greet your guests throughout the reception.

2. Get Rid of the Bouquet While You Are in the Receiving Line

Give your bouquet to your wedding planner (or a trusted friend) for placement in a safe place.  Bouquets get heavy after a while and it is a little awkward to hug or shake hands if you are holding it.

3. Schedule Enough Time to Greet Each Guest

Make sure that you set aside enough time to greet each guest. You don’t want to rush them. The standard is 90 to 120 seconds per guest.

4. End Each Handshake With Eye Contact and a Smile

As you are shaking hands with each of your guests, maintain eye contact. It is very off putting to be looking elsewhere as you are engaging with that guest.

5. Make Sure That Everyone in the Receiving Line Knows to Keep It Moving

Parents are typically the most guilty.  The receiving line is an opportunity to greet each guest.  Long conversations should be held during the actual dinner reception.

6. If Your Ceremony and Reception Are In the Samve Venue, Consider Skipping the Receiving Line Alltogether

Most cocktail receptions typically lasts 60 minutes.  If this is the case, your wedding guests at the end of the line may miss the entire cocktail reception.

7. Be Aware of the Little Rules Involving a Good Handshake

This blog post is already quite long, so I thought I would share a video to discuss the rules connected to a good handshake.

Take care!  Love and Soul Always, Kawania

Photo: Mike Sperlak Photography