For many women, their wedding day is an event they’ve dreamed about since they first gazed, wide-eyed and open-mouthed, as their favourite Disney princess overcame all the odds to find herself being enchanted by her Prince. It stands to reason, then, that your wedding day is possibly one of the most anticipated days you’ll ever set your sights on, a day that you’ll hopefully look back on with joy and cherish forever.
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| Photo by Carlo Buttinoni on Unsplash |
So, it makes sense that when you’ve had your perfect proposal from your perfect partner and have spent months – maybe even years – planning your big day, you want nothing more than to make sure you’ve considered every little detail to the nth degree; that you want to make sure everything goes ahead without a hitch so you can allow yourself to be entirely swept up in the wonder of your nuptials alongside your partner and loved ones.
If you’ve got your heart set on an outdoor wedding, regardless of whether you’re considering a beach, woodland, field, or back garden as your venue, there are a number of things to consider when the planning process gets underway – the first of which is setting a realistic budget and discussing with your future spouse what you envision the day looking like.
Back to Basics
It’s easy to get carried away with the plans bustling about in your head, with yourself and your partner excitedly sharing ideas and dreaming up extravagant ideas, but, when planning an outdoor wedding, remembering to factor in the very basics – such as electricity supply, lighting, and toilets – is vital.
The most important of these elements is the supply of electricity and lighting, as there isn’t much that can occur without it! If you’re in a back garden or in the outdoor space of a large indoor venue, then you can easily obtain cables to connect to the site’s already-existing electricity. However, if you’re out in the middle of nowhere, you need to shop around to find an electricity generator that you can hook up your various electrical items to, including the sound system, the bar/food chillers, lights, any outdoor heating you’ve provided, etc.
In terms of lighting, browse through online electrical wholesalers to see the range of festoon lighting available or look into waterproof fairy lights. Toilets can be sourced for hire from various suppliers, with choices ranging from separate male/female toilet units with sinks provided to your basic Portaloo – the choice is yours (and depends on your budget).
Think BIG
Whilst we’d all love the ability to predict and control the weather, we are, alas, not gifted in that respect and haven’t the capacity to deduce exactly what the weather will be like. This means you need to plan for all eventualities effectively.
Of course, a beautifully sunny, warm day would be perfect, but you would do well to consider the installation of a gazebo, marquee, or tipi to house your guests and protect them from the weather. Alternatively, if you’re planning your wedding in the grounds of a particular venue, you can always schedule certain elements to occur inside or ask the venue to hold a space inside for you to have on hand should the weather suddenly turn!
The Comfort of Guests
Outdoor weddings often rail against the traditions that many older relatives and guests will have experienced in their lives, and for this reason, can cause them some discomfort. In order to win them over (and keep the rest of your guests happy!), it would be prudent to consider their potential wants and needs to ensure their comfort. This can include providing blankets and cushions, umbrellas, the option of tea and coffee available, and things such as flip-flops!
Once you’ve ironed out the basics of your outdoor wedding, the rest will simply flow and you can enjoy the rest of your planning process and look forward to your wedding day with pleasure.
