Pipe and draping regret??

We did pipe/draping. It did affect pictures and made things look great! BUT - we kept it super minimal in the areas that actually made an impact. Draping all of the walls is kind of a waste IMO. We just draped the support beams flanking the dance floor - that's what actually shows up in our photos.

Lighting makes a huge difference too.

Do you have any pics of your venue to show us where the pipe/drape would go?

Woahhhhhhhhh why does this cost $2K? Can't you just go to home depot and do it yourselves?

If the reception hall doesn't need it, then either don't use it... or tone it way down. I would keep the draping during ceremony; not only will it draw everyones attention in, but it will probably keep the sun out of your eyes. To get the look in the reception, make a small feature wall or backdrop(like behind your cake or head table). I love the way draping looks too and was recently asking myself this same question. Good luck!

The only important question is if it's worth 2K to you?

Our venue had all sorts of decorating restrictions. But it had a lot of artwork and one whole glass wall with incredible lighting and waterfalls. So the only place it would have made a difference would have been the ceremony. But for those 30 minutes total, it wasn't worth the additional expense to me. I don't regret it.

@krisalicious I actually just want it behind the head table (sweetheart table) now. Forget the rest of the walls, they look fine regardless lol.

@PurpleSun – Let me clarify, $2k for both the chuppah and the draping. I think mainly because no one seems to carry chuppah pipes and whatnot here in Atlanta?? But yes, I know $2k is ridiculous. But we will not have anywhere to keep the pipe and draping before nor after the wedding 

@Nicole – I agree. I can just picture it during the ceremony and reception. I just wish it was less than $200 lol

Mrs. S - that's my issue.. because it is a new facility, nothing is allowed to be taped, hung, or anything to the wall. So pipe and draping was the only logical decor. At this point, I think I may have to choose one or the other.

Amy - what was wrong with the draping? Was it just done poorly? Or not what you expected??

But if you're up for it, 2d Bride has great instructions for a DIY chuppah. It could be a good and relatively inexpensive solution if you have somebody to set it up.

This is one of the things that we are on the fence about as well... Are you looking at draping everything? Like the ceiling or just a little like a curtain backdrop?

In CA the tent alone can cost a huge amount - add the draping (full tent drape) you are looking closer to $6K and up... However I totally agree with what others said about if your venue needs it.. this is a way to add a dramatic touch - add a little up lighting and then you don't have to decorate as much elsewhere...

As for the ceremony I agree with PurpleSun - this might be something that you can do on your own? Put together your own structure and drape - this is a much smaller scale and much more manageable for someone who has never done it before...

@PurpleSun it is really hard to get the look right on a large room such as a reception area... that's if you are doing a full ceiling drape - plus the cost of fabric and the labor $2K is a steal where I'm from....

Do you think that custom lighting behind the SH table would give you a similar effect? Or is there something about that wall you're trying to hide with the drape?

Lighting is HUGE and can give you a big bang for your buck.

What's the breakdown in cost of the SH table draping vs. the chuppah?

Alright so you answered a lot in the time it took me to post... haha

You might want to look into renting the piping set up (smaller tent) from someone and then draping it yourself? I actually had a friend use one of those netting covers you use for picnics that she put drape around the arms and pulled back the netting and hid it behind the drape - maybe someone has one you can borrow? Also look at your craigslist someone might be selling one in your area that you can snag?

Totally agree with kris on the lighting - makes a huge difference - I had a lot of friends regret not doing lighting...

I saw the post from 2d Bride and her chuppah. I considered that as well, I just have no idea where it would go (we are apartment living).

Decorating the entire reception hall is just way too expensive so I just want the backdrop for the head table. If I could find the pipe, I' might seriously do the drape myself lol. Buy like 5 long ivory curtains and let it hang right behind the table LOL

Hmm....maybe that it a good idea...

I'm using curtains that I found on sale and I'm hiding all the areas I don't like by making a T shape frame and then having the piece sort of gathered in the middle and tied.... our whole venue is outdoors so there are some views/areas we want hidden

You can buy pipe from home depot/ lowes. You can rent arches and such from hobby lobby. Pipes can usually be broken down and stored easily in an apartment behind a couch, then either throw them away or sell them afterwards...

Lauren are you just making a pipe frame out of lightweight PVC from the hardware store?

At least that's modular, it's not like you would need to store some giant structure. Just a bunch of 4' or 6' lengths of pipe. The only thing is, you need to do a run-through setting it up so you don't buy unnecessary materials, and then you need someone to do setup/takedown. I think that's a big part of the expense for the rental company.

Here's a lighting idea too, from our wedding. We paid $250 to project a silent B&W film on this wall, and I think the uplight for that entire foyer space was $250? No draping at all in that area of the room.

So I found this link. I think I might seriously make this a DIY project.

http://www.instructables.com/id/PVC-stage-backdrop-or-room-divider/

I can do it for the ceremony too! See this is why I love WW, you all always get my DIY brain running

2d brides pop up chuppah takes up little to no space when it is folded down

https://sites.google.com/site/2dbride/ceremony/chuppah

her profile... I'm sure you could contact her and ask for tips and see pictures

https://www.weddingwire.com/wedding/UserViewProfile?wid=9a36d2a1b93c78d8

@Kris I think that I am going to make the structure out of wood so I can paint/stain it easily and if it shows on the back it will still look nice - so I'm not trying to hide PVC LOL

Your pics are great! I'm guessing that the walls were white or a lighter color? Makes a huge difference with using lighting for a dramatic look....

@Soon2bMrsReed

I'm having the same storage issue &we're over 8 hours away from our venue and we are also in an apartment! So getting my dress, clothes for a week, etc. trying to transport DIY was making my head spin... SO I came up with the idea of renting a storage unit. PRESTO! Where my venue is storage is CHEAP - we wanted a lounge so the cost of renting that furniture was going to be something close to $1K - we were able to find pieces, doctor them up exactly how we want them and store them till our wedding and save about $500 AND now we have storage. So whenever I have something for the wedding I just have it shipped up there and my friend goes and puts it in storage!

If you are planning on a lot of DIY maybe get a small storage unit a month or 2 before your wedding so you can throw everything in there?