If you are planning your wedding during this uncertain time, we’ve got some great wedding planning tips for you! Covid-19 has caused a lot of couples to feel unsettled, and we don’t blame you if you’re one of them. Our wedding suppliers have provided some fantastic wedding planning tips – things to consider if you are supposed to get married within the next 12 weeks, what to do if you choose to postpone your wedding, and how to make the most of the extra time on your hands!
Main image credit: Couple Photography
Related: Planning Your Wedding During the Coronavirus Crisis – It’s Possible!
To postpone or not?
Good communication, with your venue, and then your suppliers, is the key to getting through this. Firstly, contact your venue and chat with them about your date. If your date is still fine then great. If not then you’ll need to make that tough decision to change it. Many couples are being realistic and already moving their date to 2021 allowing themselves time to get back on track financially. For those thinking of moving to later this year keep in mind that venues could be short of dates, so maybe consider a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday as your day. Remember too that wedding coordinators are being swamped with date changes and many are working from home as the venue is currently closed. Be patient and allow a reasonable time for a reply to your email. Also, check regularly your spam folders as some replies might go there and you could easily miss them. – Paul from Meath Wedding Photography
If your wedding has been postponed and you need to let your guests know about the change of the date or details, send them a digital postponement card, which can be sent by e-mail, WhatsApp, posted on Facebook etc. You can get yours free of charge from Save the Date.ie. All you need to do is e-mail me at hello@savethedate.ie with your new wedding day details. Don’t forget to include the rsvp details too.
Also, if your wedding is in July and later in the year, I’m recommending that you consider sending the invitations as late as possible. My current recommendation is 8 weeks before the wedding, just to allow more time for the guests to feel comfortable with travel and larger gatherings after all the restrictions hopefully abate. – Save the Date.ie
Related: Covid-19: How Does It Affect My Wedding?
Remain positive!
My first point is that it’s really important to remain as positive as you can. It’s so easy to slip into a defeatist mindset and worry too much. You can’t change the current situation but you can choose how to react to it. Restrict the amount of time you are on social media and watching the news, its important to be informed, but sometimes there is such a thing as too much information. There is a difference between being a realist and a pessimist, try being real but proactive. – Finn Mooney Photography | Read more helpful tips here
Finding top suppliers and venues
We are a private venue in Kildare, Firmount House and our top tip would be to arrange a Skype tour of the venue during these difficult times. The virus should not mean you need to stop planning for your special day as we have previously had two weddings booked off the Skype tour from overseas brides. Private venues can also potentially accommodate a viewing if the couple is ok to take the tour themselves or where they can practice social distancing with the tour guide but the virtual tour works just as well. That coupled with Instagram and website photos should allow the bride and groom enough information to make an informed decision.
Another tip is that there are venues where the bride and groom can still go ahead and have their ceremony (including at Firmount House) while following government guidelines. No, it won’t be with their 120 guests but it will be a fabulously intimate affair and means they would still be married on the day they chose and have a fantastic party at a later date. – Firmount House
In this particular period going back to having phone conversations at least for initial contact would be worthwhile. It will be quicker to establish availability and get answers to specific questions to establish further interest. Then if there is to be a next stage, speaking specifically in relation to photography, video calls and access to online galleries can be used to replace in person consultations. Some video conferencing applications like Zoom facilitates this and enable screen sharing or presentations. – David McAuley Photography
Makeup and Style
I highly recommend that the bride does not go last for her hair or makeup. She should be somewhere in the middle. It means that if for any reason there are delays she won’t be held up. Also, she doesn’t want all of her morning photos to be without makeup. This way her makeup is pretty much done bar a few touch-ups by the time the photographer arrives. – Pamela Matthews Makeup Artist
For the Bride who has chosen a summer styled dress and is now feeling she will be a little exposed, what better way to warm up your look than to add a cape. – Stash.ie | More tips on restyling your wedding
Photo and Video
Writing your vows
Take advantage of the little bit of extra time you might have to start thinking about your Wedding Vows! Even if you are not necessarily writing something from scratch… start putting some ideas together as to what you might like to say to each other on the big day. Your vows are the moment in your ceremony that you say beautiful personal words to your beloved about how they make you feel, what you love about them, and what you hope for your future together. Whether you find inspiration online, from books, movie quotes, poetry, or (definitely) some great advice from your Celebrant – take time to create something that says just the right words for you. Putting a little effort in is not hard, but SO worth it on the big day! – Romy McAuley of A Beautiful Ceremony
