You might feel a little worried and anxious when it comes to wedding ceremony planning because you know it’s one thing you have to get right. Not least because you can’t do it again!
The wedding ceremony is the heart and soul of your wedding. It’s the moment you and all your friends and family have been waiting for (for ages probably!)
I’ve put together my top 10 wedding ceremony planning tips so that everything runs smoothly.
1) Keep the decor simple
Keeping ceremony décor simple is where it’s at. Most couples find they only need to add a bit of colour (especially in a church setting). Guests will only be in the ceremony area for a short time so most couples like to save the more involved décor for the reception.
Maybe you’ll just want a floral centre piece just to add a bit of vibrancy up at the front.
You might also like to add flowers to the end of seating rows to add some colour along the aisle. You don’t need to go crazy and stick something on every pew but keep it elegant and maybe add a piece at the end, middle and front.
Whatever you decide, it’s a good idea to plan your ceremony décor so that it matches the theme and colour scheme of your whole day as well as work with the location and season (seasonal flowers are a lot more eco and budget friendly too!).
Some elements to keep in mind while planning your ceremony décor, besides flowers, are:
Seating
Signage
Programs
Lighting
Canopy (optional for sun protection)
When it comes to each of these elements, personalise them so they represent both of your interests and personalities.
BONUS TIP
Make sure there aren’t gaps in the floor into which the rings can fall if dropped. It might sound like a weird one but at my own wedding, my brother/best man dropped my ring and it almost fell into the church ventilation.
2) Pick a time of day that suits the season
The timing of your ceremony is an important factor to consider because it will shape the schedule for your day from when you need to be getting ready to when your reception can start.
Wedding ceremonies typically last between 20-30 min, including the wedding party’s entrance and exit. The duration may be longer if you are having a religious ceremony with hymns and an address as well as readings.
If you are getting married in the autumn/ winter, plan to hold your wedding ceremony earlier in the day so you can enjoy seeing your guests while daylight lasts. It will also create a larger window for photo opportunities. It might not be best to get married at 2pm for example because, depending on the length of your ceremony, you could only have one hour before dark!
In the summer, the reverse is true. You might want to have a mid-afternoon ceremony so that you are not getting married in the heat of the day (this is particularly something to consider if you are getting married outdoors).
3) Create a seating plan that works for your guests
How you plan your wedding ceremony seating arrangements will impact the experience your guests will have.
If your family are more reserved, they may feel more comfortable having a side of the seating area allocated to them (the traditional way). On the other hand, if your family are more laid back they might like to meet more of your extended circle of friends and family, so you could leave formal seating arrangements and let your guests seat themselves where they choose.
Either way, make sure you reserve seating near the front for your immediate family and elderly relatives, so they have the best seats in the house for visibility and audibility.
If you do it traditionally, your ushers will need to help you on the day.
4) Be assertive if any photography restrictions are imposed
I’m talking specifically about church ceremonies here. Sadly, in my experience, most clergy hate photographers!
They all seem to have met a mystery photographer that has upset them until the end of time (maybe it was a rogue family member thinking they were a photographer I just don’t know). And because of that they often make demands on your photographer that can be unreasonable.
They might say to your photographer on the day, ‘you can only take photos from this one spot where you can’t see much’ and ‘you must not take photos at points x y and z’ and ‘you are not allowed to breathe more than 5 times’…
This creates a bit of a dilemma. You hired a photographer to capture your ceremony only to find out that they can only cover it in a very limited way.
To avoid this, make sure you express to your officiate what you want your photographer to capture well in advance to set expectations.
Your officiate may be concerned that your photographer may interfere with their ability to do their job. After all they are carrying out an important legally binding ceremony, so you can actually get married. So the last thing they want is for a guest to get in the way of that.
However, your photographer has an important job too and you’ve planned to have your ceremony captured. Be assertive and reassure them that your photographer is experienced, knows exactly what they’re doing and won’t interfere or be a distraction in any way from the legal proceedings of the ceremony because they are a professional.
5) Attend your ceremony rehearsal
To help beat the pre-wedding jitters, attend your wedding rehearsal at your venue.
This is your opportunity to have a run through of the sequence of events in your ceremony and you’ll feel more confident that everything will run smoothly on your big day.
You’ll rehearse the vows and guests might want to practise readings or musical pieces.
It’s also the time to make any last minute changes to your wedding ceremony plans and your wedding party can have their questions answered too.
PS- just make sure you don’t complete the vows- or you’ll accidentally end up married!
6) Choose music that means something to you!
When you walk down the aisle why not choose a tune that means something to you both? Maybe it’s the theme tune or a melody from your fave film or show or a song that has lyrics that resonate with you as a couple – maybe something you heard on your first date? (it doesn’t have to be cheesy- you can do this in a really classy way if you find the right rendition).
Many couples hire live musicians as part of their wedding ceremony plans. However, if you have a friend that rocks on piano or on guitar or violin let them take care of it for you to make it even more personal and special. Just make sure that if you do, you can hook them up to a sound system.
7) Go Unplugged
Would you rather see the reactions of your guests as you come down the aisle, or see them hide behind ugly tablets or cameras?
Ask your guests to leave their cameras to one side for the whole ceremony.
That way, they won’t feel the urge to hijack the aisle and turn your procession into a mass photo shoot, taking everyone out of the moment. In my view, this is the single most overlooked part of wedding ceremony planning.
Also, you’ve hired a pro photographer to take care of your wedding photos, too, so you don’t need 10 crap photos from your guests of the exact same moment.
Your wedding photos will also thank you for going ‘unplugged’ because they will be filled with your guests’ reactions and expressions and not tech from a bygone era (in 10 years’ time)! So, plan your wedding ceremony to be unplugged.
8) Ditch writing your own vows
Vows are so important. They are the legally binding lifelong commitments that you’ll make to each other. Vows in a ceremony include promises to love, honour and care for each other for all of your days together- you can’t get much bigger than that!
You don’t need to plan personal wedding ceremony vows. They are already deeply personal. You are only making them to your spouse after all, and no one else!
If you feel like you want to add to them just to be ‘different’ or ‘funny’, be careful you don’t take away from the solemnity of the occasion. If in doubt, save the soppy and or funny stuff for your speeches!
9) Include family and friends in your ceremony
A great way to personalise your wedding ceremony is to involve family and friends. Here are a few ideas I’ve seen at weddings
- Readings – sibling, bridesmaid
- Ring bearer – niece or nephew
- Aisle – pageboy, flower girl, bridesmaids, parent
- Music – your friends’ band or a solo
- Signing register- friend to play a musical piece
- Live feed –a friend could broadcast your ceremony to people who couldn’t be there.
- Ushers – selection of friends
10) Make sure you can throw confetti after!
Confetti is a must-have for most couples. It’s loads of fun to have everyone cheer you on while lobbing a bit of colour in your face. Plus, it’s a great way to kick off the party!
Check with your venue before your ceremony, where you can throw the confetti and let your guests know in advance. Most venues will have an area where they’ll allow you to do it, and it certainly should not be a problem if you are using biodegradable confetti.
There ends my top 10 wedding ceremony planning tips. I hope you’ve found them really useful, and I hope your wedding ceremony is all you hope it will be!
Cheers!
PS, if you are planning a registry office wedding, you might find RegistryOffice.UK useful.