How to plan a wedding in a garden

30 Jul

A bride in her garden with a bike filled with plants

I love a garden wedding!

One of the most wonderful things about a Humanist wedding is that you can have your ceremony absolutely anywhere, including outside in your own garden or that of someone you love. Want a relaxed wedding ceremony in your garden under your favourite tree? With a Humanist wedding you can do just that! So what are some of the key things to think about when planning a garden wedding ceremony? Read on for some top tips:

Top Tips for planning a humanist wedding in a garden

For any garden ceremony, giving your wedding guests a ‘heads-up’ on what the plans are is a great way of making sure everyone feels prepared. Letting people know what shade or shelter will be available or if you’ll be providing brollies or if people should ‘dress for the elements’ will make sure everyone feels comfortable and limits difficult moments on the day.

Your humanist wedding celebrant can help you think about your options, where there are things you might want to consider, and what kind of ‘back up plan’ you’d be happy with.

Shelter at your garden wedding…

We all want to believe that the weather will be glorious on our wedding day. Whatever the time of year, it’s always worth considering what your options are and what you’d be happy with and what you think would be appropriate for your guests.

Wherever possible, it’s really worth trying to have a plan for a bit more shelter for everyone involved. This could be an indoor location or having some pop up shelters on standby.

Some couples are happy to crack on if there’s a little drizzle, you could have some clear umbrellas on standby to keep you dry while making sure you can still be seen. Extra umbrellas or even lightweight ponchos could be provided for guests.

It is worth trying to decide ahead of time how much rain would be too much and allocating someone on the day to make that decision or to ask you both your decision and at what point in time, the decision is yours. Ideally once the ceremony starts you don’t want to be moving unless it’s a sudden unavoidable change in circumstances.

Shade at your garden wedding…

On the other end of the scale is considering what might happen if there is a really hot and dry day. This is especially important to think about if anyone at the wedding is either pregnant or a little older.

It’s definitely a good idea to set up a couple of shaded areas, even a couple of garden umbrellas will work. You might want to include one for where you’ll be positioned for saying your vows, especially as you’ll be less likely to want to fan yourself and may well end up dehydrated!

Not technically shade, but do also think about having some bottles of water available for you and for your guests.

Facilities at your garden wedding…

It’s worth thinking about how many people will be present and if you need to think about keeping everyone comfy and safe. Even if you’ve only got a relatively intimate group, A small first aid kit is a handy thing to have just in case.

Also worth thinking about having an outdoor drinks station, even just a few jugs of water - just to save everyone traipsing into your kitchen. Similarly, if you are having more guests than you think your bathroom can take, think about hiring in an extra portable loo - especially if any of your guests may struggle with stairs.

Depending on your ceremony plans, you might also need to think about what power you need.

Signage around your garden wedding …

It’s always a good idea to let people know where they can find things, and any areas you may not want them to go. This is especially helpful if people will be going into your house to use the loo etc.

You might want to direct people towards a kitchen, a cloakroom, a portion of the garden where they can smoke and away from rooms where you may be holding for nervous pets or kids rooms.

Seating Options at your garden wedding…

When thinking about the layout of your ceremony space, consider how different kinds of seating can change the feel, the aesthetic and the comfort of your guests.

Having a Garden wedding often lets you consider creative layouts, have you considered getting married in the round or having a spiral aisle? Both of these give you much more opportunities to see your guests' faces and for them to see you!

Equally think about what seating would suit both your location and your guests, perhaps a mix of hay bales and informal mismatched chairs might meet everyone’s needs, maybe you are considering sofas, or beanbags. Do make sure you have enough seats for everyone who is going to need one. This includes you both - you may want to sit at your ceremony too!

If you are having a ceremony where you are expecting guests to stand, it is definitely worth letting them know this in advance so they can be prepared. Also do consider any guests with known mobility difficulties that you might want to make arrangements for.

The Backdrop of your garden wedding ceremony…

Have you considered what will be behind you during your ceremony? This can be useful to think about both from the point of view of your guests, but also your photographer.

Thinking about backdrops could be as simple as considering where the sun will be, or there might be a particular view that you want guests to see, or not be distracted by during your ceremony.

Cleaning Up after your garden wedding...

It’s definitely thinking about having plenty of bags available for detritus through the day - including separate bags marked for recycling. Also think about asking some friends to help set down the day after or even ask a local cleaning business.