TopTips : 6 ways to survive rain on your wedding day
Who wouldn’t want an outdoor wedding in South Africa? With all of its beautiful landscapes, scenery and breath-taking views, it’s hard to not want to plan an outdoor wedding.
PLAN B
Who wouldn’t want an outdoor wedding in South Africa? With all of its beautiful landscapes, scenery and breathtaking views, it’s hard to not want to plan an outdoor wedding.
That being said, although you might be getting married in the peak of summer and expect nothing less than a stunning, sunny day, nature can sometimes throw us a curveball when it comes to rain, wind, or even thunderstorms.
It’s always a good idea to have a backup plan, or as we like to call it, a Plan B, in place just in case you are on the receiving end of a not-so-sunny, rainy, stormy day. So make a note to ask your event coordinator as well as the manager of your chosen venue, if they have a Plan B area should you need to move the wedding inside.
Here are our top 6 tips to survive rain on your wedding day…
Photo: Catherine Mac
1. Move the ceremony indoors
If your reception venue has an indoor space, consider moving the ceremony inside. This could include anything from a ballroom, a conference room, a foyer or even just a covered area such as a terrace – and remember to have enough seating and decor that matches your theme. The suppliers responsible for making your wedding decor dreams come true will be able to adjust to the change and your guests won’t be any wiser.
Should your wedding be moved indoors due to rainy weather, but you still want to be able to have a view, consider a venue with loads of large windows that allow you to have natural light, whilst still being able to enjoy the view.
2. Rent a tent
A tent is a great solution to protect your guests from bad weather and it allows you to still have the outdoor wedding feel. Consider renting a tent and decorating it with fairy lights, exposed bulbs, flowers and some other decor items to create a cozy atmosphere. A bonus is that the acoustics is always better under a tent.
Feel free to tap on the links to see some tent suppliers listed with us:
3. Provide umbrellas and blankets
If you are expecting some light rain during your wedding, or even a super sunny, hot day; provide your guests with umbrellas. Trust us, it definitely won’t make your wedding pictures look less amazing. You can even coordinate the umbrellas to match your wedding theme and encourage your guests to keep them open for the duration of the wedding ceremony and have some extras on hand just in case. Scattered baskets with pretty blankets or pashminas for the ladies would be very much appreciated and can double up as gifts.
4. Adjust your timeline
Check the weather forecast or ask your coordinator to do it and adjust your timeline in such a manner that you might still be able to keep your ceremony outdoors, whether it be moving the ceremony a bit earlier or a bit later; but make the call a few hours before the original start time of the ceremony to give your suppliers time to move everything inside if needed.
5. Light the fires
If your venue has a fireplace and your wedding day takes a turn, with Mother Nature deciding to gift you some rainy, cold weather, ask the venue staff to light them up. This works wonders to create a warm, romantic and cosy atmosphere. If you see cold and rainy weather on the forecast in the week before the wedding, then hire some mushroom heaters to keep your guests warm. These can be moved between the ceremony, pre-drinks and reception.
6. Pack extra shoes
Have an extra pair of shoes handy. If it is raining then yours might get wet while walking from your car to the aisle or from the ceremony to the reception! A quick behind-the-scenes shoe change before walking down the aisle is worth the trouble.