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Wedding Planning Tips - The Lockdown Edition

26/5/2020

7 Comments

 
wedding planning tips for lockdown
Planning a wedding can be hard at the best of times, but with the virus lockdown and general uncertainty around weddings making it even trickier, it’s difficult to know where to start.
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 To help, we’ve called upon our friends and experts in the wedding industry to provide their best wedding planning tips and advice for planning a wedding during the pandemic. Whether you’re planning a wedding for 2021 or postponing your wedding, you’re bound to find something to help amongst these little gems of wisdom.

1. Your Wedding Will be Perfect, No Matter When it Takes Place

Remember: your wedding will be perfect no matter when it takes place. That’s the wonderfully calming advice from Rachel and Lara at Festival Events and Planning. The reasons you’re getting married, the commitment you’re making to each other and the words you want to say will stay the same if it’s tomorrow, next year or in ten years when your wedding takes place. And the stresses and strains, ups and downs of planning a wedding will just fade away when you get to the actual day. Great advice whether you’re postponing a wedding or thinking of delaying your wedding to avoid any limited availability issues.  ​
your wedding will be perfect no matter when it takes place - Rachel and Lara from Festival events and planning

2. Have a ‘Lockdown list’ to Tackle the Jobs You’ve Been Putting Off

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We might all be confined to our homes right now, but there’s always a silver lining and that might just be that you can take the time to tick off some of those jobs you’ve been putting off. Not only will you get some serious ‘wed-min’ tasks done you’ll also get a mood boost knowing you’ve kicked procrastination to the curb and tackled some of the niggling ‘to dos’. 
This sound advice comes from Andrea Swift, expert wedding planner at Fabulous Together and the big ones she sees couples dally over are choosing the ceremony music, choosing a theme for and deciding on table names and reaching an agreement on your first dance. Now’s the time folks...it’s not like your other half can avoid things by sneaking off the pub or the gym now is it!

3. Get Inspired, Get Productive

Kate Beavis from Magpie Wedding suggests using lockdown time to get inspired but doing so in a productive way that will make things easier when life (and planning a wedding) starts to return to normal. There’s so much great content being produced at the moment, it’s great excuse to add to your boards on Pinterest, read wedding blogs, browse the online wedding planning directories and binge those Insta weddings. All great sources of wedding inspiration but how do you avoid this time being spent just looking at ideas and not actually doing any planning? 
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The trick, says Kate is to take immediate action when you see something you like. Don’t just pin it or jump onto the next thing, look to see who the suppliers are, follow the links and note them down. Once you’ve found them, drop them a message, follow them online or send an enquiry. Whilst you might not be ready to book at that stage, at least you’ll have an easy way of contacting them when you are and can get the ball rolling with any questions you might have. ​​

4. If you Love It, Book It. 

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Luckily, most suppliers are doing everything they can to accommodate and support couples who are having to switch dates. This reassuring if you’re facing postponing a wedding. However, if you’re planning a wedding for 2021 or even 2022 you’re going to be up against more limited availability with suppliers than normal. Debbie from Debbie Gillespie  Cake Design recommends that if you see a supplier you know you want for your wedding to get them booked as soon as you possibly can. 
This will minimise your chances of missing out. Do check in advance however if they’re offering postponements without any extra charges, whilst you obviously hope you’ll not have to postpone, it’s better to know just in case. ​​

5. Get Organised, stay prepared

It might not be the most glamorous element of planning a wedding but getting some sort of organisation in place for your wedding preparations is a great use of lockdown time. This could be as simple as a spreadsheet or a fancy-schmancy wedding planning folder. Even if you’re not the organised type taking a bit of time out to put everything in one place and in an order where you can find the info you need easily will pay dividends for your stress levels nearer the big day. 
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Try to include contact info for suppliers, to-dos, where you’re up to with tasks or decisions, payment details and deadlines. You’ll undoubtedly need these in the run up to your wedding but you’ll also have a ready-made list of people to contact should you need to postpone.  Trust us, future you will thank you for it….


​So there you go. Top wedding planning tips for lockdown include: 


  1. Remember your wedding will be perfect no matter the date
  2. Crack on with those jobs you’ve been putting off
  3. Get inspired but in a useful way
  4. If you love it, book it
  5. Get organised and stay prepared

And last but not least, stay safe, stay sane and stay on top of your planning! 

