Tips for an Outdoor Ceremony

West Michigan is beautiful year round and I would say that six months out of that year are nice enough to support an outdoor wedding ceremony. Of course, if you ask anyone from or living in Michigan and they will tell you that "Michigan weather is unpredictable, 80 degrees one day and snow the next". Based on that I have a few tips for anyone planning on an outdoor ceremony for their wedding.

Have a Back Up Plan:

• In case of inclement weather, have a church or other space reserved that is large enough to hold your guests. If having a tented reception, the tent may act as your alternative location. Yes, this may incur an additional expense but the stress it will save it worth far more! 
• For your guests convenience, try to have your back up location as close to the original venue as possible. This is will help your overall time line to be less affected as well as your guests needing to adjust travel times. 
• Prepare a "quick contact" list ahead of time, either with email addresses or phone numbers (whichever will be sure to reach your guests) and distribute to a few people involved in the wedding. Make sure to include the address of the location on this list for those who will be doing the communication. Once it is determined to move the ceremony to the alternate location have the designated people begin to contact the guests and let them know of the change. 
• I always tell my clients that if you have a back up plan you won't need it but if you don't you will end up needing it!

Visit Your Venue: 

• This one may sound obvious but, if at all possible, tour your venue. Not all pictures online may reflect the reality, you do not want to be caught off guard, especially on your wedding day!
• When scheduling the tour of your venue try and set your appointment for the same time of day as your ceremony time. This will give you an idea of where the sun will be and if your guests will be in shade or sun. 
• The bride in the picture above and I visited this site two weeks prior to the wedding at the same  time the evening wedding was to take place. We ended up deciding to use a different tree just based on where the sun would be and how much of the seating would be shaded. 

Consider Your Guest's Comfort:

(Images courtesy of theknot.com and snippetandink.com)

• If you know it is going to be a hot summer day there are a few small but thoughtful things to have available for your guests.
• Water bottles - have a large bucket or two full of ice and water bottles for your guests to grab on their way in or out of the ceremony. There are many companies that will print custom labels for the bottles as well for a cute extra detail. 
• Fans - Print your programs on a heavy paper that can also be used as a hand fan. This is a great way to save money by giving something a double use. There are companies online that will create you adorable fan programs or if you like to DIY, there are multiple ideas for that as well. 
• Parasols - Purchase or rent parasols or umbrellas for your guests to use to block the sun. Bella Umbrella has some adorable options!

Above all, enjoy! Michigan is a beautiful place to be married!


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