Top Tips for Summer Weddings

With wedding season at its peak, Dale Alexander Events has some essential tips for planning your perfect Summertime celebration.

For many couples, Summertime provides the perfect ambiance to celebrate their most special day. With the glistening sunshine, flowers in full bloom and daylight at an all-time max, it’s no surprise that it’s the most popular time of year to say, “I Do”. With planning any big occasion so far in advance, it is always good to be prepared for every eventuality.

1. Weather is something that can never be guaranteed. You could get scorching temperatures all the way through to summer showers. For those summer sizzlers, it is important to consider the comfort of you and your guests throughout the day. Keeping cool and staying hydrated being the most crucial. Chilled water stations are a popular choice, with fresh fruit and mint and plenty of ice. Individual handheld fans are always a crowd favourite. Mist stations are a fab purchase for outdoor venues. All of which, will keep your guests cool and refreshed.

2. Choose the right venue that matches your personal taste as well as the seasonal climate. Outdoor venues are perfect for summer weddings. Venues that are increasingly popular are those that can accommodate outdoor structures as well as indoor facilities. When considering indoor venues, ensure you ask about air conditioning or cooling solutions for properties without this facility.

3. Summer is considered to be the most popular time for weddings and therefore both planners, venues and suppliers can get booked up quickly. With planners and venues being at the top of the list for things to secure, we would recommend doing your research as early as possible, to avoid disappointment. You may want to think about alternative dates, if you want a specific planner or venue, or multiple venues if you want a specific date. Once you have secured your venue, we would recommend booking photographers, videographers, and entertainment as a priority.

4. Dress for the Summer. On average, you will spend 10 – 12 hours in your wedding attire on your special day. To prepare for those summer days and nights, consider lightweight fabrics and breathable materials for your wedding dress and groom’s suit. For the fashion fabulous, why not have a change of outfit and feel fresh for your evening reception.

5. Flowers are for most couples, an integral part of their wedding décor. In order to realise your dream wedding vision, contemplate how the weather may impact your chosen floral arrangements. Some blooms are known to wilt in hotter temperatures, like hydrangeas or gardenias. This shouldn’t deter you from including them from your floral palette, however, you may wish to consider pairing them with heat-resistant plants to ensure your full arrangement does not look withered during the day. With floral installations and suspended arrangements, this can be most noticeable. Your florist may recommend using elements of faux flowers for this, or to include a combination of both faux and real flowers to create the full natural effect. If you want to go full “Au Naturel” and avoid wilting completely, use summer wedding flowers such as succulents or tropical florals like anthurium, orchids, protea or palm leaves and leafy greenery.

6. A nice touch on your special day is to provide those summer essentials for your guests. You may even wish to include antihistamines and bite cream for those pesky mosquitoes and horseflies, especially for those of you who are having open marquee weddings in fields. For outdoor weddings, citronella candles provide a lovely scent and keep the critters at bay.

7. We would always recommend having a plan, come rain or shine on your special day. Summer showers need not dappen your day. We would always recommend having two wedding day plans for the alternate weather conditions. Set up designs may differ with venues that offer indoor and outdoor facilities. Having a Plan B helps to eliminate the stress of having to think on your feet on the day and helps coordinate your suppliers, whatever the weather may be.

If you would like more of our top tips from the team at Dale Alexander Events or help with planning and designing your summer wedding, contact us by visiting our contact form page here on the website.

Dale Alexander & Team. x