Links, Info and Thank-Yous

Big thanks to:
​

Lara & Rachel at Festival Events & Planning
Virtual and Wedding Fairs, Magazine, Wedding Planning and much, much more
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Andrea Fabulous Together
Luxury Wedding Planners in Cheshire and across the North West 
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Kate Beavis at Magpie Wedding
Blog, Shows, Magazine and Directory
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Debbie at Debbie Gillespie Cake Design
Award Winning Yorkshire Wedding Cakes
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7 Comments

3 BIG tips for your Eco-Friendly Wedding

14/5/2020

3 Comments

 
PictureOur sort-of eco-friendly wedding by accident
Your wedding will most definitely be three things: wonderful, memorable, special. 

After nearly ten years in the wedding industry and having had the absolute pleasure of being a part of hundreds of very special days, I can guarantee it. They have all been amazing and unique. 



Your wedding will also probably be: a little bit indulgent, a wonder of planning and coordination and yes, I’m going to dare to say it, a bit wasteful. 

Don’t lynch me. Ours was too.
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​When Andy and I got married back in 2014, we were only a little way down the path on our journey to be more eco-conscious. The run-up to our big day was peppered with sayings like ‘it’s just one day’ and ‘you only get married once’ or ‘we’re pretty green most of the time’.

​Most of the time we didn’t really factor sustainability into the day; it came as a bundle with budget and aesthetics. Now obviously, we’re not the only people ever to have had a wedding. With over 240,000 weddings in the UK every year, that’s a lot of people muttering the same things as they plan their own nuptials and ultimately, a lot of waste.
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But there’s hope. In this new age of eco-awareness and making better decisions for the planet, it’s never been easier to have a more eco-friendly wedding. There’s no reason why you can’t apply the same green ethos to your wedding as you do in your day to day life and to trot out the old cliche, those small swaps really do make a big difference. Here’s an example. If every couple opted for completely recyclable or compostable place cards, it would save a whopping 19 million items heading to landfill every year. Yowsers. 

But where do you start? Isn’t organising a wedding hard enough without trying to save the planet too?
Here are our top easy tips for planning your eco-friendly wedding that will make a big difference to your day.

1. ​Ask the Right Questions

PictureAt The Jolly Good Photo Co. we try hard to be an eco-friendly wedding supplier
You don’t have to only choose dedicated eco-friendly weddings suppliers, asking questions of ALL your suppliers can make a massive difference. What do they do with any waste created?  Do they carbon offset any travel required? Can they make use of any repurposed materials or local suppliers for any items needed? All good things to know. 





Obviously, it’d be best to ask these sorts of questions before you book but do still ask those you’ve already confirmed. Most suppliers, ourselves included, work just as hard (if not harder) for couples who have booked as for couples who are thinking about booking. All the amazing suppliers we work with are busy perfectionists and sometimes we get so caught up in what we do we don’t think to make changes until our customers ask us. So ask! Not only will you be helping make your own wedding more sustainable you’ll be nudging your suppliers to make positive changes for all their other couples too. Winner. 

And if your suppliers have sustainable ways of working or are willing to make greener choices for you, then shout about it!  Recommendations, social media shoutouts, and reviews that mention how they’ve helped make your wedding more eco-friendly not only help your suppliers to do more for the planet, they’re super inspiring for others too. You’d be amazed how many people make a change, big or small because someone they know has done the same.


2.  Start at the Bottom

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​You’ve probably seen various versions of this around the web but it’s a great tool to use when wedding shopping. You can pop a copy in your planner or on your Pinterest boards as a reminder. The idea is that everything you use for your wedding should be as far down the pyramid as possible. ​


This is obviously a great way to stay on budget too. From an eco point of view, the fact that Andy and I were on the tiniest of budgets for our wedding was it’s saving grace - we simply didn’t have the funds to buy everything new. Ideas for this will obviously depend on what you or your families have. Andy and I spruced up shoes we already had, made our decor from fabric we had stored up, borrowed hay bales for the seating and turned various items my lovely hoarding Dad had lying around into garden games. ​​
You’ll notice that ‘making’ isn’t on the pyramid. Making items for your wedding can be great for reducing your budget but from a sustainability point of view, it depends where the materials to make these things comes from. If you’re buying brand new card, fabric, paint etc. crafted items can have a more adverse impact on the environment then simply purchasing them outright.


