While some couples choose to say I do in the garden of their home or at a favorite park where they’ve enjoyed family photos, many opt for an outdoor wedding.
The main benefit of an outdoor ceremony is that you can plan exactly what colors and materials your groom will wear in the springtime. Instead of having him dress in whatever he might find in his closet. You can also ensure there are no white flowers (which look bad after testing them in the dead of winter) or yellow plants in his vestment pocket, while other pieces may get damaged outside.
Call a professional.
You don’t have to look at every inch of your venue to see if there is enough room to set up your ceremony space. If you are planning an outdoor wedding, call a professional event planner or builder to get some basic guidelines about sizing and facilities usage.
Choose the right season.
When it comes to planning an outdoor wedding, there’s no perfect time or date. While you may love summer when everyone can enjoy being outside, if your venue is not set up for hot weather, an indoor ceremony is much easier to plan. On the other hand, if one of your vendors is catering an event in their facility, choosing that year may be pretty difficult. We realize every couple plans their wedding a little differently, so take all factors into consideration before you write your original proposal.
Be sure to keep it cool and dry.
Establishing a safe distance between your wedding party and the outdoor elements is key to planning a successful wedding in the weather conditions that often occur in Texas. While you want enough rain to wash away any cell phone signals, there’s no need to hold an indoor ceremony where everyone gets wet. And while having some people hold their ceremonies inside can be helpful, only have as many members of your bridal party act as ring bearers as they offer easy access to the ring or answer your questions about when and what time the ceremony will start.
Put some extra effort into searching for a location.
There are plenty of places in your area already set up for outdoor weddings, so put yourself out there and be persistent in your search for the perfect spot. Pay attention to the weather as you plan your event and call each local reporter before you go down on any more official dates to announce your wedding! It may sound crazy, but reporters will write about major snowstorms that happen right after your ceremony or large amounts of rain that fall during your big day. The more awareness you have of what types of coverage your story should receive, the better off you’ll be.
Talk to your vendors.
Before you make any big decisions, talk to each of your wedding vendors individually about where you plan to hold your ceremony and what time of day it will happen. Your photographer, videographer, venue manager, and staff are going to play a huge role in how your night goes together. So be sure to let them know which meals need to be prepared, what times the buffet closes, and when the bar is expected to open.
Be flexible with your plans.
For everyone’s benefit, you should definitely plan out your small wedding ceremony location very carefully. After all, there’s no sense having a bonfire outside if it’s going to get windy or even just rain enough to put out the fire! And if you want to have an outdoor reception, be sure to consider the weather in that area too. But while you need to be careful about making permanent plans, don’t worry about everything happening exactly as you had imagined. Maybe you wanted to reserve a specific venue only because it was close to your city hall office, but that’s not possible and you can’t expect everybody to find the perfect venue off the bat. It’s more important to love your big planned events than to stress over every little detail.
