Stag and Doe

[LadyFaile]

Hi all, this is my first post. I'm getting married February 14 2007 in Maui

i came across the old Bliss forums while looking for ideas for stag and doe games and prizes. i was reading one of the threads there where everyone seemed pretty confused and/or insulted by the idea of a stag and doe. I just thought I'd clarify, as well as ask if anyone has any ideas

it's not that you're asking your friends and family to give you money exactly. it's just a big party. around my area people tend to throw them in rural towns even if they live in the city, because people out in the country will go even if they don't know the couple. it's a chance to go out and have fun that they often don't get.

yes you have to buy a ticket to get in, but the money covers the expenses of the alcohol, the hall rental, the dj, the food, bartenders,the prizes, etc.
there is a law that the couple cannot make profit from the sale of alcohol so usually you have to buy drink tickets seperately and they go strictly to pay for the alcohol.
at most of these things there are games you can pay to play for prizes, a 50/50 draw, etc. but mostly it's just so friends family and strangers alike can get together and celebrate the upcoming wedding. any extra money that is made after everything is covered does go towards the wedding expenses but i don't see how that's a bad thing, weddings are expensive!

anyway someone had mentioned that these parties tend to get out of control, but that's not really true depending on who throws it and how it's put together. if it's a barn party maybe, but i've been to 2 this year that were pretty tame. just a bunch of friends hanging out, eating, talking, dancing. when they're held at halls/community centres usually they require 2 security staff to be on premesis and those staff aren't allowed to drink.

in my case we don't have a wedding party so we're throwing our own stag and doe. normally not really done but this is also our pre-wedding reception so to speak. because we're from a city 5 hours away, our reception will be held there so our family can go. our wedding is in Hawaii with just our parents and siblings present. so we're having a S&D here where we live so our friends and coworkers who won't be able to make it to the reception can celebrate with us.

if all that sounds tacky i guess i'm tacky, but to me it sounds like a fun time

[LadyFaile]

so we're working on planning this thing, it's going to be held November 4th, so we're going to get the tickets and flyers printed up. we've got some prizes gathered up already, got the hall and insurance settled, soon will have the liquor liscense settled, someone's helping me put the food together, the dj is hired...

i just need ideas for games!! we'll have a 50/50 draw and maybe a "toonie toss" (you place a large bottle of a popular liquor on the floor, and guests line up and throw $2 coins, whoever's coin is closest to the bottle at the end wins it. very popular game at these things, can make tons of money off it).
we also want to have a limbo or hula contest since it is hawaiian themed. but not sure how to regulate it, what to give as prizes, that kind of thing.

so yeah i need some other ideas of hawaiian or rave themed games we can have that will get people mobile.

it's always boring to go to these things expecting to dance and have fun and then the groom's just up there with a mic giving out drawprizes all night. so we want some more interactive ways of handing out prizes. maybe a beachball hot potato game. ball gets tossed around at random on the dance floor while people dance, whoever's holding it when the music stops is out, last person standing wins a prize. ??

and my mom suggested that instead of drawing names for prizes that we do a penny sale. we could charge less for the tickets to get in, and sell pennysale tickets for the prizes. just have them lined up against a wall and people put tickets in for whatever prize they want, that way nobody's stuck with something they hate.

i think i'm on the right track but i feel like i'm missing something

[Julz518]

Hey LadyFaile!

Your Stag & Doe sounds like a lot of fun - but almost as much work as the wedding? Do you still think it's worth the extra bucks? I like the idea - though when I first read it I thought it had something to do with "hunting" the bride & groom. Where are you from? We had an engagement party that some of our neighbors attended, but since we haven't lived here long, I don't think a stag & doe would be appropriate. And our families have already given us so much!

I LOVE games (I think I'm the only person in the world who wants to only play games and NOT open presents at my shower), but can't think of any for you off the top of my head... I'll put my thinking cap on and get back to you later.

Good Luck!

[LadyFaile]

i'm in Canada, from northern Ontario but living in southern area. around here everyone does these things, it's actually really common to hold them out in the country, a lot of the people who live there will go because there's not much else to do on a friday or saturday night out in the boons. so sometimes they get tons of farmers crashing the party lol. which is good, more ticket sales etc.

it'll be a bit of money and work to put together but if done right you come out with profit in the end, that's kinda the whole point, any money you make goes towards wedding costs. but as i mentioned, because our reception is up north a lot of our friends won't be going so this way they get to celebrate with us too. so if we don't make much off it it's no big deal, it's not really why we're doing it. as long as we break even on it it's all good, though making a bit extra would be nice.
we're not having a shower or engagement party. our family is spending enough money on the wedding as is.

[Julz518]

Hey Ladyfaile -
I was thinking about it this weekend, and came up with some additional game ideas for your stag & doe. These are all variations on my favorite carnival games, mainly using coconuts & hula hoops

1) Hula-hoop toss - toss a hula hoop over a totem pole to win a prize
Variation 1: toss smaller hoops over a dancing hula-girl
Variation 2: toss a hula hoop over an actual dancing hula girl

2) Hide the Coconut - use coconut halves upside down to hide a coin or rock, mix them up and players have to guess which coconut it is under to win a prize

3) Coconut pitch - throw coconuts at stacked milk bottles (or soemthing else) and knock them all off the platform to win a prize

4) Coconut toss - throw coins, pebbles into a rotating wheeling of coconuts, color of the coconut determines prize
Variation 1: Make the wheel more "wheel-of-fortune" like with prizes on each slot, and simply spin to determine the prize
Variation 2: same concept, but vertical instead of horizontal.

WOuld it be appropriate to have games about you & your FH? more like shower games. One of my favorite is the list of questions about the couple, and if you can answer so many you win a prize.

Anyway, hope these ideas help you!

5)

[Marge129]

Originally Posted by Julz518

I LOVE games (I think I'm the only person in the world who wants to only play games and NOT open presents at my shower),

You LOVE games? I thought you hated them! I'm so confused. I guess we should talk.

[LadyFaile]

ooh those are good ideas! thanks

now for a game like #2 what would be a suitable prize? we won't have tons and tons to give away so if it's a game like that which can be played very quickly and easily, it might be pretty popular. typically in that game you get double your money back right? but i want to make money on it not lose it lol.

the hula hoop toss sounds good but dangerous lol.

[Soon_To_Be_Bride]

Awesome,a Maui wedding!

[Marksbride]

Wow! Sounds like it's going to be a blast.
Maui sounds really good right about now. This Wisconsin weather is FREEEEEEZZZZZZING!!!!!!!!1