Wedding planning advice for 2020 couples

Image by Lex Flemming Photo

I think it’s safe to say that we can scrap this year for large get-togethers. We were all waiting anxiously for Boris to announce the what’s and how's - not that what he said made much sense... The government guidance on GOV.COM said small weddings of up to 30 would have been allowed from 1st August. This was revoked by Boris yesterday and left us gutted all over again. Loads of couples, who already re-scheduled their wedding, opted to size down and go ahead. I'm sorry if this is you guys, it really sucks. If you still want to go ahead, scrapping reception because you just can't wait, congrats. But for most of you who already compromised on some loved ones, booked a wedding for more than 8 guests, it's a kick in the teeth.

Most of you have hopefully managed to postpone your wedding date (including vendors/suppliers), sent out ‘change of plan’ to your guests and are looking forward to your next year or some even the year after that (as prime dates have been snapped up like hot cakes!).

Loads of you would have booked a weekday or a Sunday date, not wanting to wait 2 years, too eager to say I do, which I totally get and love. Who cares.

And some of you eloped, gave Covid the middle finger, put your wedding clobber on, got hitched in the garden (with your pals and family watching on zoom), eat cake, and got drunk on bubbly. Massive congrats! We can plan a proper knees up when this blows over.

Let’s talk about how to postpone your wedding (again) if you haven’t done so already.

Start talking with your venue, church, registrar, celebrant straight away about changing the date.

Inform all your suppliers about the possible change of date and give them a new one so that they can check their availability. Most of the wedding suppliers that I know will bend over backwards to help out their clients so please don't worry. These are crazy times. Everything can be sorted out if there is good communication. You might need to be prepared to compromise on a few things to make the wedding happen, so be flexible. Your caterer might not be able to do your new date but could recommend an equally good one for you to book for example.

Check your wedding insurance to find out if you can get any money back for cancellations incurred.

Once you sorted all that out and are ready to get excited about your wedding again, explore what a different season can offer to make your day extra special. I'm mentioning different seasons because next year's summer looks crazy busy, so do consider autumn and winter.

Autumn is wonderful, especially in England where we enjoy our Indian summers. The flowers are one of my favourites in autumn as we go from fresh vibrant colours to dry arrangements with warm yellows, burnt oranges, and browns. These look breathtaking and so very cool. There is something dreamy about the pampas grass and the rest of the dry flowers and grasses both in bridal bouquets and venue decorations. And the best thing is, if you still want that injection of colour, dry flowers can be dyed and look amazing.

For bridal wear, all you need to do is get a cape or customised jean or leather jacket and you're sorted.

Talk to your photographer about the light changes and how that will influence the photos. A slight schedule change might need to be considered but twilight photos have something very special about them in my opinion.

If you booked an outdoor venue, make sure you order heaters or fire pits and good flooring (the tipi/marquee companies usually have those as extras), umbrellas, wellies, and blankets (all can be rented) for the guests. These are cool little touches your guests will swoon over.

Winter weddings are wonderful. Like autumn, wintertime has its own magical charms. ‘Tis where we can have really dramatic winter sky photos - nature's most powerful backdrop.

You can add a fabulous bridal cape or (faux) fur jacket/coat to your wedding dress or jumpsuit, and buy a new pair of shoes or booties (one can never have too many shoes!). You can have dry flowers or simple but wonderful green foliage decorations and of course loads and loads of candles and twinkly fairy lights. Simply dreamy.

Let’s look forward to next year. After all, it will give us more time to plan and make it even more epic.

Give me a bell if you're uncertain about how to handle the change of date and let me help you make your wedding as epic as it should be.

All you need is love!

Zuza x