For Canadians, summer time is best spent outside enjoying the sun, fun, and good times. We love to make the most of the summertime months before they’re gone. It’s no wonder that summer is synonymous with weddings in Canada as couples look to capitalize on the sunshine and celebrate their big day outdoors.
Garden weddings have become hugely popular, but they also require a few extra logistical considerations to ensure your guests are comfortable and get to enjoy themselves. With a few simple steps, you can ensure your garden wedding goes off without a hitch.
Here are five fresh ideas for your garden wedding.
1. Provide Parasols
One of the big things about hosting a garden wedding is that sometimes guests will have to sit in the full sun for the entire ceremony. If your wedding ceremony is out on a lawn or open area, consider providing parasols for your guests so they have a bit of shade.
The women will really appreciate it when they don’t have to reapply their make up later on and all the men wearing suits will definitely thank you.
2. Make Bug Protection Chic
Being outdoors for your garden wedding means you and your guests are going to have to deal with bugs, especially if you’re in an area surrounded by a lot of foliage. While you may be too busy in your wedding whirlwind to notice, guests will likely feel the bites.
Consider spreading lanterns with citronella candles around the space, they double as bug protection and enhance the decor. You can also provide bug repellant sprays or pleasant oil blends, complete with customized wedding labels. Lastly, have the perimeter of the area fogged the morning of the wedding—it will help tremendously with the little critters for the majority of the day and right into the evening.
3. Hay Bale Seats
With the popularity of barn and rustic-themed weddings, a neat idea for your garden wedding is instead of using chairs for the ceremony, use hay bales covered with quilts and blankets.
Not only does it look great, but it also allows you to tie into your colour scheme. It can also be a lot more comfortable for your guests than sitting on hard outdoor chairs. Just make sure the blankets your use are thick enough to protect your guests from the scratchy hay.
4. Consider the Footwear
One of the biggest problems for women at outdoor weddings is walking on the grass and dealing with your heels digging into the ground. It’s a quick way to dirty and even ruin a nice pic of heels.
As the hosts, you can help manage this in a couple of different ways: you can make a special note on the wedding invitation warning the ladies that they will be walking on grass, or you can even go so far as to provide a few pairs of heel covers for the ladies who didn’t get the memo. If your bridesmaids will be standing on the grass during the ceremony, consider placing a stone slab down for each one to stand on to keep their heels clean.
5. Keep Your Guests Cool
If you liked the parasol idea we mentioned earlier, you might like these ideas for keeping your guests cool as well: Most weddings still provide guests with a wedding program for the ceremony, so consider printing these and making them into fans. Your guests can use them to keep cool during the ceremony and even later on if needed.
Keeping your guests hydrated is also important, so consider placing hydration stations around your venue. Big ice water dispensers will look great and you can even enhance them with flavoured water using lemons, cucumbers, or fresh berries.
