Outdoor wedding? Reserve a tent

An outdoor wedding can crete a relaxed yet exuberant atmosphere, as well as many luxurious offbeat touches. Picture this: Dancing under the stars. Dining to the music of the sea. Strolling down a garden path.

It's a perfect scene. But brides who plan such an event have to prepare for reality as well. What if it snows or rains? What if a relentless sun beats down and scorches everything in sight?

Keeping one's fingers crossed or holding one's breath won't work - not when it comes to Mother Nature. The key element to a successful outdoor wedding is the big party umbrella - the tent.

There are very sophisticated tents available for rental today. They can be heated or air-conditioned and equipped with (full or partial) hardwood floors for dancing.

There are many factors that go in to choosing a tent, experts say, but the most important is determining how many guests will be at the wedding. This determines the size of the tent. Tent providers have formulas - for example, with a guest list of 150 people, a 40-by-80-foot tent is suitable. The base fee will range from $1,500 to more than $2,500.

Next, there's the type of tent: pole, tension, or frame tent. Pole tents are the most common and traditional. These tents have tall center poles that slope down to another set of poles and then out to perimeter poles. In the '80s and early '90s, these tents, in pink and white stripes, were the mainstay of most weddings. Today, all white is "in" for all types of parties.

Frame tents, by contrast, are free-standing - they have no interior poles. These tents are often used to cover a patio and are ideal for long, narrow spaces or spots where there is no room for ropes to anchor a push-pole tent. The third type is the tension tent. These tents have fewer interior poles than the push-pole tent, yielding more useable space. They are sturdy and very stable in wind.

Flooring is expensive, about $2 a foot, so most people order flooring only for a dance floor. If customized flooring is needed and the price is of little concern, Willis can build it over a sloping back yard or terraces. Flooring is so expensive because it takes the longest to install. But it sure helps to steady partygoers - especially women in high heels.

One warning: Book early. May and June are the peak months, so as soon as you have a date, book it.