Completely odd.
Take off your shoes and dance!
Whatever.

This is one of those Mormon customs that nevermos would find really weird. Use the freaking chapel, already.

And then you are allowed to pass out sheet cake in the cultural hall.
So stupid and ignorant and ridiculous.
I am not saying that is what I want for my children, it is what they choose for their children.
Whatever

This changed sometime in the late 70s or early 80s. I had two friends who had beautiful weddings in the LDS chapel. And yes, it made my stupid Masonic wedding even that much worse. I thought a lot about how beautiful Sharon's wedding was and how much I wish I had done that and then gone to the temple a year later.

So the tactic of trying not to let other girls know what they missed out on, is working. I have never heard one of those relief-society or cultural hall weddings described as beautiful. And I know people in Utah who have never been to a non-Mormon wedding in a real church or elsewhere where it really WAS beautiful. They've accepted that the actual marriage ceremony is just a ritual you get through and when they talk about their "wedding" they are usually describing the reception.

Posted by: summer, "Use the freaking chapel, already."

In my day, you weren't allowed to use the chapel, let alone "walk down the center isle". You had a temple wedding, or "went elsewhere". (We lived in the L.A. area.)

We were allowed to use the "culture hall" for our reception. We had a friend help "receive" the gifts, which were put on display on a long table. We provided nuts, candy, punch, the wedding cake, and our own punch container, cups, plates, napkins, forks, with a two-person crew I paid for to oversee the modest refreshments.

For the "receiving line", the "wedding party" lined up against a class room outer wall, which had a hole in the wall which had just been repaired (but not painted yet), and which was situated just behind our heads (so all are pictures show this unpainted wood-square behind our heads, with the basket-ball web above our heads). Classy.

I had a couple of friends from work who offered to help (sitting at the sign-in table, etc.), but all-together, it looked modest--which it was. A brother-in-law took pictures from a little hand-held camera owned by my--by then--husband.

T'wern't the best, but at least we didn't have to rent a hall. A friend helped display our gifts on a long table for all to see. We paid the ward janitor for clean-up.

T'aint nothing in this world for free, friend.

A young Army sergeant who works with me told me be got married in an LDS chapel. He said that neither he nor his wife are LDS, but a friend told him he could help him get married on the cheap. I asked if it was actually in the chapel, but he said it was "a small room with padded chairs."

One of my bros was married to wife #1 in the RS room, late 1970's.

It was simply arranged, but nice.

My wife and I got married in the chapel with the walk down the isle and everything. Immediately afterward we jumped in the car, went to our hotel and a couple of days later we were in St.George. We had a letter from the 1st Pres. to the temple pres. waving the year wait. Worked out. We are still married 48 years later and we are no longer members.

Walking down the center isle is beautiful, however, they don't have those in holy matrimony places of the Mormon religion for the marriage ceremony. You can, however, choose not to sit next to your "kin folks" in the House of the Lord wedding ceremony.

there center aisles in Mormon chapels? Have I been out that long?

no, the aisles are on the side. A relative got married a couple of years ago in the temple, then had another wedding in the chapel. What a nice bishop they had, it was really beautiful, and the bride's non member mother was so happy.

Here in the UK we're fortunate to have a proper wedding before the temple sealing due to the law.
The wedding itself usually takes place in the chapel, not the RS room.

This was after the couple were married in the temple.

The RS room was so small and crowded that there was an overflow into the hallway. I felt so angry that the nonmormons were given this as a wedding memory. The big blackboards gave a classroom décor.....the piano was big for the room. Sad display.

But the reception was more than the normal cultural hall punch & cake.....it was a catered dinner with dancing. (not live music)It was a buffet with dinner tables.

Anyway, the photos were taken outside the stake center before the ring ceremony. And the nonmormons were in the photos.

I guess this was an attempt to look normal for the Catholic family.

I've not heard of one family member converting to Mormonism after this event. Nice try.

During the temple "sealing" the family was divided in half....some of us stayed at the hotel to swim & play while the "worthy" half did secret temple rites. I don't think anyone stood outside the temple....unless there was some babysitting going on there.

Tutu

Everyone scattered like flies after the ceremony. Some were puking in the hallway of the Relief Society Room Wedding.
It was quite stupid and ridiculous, like the throat slashing gestures and disembowelment "diddy" .