What makes a successful dance floor?
1. Let the DJ do their job. The more you give them as "must play" or "do not play", the more you can hinder the success of your own dance floor. Some of your favorite bands may rock ... they may not be too "danceable". Let your DJ be the judge based on their experience at weddings.
2. Who's the DJ? Give the DJ a few songs you like, not your whole iPod playlist. Most weddings will have guests aging from their 20's to 70's. A Professional Wedding DJ knows what works for all generations, trust them.
3. Dance, Dance Dance. The more a Bride & Groom are on the dance floor, the more your guests will be on the dance floor. You set the example for the day.
4. Don't "major in minor things". Don't put added pressure on yourself or your DJ by wanting to enter the room at an exact part of the song or at an exact lyric. People are WATCHING you, not listening at those times.
6. Don't give your guests too many options. If you have a DJ in one room, a bar in another, a photo booth down the hall, etc ... don't be surprised if your dance floor is not full. Giving your guests other options, gives more reason why your dance floor won't be as packed as you want.
7. Leave it to the Professionals. Up until now, how many weddings have you planned? Exactly! Run all your ideas off your DJ or your Day-of Wedding Coordinator. The smoother your wedding flows, the more successful it will be. Trust the Professionals.
8. Keep it Short & Sweet. Everyone wants that "epic" dance floor however, people get tired. If your ceremony is at 1pm and you plan your dance floor till midnight ... you'll have an empty dance floor by 10pm. Not because the DJ sucks, because you're guests are tired. A perfect dance floor us about 2 hours long (about 30 songs).
Cape Tunes "Homework": If your wedding DJ is already reserved, here's some homework we ask Brides & Grooms to complete at least six weeks before their wedding day:
MUSIC CHECKLIST - This is so you can let us know what you like / don't like, etc.
Download MUSIC CHECKLIST Here
NAMES CHECKLIST - This is so we can have the names of your wedding party before the big day and not spend vital time on your big day.
Download NAMES CHECKLIST Here
Are you stuck picking out your important songs? Here's a little help:
Here is a list dynamically compiled based on online requests by thousands of DJ’s around the world via DJ Intelligence.Please note, Cape Tunes has EVERY SONG EVER RECORDED at their fingertips, these are only the most requested.
Download last years MOST REQUESTED SONGS
Home-based / tented weddings & events
From a DJs standpoint and from seeing it dozens of time every season … here are the things that home-based weddings commonly forget …
- Permits – check with Town Hall if there are any permits needed (for beach wedding, entertainment, etc)
- Noise Ordinance – check with Town Hall what the noise ordinance is. All it takes is one neighbor and your big day could end quickly.
- Power – Your DJ should be on their own circuit. Even a coffee maker on the same circuit can blow a fuse. Little lights around your tent draw more power as the night goes on. If your DJ is on the same fuse, when the dancing kicks in, everything turns off.
- Tables – It’s very common to forget enough tables … for your DJ, seating cards, gifts, cake, etc
- Rest Rooms – No one wants a parade through their house, always a better idea to rent portable rest rooms. Some are nicer that people’s houses!
- Parking – Check with Town Hall about parking restrictions, consider shuttling guests in, consider hiring a valet service.
- What we require for home-based weddings & events:
- Six foot table (covered or skirted to hide wires)
- To be within six feet of a power source
- DJ & equipment must be fully under cover to protect equipment from sun, heat and/or rain
- If the weather is expected to drop below 60 degrees, the tent needs to have sides and/or a heater. Condensation can ruin equipment.
- DJ table must be adjacent to the dance floor.
- Parking has to be on-site in case of equipment failure.
- How big of a dance floor do I need? - "Dance floor math" ... half of the guests that go to a wedding will dance. Of those guests, half will dance when they hear something they know or like. If you have 100 guests, 25 on the floor is the average.
A good rule of thumb: There should be three square feet of dance floor space for every two guests. So, if you have 100 guests, a 10x10 dance floor is enough; if you have 150 guests, you would need a 15′ x 15′ dance floor; 200 guests would be about an 18’x18’ dance floor.
In a nutshell… - A small floor that is packed and hard to get onto always looks better than a giant floor you can’t quite fill.
- A dance floor that is too far removed from the dinner area or logistically hard to get to may end up empty.
- A room that has no dance floor and instead just an open wood/concrete floor is confusing to guests.
Couples always worry about if the floor will be big enough, but if you have guests dancing on the grass, that is a happy problem. In other words, the larger the dance floor the harder it is to keep it full and create the appearance of a rocking party.
