A Celebrant’s Top 6 Tips For Your Covid-19 Wedding
marryusgary.com/journal/a-celebrants-top-6-tips-for-your-covid-19-wedding
Planning a wedding ceremony has become a very slippery fish due to unpredictable Covid restrictions. But rest assured, you can still have a fab wedding with all the love and feels if you decide to go ahead.
Numbers may be reduced, but your ceremony will still be very much the same. Strip it back and focus on what really matters most - your love for one another!
A beautiful day shared with friends and fam - the flowers, the food and the frock! Here are some tips to keep your wedding on track and make it an unforgettable day:
1. Decide on how you would like to be congratulated
Pre-ceremony I warm up the audience before the bride or groom’s entrance down the aisle. I go over all the Covid housekeeping: announce social distancing recommendations, remind the guests to wash their hands and to sit/stand with their household members - and kindly remind anyone who is feeling ill to get out of there pronto!
I will also inform the crowd how you (the couple) would like to be welcomed as newlyweds. Depending on what you’re comfortable with, that could be simply smiles and verbal congratulations or elbow bumps / foot taps etc instead.
It is the couple who set the tone for what they expect of their guests.
Often it is also a good idea to put these expectations on the wedding website / invites or send out an email a couple of days before the wedding.
2. Livestream
For many couples with overseas guests who can’t make the day, live streaming is a great option. Set up an iPhone or iPad on a tripod and Zoom/FaceTime them in! They’ll see and hear the whole ceremony in real time - my PA system is loud enough for them to hear - and they can even chat to the other guests afterwards.
I experienced this at one of my recent weddings - the bride’s sister was FaceTiming from France! After the ceremony, the iPad was set up on a table and everyone came by for a chat.
3. Social Distancing Wristbands
If you want to avoid some awkward social situations for your guests, a great option is coloured wristbands. Guests choose a colour based on their preferences regarding physical contact and interaction.
Green = I’m cool with high fives and handshakes
Yellow = happy to chat but no touching
Red = I would prefer to keep my distance
Simple!
The wristbands come individually wrapped and signs show what each colour means. Guests can collect them as they arrive at the ceremony. This is a great little trick to save your guests from awkward moments.
4. Dancing
The toughest challenge I am seeing couples deal with on the day is how to tackle the reception. This is where the restrictions become the most… ahem, restrictive. Venue management staff don’t want to be party poopers, but they definitely have to follow the government guidelines to keep everyone safe and also to avoid hefty fines.
The “No Dancing” rule has recently been changed to allow 20 selected guests to dance. This one is tricky because who doesn’t love a party on the D-Floor?! Well, possibly not your little cousin with a broken ankle - so ask if anyone would be happy to chair-dance instead - they might be happy to sit that one out.
If you’re stumped on who to choose, keep it to the immediate family and bridal party.
5. Hire an MC and a Band…or a magician?
Having an experienced MC is a great option to keep the evening running smoothly without any lulls. Increasing the number of speeches (from your standard four or five) can often help too. An MC can facilitate story sharing and possibly even run a few games such as Trivia about the couple.
If you have a band it can be experienced more as a seated live-music gig, which can still create a fun and celebratory atmosphere. Magicians are also becoming popular to entertain your wedding guests!
Think outside the box to make your reception an evening of (seated) entertainment, good food and celebration. My tip: bring in the professionals! (Otherwise Aunt Penelope’s warbly ballad and Dave-from-next-door’s slurry speech might drag on a little long…)
6. Stay positive and practise gratitude.
It may seem like a bit of a bummer that not everything will be the way you imagined it, but try to let it go and enjoy your wedding day. Only a few months ago we were limited to only five people at wedding, so this is waaay better than that!
This is definitely one for the history books. Just remember - it’s the celebration of your love that will make your wedding unforgettable.
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7 сен 2021
