It’s 2020. A global pandemic has broken out. The world is in lockdown. AND IT IS OUR WEDDING. Are we living in a cheesy zombie apocalypse movie, or is this genuinely real life?
Let’s be honest here, if you had told us this time last year that today the entire world would be in lockdown and you wouldn’t be allowed leave your house without a mask on, we would have laughed at you and told you to put down the bottle of wine. But here we all are – in the middle of a global pandemic that has not only affected our day-to-day lives, but all of our incredible plans for the year!
This pandemic has really put a spanner in the works. By now, you probably have half, if not all, of your wedding planned and booked. But as a result of this crazy pandemic, a lot of couples have had to make the tough decision to postpone their special day. The question of whether upcoming weddings taking place early next year will be going ahead. There is a valid anxiety that all engaged couples are currently feeling. When is safe to postpone until? If I don’t postpone my November wedding now, will I still get a wedding date next year if I am forced to postpone closer to the time? What if things don’t settle? What if things do settle but I have already postponed?
So I am going to give you a little advice on behalf of all wedding planners: we just don’t know. We want to help you through all of this chaos, and we want to be able to tell you that you need to postpone and give you a date that will be safe. But we are in unchartered water here. And if our President doesn’t know, we don’t know either.
But that doesn’t take away from the fact that we are here for you. We are here to try and take away the stress that you are facing from the unknown as much as possible. We are here to try and give you the best advice that we can. We are here for you to vent to, moan to, and cry to. And most importantly, we are here to try and guide you through your decision making and the planning of your postponement.
As you find yourself sitting on your couch and wondering what to do, here are our tips:
POSTPONE, DON’T CANCEL
This is definitely a very challenging time for all wedding couples, as well as for all wedding suppliers. But the truth is that it makes more sense (and it makes your life a whole lot easier) to postpone your special day instead of cancelling it. At the end of the day, you still want to get married and you still want to celebrate with all of your nearest and dearest. Don’t cancel something so special. You have invested a lot of time, a lot of effort, and possibly a lot of money in planning a very celebration – one that all your friends and family’s were going to be sure to love! Don’t let this crazy pandemic take that away from you. Even if you choose to rather have a small intimate ceremony sooner (when restrictions are lifted), and your big fun reception later (when it is safe and the world is in a happy place) – don’t cancel the fun altogether.
MAKE A DECISION SOONER RATHER THAN LATER
Have you ever heard the saying that suspense is worse than disappointment? Well, it is very true. What will be affecting most couples on a daily basis is not just the disappointment of having to move their wedding, but living in an anxious suspense on not knowing where we are headed and what to do. Make your life a little bit less stressed by taking away some of that anxiety. Unless you are a very chilled couple that don’t mind having to make last minute plans and don’t have anxious thoughts that consume you every day about what you should do.
SPEAK TO ALL OF YOUR WEDDING SUPPLIERS ASAP
Take a moment out to contact all of your wedding suppliers, let them know of your thoughts, and check their availability for next year. Even if you don’t plan on making the decision to postpone immediately, it is good to get a feel for a date that will be viable. Absolutely all suppliers we have dealt with have been more than understanding and flexible. Remember, they are being as flexible and understanding as possible to help you – you also need to be flexible and understanding towards their schedules and livelihood. During this uncertain and gloomy situation, we all need to be a little understanding.
BOOK A TENTATIVE DATE AND CONFIRM LATER
Instead of confirming a date right away, we suggest booking a tentative new date with your suppliers, and asking them to alert you when another client has an interest in the same date. This gives you some time to see how things are going and wait for a more solid direction from our leaders on when it is going to be a safer choice to have a celebration take place. You might have to make a decision as soon as other couples show interest in your tentative date, but this will definitely buy you some time and avoid the issue of trying to change your date more than once.
LET YOUR GUESTS KNOW
Until you confirm a new wedding date, send out a message to your guests letting them know that the wedding has been postponed and that you will update them as soon as you have confirmed details. When you confirm your date and you are comfortable with letting your guests know – send out a beautiful Change-The-Date (like a Save-The-Date, but just informing your guests of the new date change.
CELEBRATE YOUR ORIGINAL WEDDING DATE
When your original date comes around, it is natural that you are going to feel sad and a little heart sore. So celebrate it! Don’t let it be a day that you sit in gloom thinking about what should have been taking place. Whether you are in lockdown still, and it has to be a celebration of two – or if restrictions have been lifted and you are allowed to have a small dinner party – celebrate! Do your make up beautifully, get dressed to the nines, put on great music, eat incredible food and drink LOTS of champagne. Make a day of it, and look at it like your pre-wedding celebration. Lucky you, you get to celebrate your love for each other TWICE!
This is not an easy situation to navigate through, and we take our hats off to all of you couples who are having to deal with this. But just remember, you are not alone and once all of this is harder, everyone will want to be celebrating ten times more! Make the decisions you know are right for you as a couple. Remember that it is okay to feel sad and feel your emotions. In fact, it is important. But also don’t let this crazy pandemic ruin your special day and this beautiful journey you are on. Because this is just the beginning, to an incredible journey of your amazing lives together!
Xxx