What to do during this downtime if my wedding got postponed?

What to do during this downtime if my wedding got postponed?

OK, so there's been quite a few wedding postponements, that's the reality.⁠

I now see many couples on numerous Facebook groups and forums asking what they could do during this downtime?!?⁠

In the below paragraphs, I would like to bring to you some of my ideas on how you can fill this time productively!⁠

Firstly, I'm thinking... why shouldn't you throw a video call party on Zoom or Skype on the original date of your wedding with your friends and family?

Go on, you deserve it! You've worked very hard towards this date, so have a bit of a moment to cheer and have fun!⁠

I'm sure many of your guests would love this as I'm sure many of them have supported you during this challenging time too!

Now is the best time to raise a glass, unwind and celebrate!⁠

My tip number 2 is to plan your seating plan.⁠

Having got married myself two years ago, I can appreciate how time consuming and demanding it is to plan your wedding seating arrangements.⁠

Why not start now? I know, you don't have your RSVPs yet, but it's a lot easier to make small amendments closer to the time than start from scratch, right?⁠

This is one element of wedding planning that I see couples struggling with most, especially when leaving it until you get your RSVPs back and starting it one month before the wedding when there's so much else to finalise too.⁠

You know my favourite saying: "Plan ahead!"⁠

My tip 3 is to perfect your wedding vows, speeches or even updating your entire ceremony script!⁠

When working full time and wedding planning did you not feel like you've not had much time for this?⁠

Now is the perfect time for you to sit down together or separately to ensure that you're putting into words exactly the message you want heard on your special day.⁠

You might want to practise your speech, record it and time it, so that you know it's perfect for when the day you need to deliver it comes.⁠

Have you considered to put some more time for your written or spoken elements of your wedding? Let me know in the comments below.⁠

My tip 4 on using the current downtime productively is to research your suppliers' and venue's social media.⁠

Just like you, the entire wedding industry will have some extra time on our hands now to feed our social media with creative ideas, so why not to follow your suppliers and venues online if you've still got to finalise a few bits and bobs.⁠

Who knows you might come across something tried by your venue or supplier that you've never though of and could add to your special day.⁠

Are you currently following all your suppliers and venue on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook?

Finally, you could use this extra time to practise or learn your first dance.⁠

Wouldn't it be amazing to impress all your guests with the dancing skills they never knew you had?⁠

There's plenty options how you could do this in the comfort of your own living room, however, if you're looking for some professional help, feel free to contact me for my recommendations.

Have you found my top 5 tips on productively using your downtime useful?⁠

LIKE and SHARE this post if you have and let me know any of your questions or feedback in the comments below.⁠

WEDDING COUPLES - we, your wedding suppliers DON'T STOP!

WEDDING COUPLES!!!⁠

Although new measures have now been introduced by our Government, we, as your wedding suppliers DON'T STOP!⁠

I promise to be working tirelessly to help you with your wedding planning virtually over the coming months, as I know many of you will be working from home and looking for hints and tips on your special day.⁠

As you can see my website has already received a little face lift with a new and refreshed look, so feel free to check it out when you've got a minute!⁠

In my latest highlights/stories on Facebook and Instagram, I have announced that since we're unable to meet in person over the coming months I will be putting together Facebook Lives for you featuring my "Guide to Effective Wedding Planning" talk, so that we can meet virtually and continue your wedding planning journey!⁠

I was due to present my Guide at five wedding shows and open days in the next two months, which have now been postponed to the end of the year, so I thought I could come to your living-rooms, home-offices virtually with my top wedding planning tips and hints and answer your questions as if we met at one of these events.⁠

Let me know in the comments below or send me a DM with your preference of when you'd like me to host my first of a series of Facebook Lives?⁠

TOP THREE TIPS on Wedding Planning for Newly Engaged Couples

Did you know that over 40% of annual engagements take place during the short period, between Christmas and New Year?

This is why, I have decided to put together a short guide on my TOP THREE STEPS on wedding planning for newly engaged couples.

TIP 1:

The first questions you will hear as a newly engaged couple when approaching wedding venues and suppliers are:

1)     Anticipated Guests Numbers

2)     The Date of you Wedding

3)     Ceremony Arrangements

It is definitely very helpful for you to look at your anticipated numbers as a lot of wedding venues will either have minimum numbers requirement or they might have varied options for you dependent on your numbers and you wouldn’t want to learn about them all – your time is also precious when planning for a wedding! In some cases, you might even benefit form better rates if your numbers are above a certain level too, so I highly recommend you consider your guest numbers before making enquiries.

Do not worry, you do not need to have an exact date of your wedding sassed out right away! (Trust me, not many couples do either!) What I mean by the date is a provisional range, seasons or even months you would ideally like to get married in. There’s a couple of reasons for that, firstly, a lot of wedding venues offer season pricing and you might be benefiting from deals and offers if your ideal date/period falls slightly out of the main season. Secondly, seasonality will also affect your choices of flowers, ceremony arrangements and supplies of certain foods, so once again, I recommend you have a think of your ideal time of the year scenario.

Thirdly, ceremony arrangements! This one is particularly important if you’re panning for a religious ceremony. Availability of your religious venue and person conducting your marriage ceremony might be restricted, so it is worth checking with them first too. Additionally, some venues with charge additional setup and early facility fees for ceremonies taking place on site of your wedding reception.

TIP 2:

I am often asked by couples who booked their venue: “What should we think about next?”

My answer is very simple – consider those suppliers that will truly make your wedding and my recommendations here are:

1)     Ceremony Officiant

2)     Photographer

3)     Evening Entertainment

Remember, a lot of these suppliers are a “one man show” and if you’ve got your heart set on them, you might want to consider them first!

Marriage ceremony is truly the reason why you’re making all these plans in the first place, therefore it is important for you to consider your arrangements early – will it be religious, civil, independent or humanist? Particularly the religious, independent and humanist Officiants will have a very limited availability so if you’ve got one in mind, approach them early.

I also don’t think that I need to explain how important wedding photography is – this is the one element of your wedding that will stay with you for the rest of your lives together and if you’ve got your heart set on a specific photographer or style of wedding photography, ensure you do your research early.

Finally, evening entertainment, weather that’s a band, DJ, saxophonist, tribute act or otherwise – these suppliers book up quickly, so don’t wait to book your choice as soon as you can. At the end of the day, evening reception is the longest part of your wedding and the one that probably most of your wedding guests look forward to the most.

TIP 3:

This one is very simple! I recommend you plan, plan and plan again! For a lot of you wedding will be the first large scale event you will be planning for in your lives! It is a big project with many integral parts to it, therefore it is important for both of you to sit down together early on in your planning and decide how you’re going to support each other in this process and delegate tasks between you both. If you’re organised and plan your wedding arrangements far out in advance and in smaller milestones, you will truly enjoy this creative and one of the biggest projects of your life!

If you find, however, that certain parts of wedding planning are a little too complicated, time-consuming or simply overwhelming OR if right at the start of your wedding planning, you realise that you might not have enough spare time to do it all by yourselves, there are people like me out there that can help you as little or as much as you need it. Imagine having an expert in the wedding planning by your side at all times, guiding you and supporting you along this process – wouldn’t that be just amazing?

If you’ve found my TOP THREE TIPS on wedding planning for newly engaged couples helpful, leave a comment below or drop me a text on +44 (0) 7492 385 310. I would love to hear how you’re finding the whole process of wedding planning?

If you’d like to find out more on wedding planning tips, feel free to check out the tips from my friends at the WeddingWire: https://www.weddingwire.co.uk/wedding-tips for some more exciting ideas that can be found useful in your wedding planning efforts.