Preferred Vendor List - here are a few of our favorite friends
The Ultimate Wedding Planning Guide
How to Tip Your Wedding Vendors
Answers to all of your questions ... or most of them
How do you handle requests?
For your music … we are completely different than most DJs … most others only ask for your 1st dance … why? Because they play the same cheesy music week after week and don’t put any planning into your wedding. We give you some “homework” to do so you can have as much input to your day as you want. We customize EVERY wedding!
Do you take breaks?
You will never notice your DJ missing. Every now and then nature will call, however, we'll be back before the next song. For dinner, we typically line up a few songs ... and speed eat.
Do you require a meal?
Yes, your vendors work long days, especially your photographer. Most venues and/or caterers will ask yhow many vendors you have. Most offer a discounted rate for vendors.
How do you handle name pronunciations?
Before we introduce your wedding party, we line everyone up and practice the pronunciations of their names.
Do you have any videos?
Although we've had videos in the past, we realized that because we customize every wedding, what you may see on a video, you may not like. Anyone can show a full dance floor, but what if you don't like the music you hear? Make sense? Most DJs play the same music at every wedding ... we give you some "homework" to do so we know what you like and what you don't like. Hence the reason we say 99% of our work is done before we play a single note. Our advice is to chat with any prospective DJ to get a feel if they are on the same page as what you're looking for. Then again, the same goes for your photographer and other vendors. We encourage you to Google “Cape Tunes reviews” to see what THOUSANDS of other couples have thought.
Can I see you "in action"?
We love what we do and it shows. We also realized because we customize every wedding, what you may see in person, you may not like. Anyone can show a full dance floor, but what if you don't like the music you hear? Make sense? Most DJs play the same music at every wedding ... we give you some "homework" to do so we know what you like and what you don't like. Hence the reason we say 99% of our work is done before we play a single note. After all that ... YES there are some venues it's easier to observe a DJ because they are open to the public, however, others are limited to guests only. Our advice is to chat with any prospective DJ to get a feel if they are on the same page as what you're looking for. Then again, the same goes for your photographer and other vendors.
Even more help (aren't we nice?)
Don't get "Bride Brain"!
What is "Bride Brain"? Bride Brain is a phenomenon that affects almost all brides at one time or another. It is a condition that can strike at any moment, for some it is at the beginning of the planning process when the mind is bombarded with ideas about the big day, when, where, the dress, colours, flowers, music, the list goes on and on. For others is might be for no apparent reason in the middle of the planning stages. For most, symptoms wait to appear until closer to the date when the to-do list appears to get longer instead of shorter, it seems like everyone is pulling you in different directions and there simply aren't enough hours in the day.
Symptoms include, but are not limited to, rambling, scatter brain, memory loss, fatigue, panic attacks, short temper, crankiness and of course bridezilla-like-tendancies. Don't be ashamed if you begin to show signs of Bride Brain, it is natural for most brides to have a few or all of the symptoms, after all you are planning the biggest day of your life, most likely working a full time job, all while trying to maintain some sort of a social life.
There are ways to avoid Bride Brain; here are a few tips to help you in the process:
Get Organized
The most important thing you can do to maintain your sanity and keep from ripping your hair out is stay organized.
Get Things Done Early
We highly recommend following some sort of checklist to ensure no steps are missed in the planning process. When booking vendors, make sure you book all vendors as soon as possible.
Ask For Help
Most brides tend to take the bulk of the work on themselves, don't forget about your fiancé, and remember it is his wedding too, so give him a to-do list. Your friends and family are probably begging to help so take them up on their offer!
Hire Someone
Although family and friends can be a great help, some times it is best to hire a professional.
After your wedding ... when you come back to reality ...
- Remember your vows ... take the "for better or worse" part seriously ...
- When it's "worse" ... be there for each other ... make it work ... it will be worth it
If you read all of this, you win!
The one thing you don’t want to talk about ...
... however ...
could be THE best thing you do …
Hey Fiancé,
Did you know that only 40% of couples get a prenup? Meaning, 60% of marriages every single year, across the country, gamble their financial future at the mercy of their state's guidelines.
But not you—you're financially-savvy and well informed that prenups have been scientifically proven to promote longer lasting marriages and healthier environments for both spouses (and we're incredibly proud to know you).
We know—prenups may feel like a taboo topic to bring up to friends or family planning their future.
But what if you could save their future selves the heartache of not having financial conversations BEFORE marriage and greatly increase the outcome of their marriage?
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