Planning a wedding during the Coronavirus (aka COVID-19) crisis has a lot of couples hesitant on moving forward with their wedding planning. I want to personally tell you that you should not let quarantine hold you back from planning your special day! Speaking from experience as I plan my own wedding, I have used this time to check a lot of wedding to-dos off my list.
Wedding planning, in general, is stressful with everyday life, so take this quarantine time to dig deep into your wedding planning! Below are tips for both newly engaged couples and couples with weddings right around the corner on how to plan a wedding during a quarantine.
FREE QUARANTINE WEDDING PLANNING GUIDE
I have created a FREE guide that includes a guest list, budgeting guide, and expense record for you to utilize during this downtime! Get excited, because it is awesome! Grab it here!
Newly Engaged Couples
Choosing a Date & Venue During a Government Shutdown Is Still Possible!
PICKING A DATE
One thing that is happening in the wedding industry right now is weddings being rescheduled. A lot of 2020 couples that had their wedding planned for March-July have either been forced or suggested to move their wedding date. All these couples in this situation are changing their dates to either late 2020 or even 2021. This means the couples that are newly engaged are going to have fewer dates to choose from in 2021. I honestly wouldn’t even bother trying to choose a date in 2020 unless it’s a Wednesday morning! seriously, just don’t bother.
If you do not have a date picked out yet, I highly suggest looking into having your wedding in 2022 so you have more flexibility with your date. Choose 2-3 dates that work for you two.
Choosing a date that means something to you is always your best option because that date will forever mean something! If you are a couple that are fully open to date suggestion then ask the venue what their availability is like for the year you are looking to get married in.
FIGURING OUT A BUDGET
Deciding on a wedding budget is tough, it will always be tough no matter if we are all in quarantine or not. I have created a blog post to help couples budget for their wedding. You can view that blog post by clicking here!
CHOOSING A VENUE
A venue’s availability will be very limited for 2021 once everything starts opening back up so don’t waste time on scheduling your venue tours! Depending on the venue(s) you are considering, you may be able to schedule your venue tour now for a date in May or June.
If you are wanting to get married sooner rather than later you definitely want to start searching for venues as soon as possible. Even looking up images online such as TheKnot.com, WeddingWire.com, and NJWeddings.com may be very helpful for you in determining if it is what you are looking for.
The next section down explains more about booking a venue before seeing it. Yes, this is a thing and yes it sometimes can be a smart decision!
Booking A Venue Before Seeing It? You’re Crazy!
Well, maybe I am crazy because I actually booked my venue before I even saw it! I, however, did a massive amount of research on the venue beforehand, looked at as many Instagram hashtags of the venue as I possibly could, and searched the internet like a mad man to find every image I could of the place before I booked! I was very pleased when I finally had the chance to view my venue because let me tell you images did not to that place justice! It was a million times prettier than I could have ever imagined! So just do as much research as you possibly can if you want to book a venue without seeing it first.
Again, I need to reiterate that you have to do a massive amount of research before you sign that contract and pay your deposit! Long story short, I went through booking an ugly venue by not doing enough research at first!
Couples With Date & Venue Booked
With many couples and venue not knowing what the Coronavirus will do for their wedding, it is hard to what our new normal will be. If you already have your date and venue picked out but are just in a pure loophole, now is the best time to check some things off your to-do list! Below are some tips on how to plan your wedding during the quarantine.
GUEST LISTS
We need to brace ourselves for having restrictions on large gatherings which includes weddings. If you have yet to create your guest list, create the list in priority sections, such as high, medium, and low priority. I have absolutely no idea what the gathering restrictions will be, so I suggest making a few 3 level priority lists to make your life easier once we have a better understanding. What I mean by this is outlined below:
UP TO 50 PEOPLE – HIGH PRIORITY
This list of a maximum of 50 people should consist of your absolute must-have people. Compile the list to include people such as your immediate family, extended family, and close friends. All of these people should live within the same state as you so no one has to travel. Keep this list to no more than 50 people.
e.g. parents, siblings, aunts/uncles, life-long friends, etc.
50 TO 100 PEOPLE – MEDIUM PRIORITY
This list can include some of your extended family and friends but should still only include people that live within the same state as you. These are the people that are near and dear to you but can survive the cut. This group should still include people within your state or who can safely travel.
e.g. close cousins, nieces/nephews, friends you stay in close connect with, etc.
100+ PEOPLE – LOW PRIORITY
This list can include the people that have impacted your life in some way but you don’t keep in touch with them regularly or simply you are inviting them because you think you have to. These people can include out-of-state guests that can safely travel.
e.g. neighbors, co-workers, parents friends, friends you haven’t seen in years, that cousin that was twice removed, etc.
Virtual Invite
If we have gathering restrictions you can still include the people in your medium and low priority list by inviting them virtually! Designate someone to have a Facebook Live or FaceTime video of your wedding so the people that are unable to make it can still see everything happening.
Even if your wedding is in 2021 I would suggest having a Priority List ready. I have started to create this list for myself for my guests. I am not going to lie that creating this list stinks and it does break my heart. But on the other hand, though, I don’t want to be a contributor to the spread of this virus nor disobey any laws that may be in effect at the time of my wedding.
VENDORS
Now is the best time to really dig in deep to your other wedding vendors! A lot of the wedding vendors that you will hire for your wedding are small business owners, like me! Small businesses are the backbone of this economy so consider helping out a small business owner by booking a wedding vendor. You already know you need a particular vendor for your wedding, so you might as well secure the ones you really want now before you lose out on them!
Ps. keep in mind with all the weddings being rescheduled, vendor availability is becoming more and more limited. Consider reaching out to the people that stand out to you and get the process going!
SPECIALS
With all the cancellations and reschedules happening due to the virus a lot of wedding vendors are offering specials during this time (by the way, contact me about all the specials I am offering HERE). Take a look around at vendors or items you may still need for your wedding. Even shops on Etsy are offering discounts, so soak up the savings while you can!
FREE QUARANTINE WEDDING PLANNING GUIDE
I have created a FREE guide that includes a guest list, budgeting guide, and expense record for you to utilize during this downtime! Get excited, because it is awesome! Grab it here!