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Our tootsies looking just as nice in shoes we spruced up instead of buying new
​I might have made my own dress, but I also bought new silk to do so.  Whilst I’m not going to part with my dress, my chances of every fitting in it again are slim to none and it’s now in a box in the loft. That beautiful dazzling white taffeta only got one day in the sun. Looking back, it might have been better to use reclaimed fabric or perhaps have it altered and dyed so I could wear it for other occasions.
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Homemade decorations from reclaimed bed sheets, borrowed cake stands and making use of my glass candlestick collection
Going to town on the ‘something old’ and ‘something borrowed’ can not only be great fun and stylish, but it can also make things feel, well, more special. How lovely would it feel to wear your grandma’s necklace? Or to have your Mum’s dress refashioned into your own dress? Perhaps you could shop vintage for your bridesmaid’s gifts or borrow that amazing accessory you’ve always coveted? Oh, the possibilities!

3. Think about afterwards

Yeah, yeah, I know, someone somewhere is bound to try and remind you that getting married isn’t about the wedding. We don’t mean that. And really, who would we be to comment. What we’re talking about is the stuff you spend money on for your wedding. What happens to that after it’s had its moment on your special day? 

Thinking about afterwards can be a big help in reducing the waste created by a wedding. Will the item in question be kept, sold, donated, repurposed, recycled, composted or will it end up in the bin? Here’s some food for thought:

 If you’re the organised type, add notes in your planner or add a column to your spreadsheet that outlines what will happen to things post-wedding. This’ll help you make smarter, more eco-friendly choices when wedding shopping. It’ll also provide a handy plan of action when you’re back off honeymoon and facing sorting out all your wedding items as well as changing your name on several hundred pieces of paperwork!

Get tough on the items you buy. 
Do you really need that item personalised? Adding names or monikers to things limits their use for you (or anyone else) after the event. Will you really be wearing that ‘bride’ dressing gown or ‘just married’ flip flops in 10 years time? Thought not. 

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Place cards that were recycled = yay! But....favours with glitter and avoidable plastic = Boooo!
Will it be kept by your guests?
Really? Really, really?
We all like to think that our guests will treasure the invites/place card/favour forever and ever but let’s face it, this rarely happens. And if it’s not going to be kept then thinking about the who and how in regards to its disposable is a must.
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Our place card/puzzles were recycled but our favours were a definite eco-fail and looking back we should have gone with something else. The little card on the front had glitter which we all ought to be avoiding (unless it’s biodegradable) and inside were plastic wrapped sweets and a plastic fortune fish. 200 extra pieces of plastic in landfill for 5 minutes of fun. Ouch. Needless to say I now have some regrets...

Who’s cleaning up?
Chances are, it’s your venue. And just because they’ll be the ones doing the actual throwing away, doesn’t really mean it’s not your waste. Have a chat with your venue about what will happen to everything afterwards. Ask if they’re able to ensure that certain things separated and then composted or recycled. 


Can anything do double duty?
The more uses you can get out of any item, the better and having as many multipurpose items as possible can make a big difference if you’re wanting an eco-friendly wedding. For example, could you use the same flowers for the ceremony at the reception? Could your photo booth pictures also be your favours? Could your place cards and table be combined? Could a charity make use of your marquee and flowers for their own event afterwards? There are so many great ideas out there you won’t be stuck for inspiration.  


So, over to you. What are your best ideas for saving the planet whilst planning your wedding?​

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Credits, Info and Links

Here at The Jolly Good Photo Co., we offer beautiful photo booths, perfect props and fantastic photos. We try to ensure we are an eco-friendly wedding supplier in every aspect of what we do from carbon offsetting all our travel to using vintage props and reducing and being responsible for our waste. 

You can find out more about our green initiatives and policies here:
eco-friendly wedding photo booths

Photo booth picture:
The amazing Simon Howard at Simon Howard Photography


Wedding Photography:
The awesome Steve from Steve Bridgwood Wedding Photography
www.stevebridgwoodphotography.co.uk
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  • Home
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