I am planning a formal wedding on a Sunday afternoon. My fiance and I are paying for the whole event. After reviewing the guest list it appears as though 50 of the 70 people on the list are his mother's guests. These are people whom I have never met and my fiance hasn't seen or heard from since childhood. I am fearful that I will be uncomfortable at my own wedding with so many strangers in attendance. And even worse, I will have to spend a lot of money to feed these strangers! We are not asking for gifts. In fact, we are not registering anywhere nor having a bridal shower. We would like to have a reception, but we don't want to go into to debt to feed strangers. We have considered inviting only the close family and friends to a very nice restaurant and paying for their meals. However, after reading some of your posts it seems as though this is rude. So, now my question is should we even invite those strangers at all? And if not, how do we explain this to his mother so that she is not offended?
It would indeed be rude to invite some and not all wedding guests to your reception. But, it isn't rude to invite only those close to you to your wedding. Gone are the days where the wedding is a social event for parents. You are the hosts and you set the guest list. If you wish to extend a couple of spaces to your future mother in law, then that is very gracious of you.
VIP reception
