Our First Wedding During COVID-19
/In March 2019 I started working with Mallary and her mom Andrea to plan their Austin wedding. Mallary’s identical twin sister’s own wedding was just a month away, and their big sister’s wedding was only a few months prior, so Andrea was planning her 3rd wedding within a span of 2 years. She knew what to expect! Or so we thought.
We planned for an April 4, 2020 wedding with 220-250 guests, the great majority of them coming from out-of-state to celebrate with Mallary and Ryan under the gorgeous oaks of Camp Lucy Sacred Oaks in Dripping Springs, just outside of Austin. We planned their wedding to be full of interactive elements, from a whiskey cart to custom neon backdrops to yard games to a star guide, I knew guests were going to love this celebration with a magical woodlands feel.
And then COVID.
With the Texas-Louisiana border closed and then events in Texas being banned, we had no choice but to postpone on March 17, just two and a half weeks before the wedding. With the groom scheduled to start his residency at the end of June, there was only one Saturday that the venue had available that would work, so we set the new date of June 13th, which was this past weekend. But as you can no doubt guess, rescheduling wasn’t the only issue we needed to address - our new focus became how to ensure that guests still had some control over their own health, that we minimized the risks wherever possible, and that we kept a celebratory environment that matched all that our clients had been eagerly looking forward to.
Thankfully, because our business structure is quality over quantity, each planner on our team works with only 10-12 clients at a time, which allowed us to devote the required time to our March-May clients to reschedule their events. It is not an exaggeration to say that we’ve really bonded with these clients, as we worked with them daily to help them navigate these uncharted waters. Even though I’ve faced many hurdles over my 15+ years of planning weddings (tornadoes, floods, fires, hurricanes, closed airports, medical emergencies, etc), this pandemic presented obstacles that in no way resemble anything we’ve ever faced. I’m happy to share with you the measures we took, in case they’re helpful to you in your own plans.
Welcome Bag Contents for Wedding during COVID-19, picture taken by a hotel guest
Before the wedding:
The bride created a facebook group for all of her guests who had RSVPed yes for the wedding. We used this group to notify guests of changes, give them updates on the hotel block availability/rates, and to communicate to guests that while we were super excited about the celebration we understood that some guests needed to stay home in order to be safe, so we’d have a live-stream available of the ceremony.
We included the normal fun Austin-y things in the welcome bags, but Andrea also added custom fabric masks (“Spread Love, Not Germs”) and bottles of hand sanitizer from their home state.
Welcome bags were delivered to guests’ rooms, rather than being exposed while waiting at guest services or the concierge.
Rehearsal Dinner, 120 guests, 50% capacity:
All staff and vendors were expected to wear masks.
Per current mandates, we spaced tables apart so that there was 6’ between the back of one chair to the chair of the next, and each table sat 6 guests. Place settings consisted of flatware rolled in fabric napkins, and a printed menu.
The venue staff took guests’ temperature as they arrived, and asked each to sign-in with their email so that they can be notified if anyone involved tests positive in the next couple of weeks.
We had a bowl of additional masks for the guests, with a large pump bottle of hand sanitizer.
We eliminated the cocktail hour and instead had guests sit and then staff placed a plate of appetizers at their place setting.
The bar was closed and instead the waitstaff passed wine and the signature drink as guests entered, then took beverage orders at the tables.
Menu was changed from buffet to plated, and desserts were made for the staff to deliver to the tables.
The mobile photo booth attendant entered the guests’ phone numbers, rather than having them touch the screen.
Wedding Day, 180 guests, 50% capacity:
We had the snacks in the Bride’s Suite and Groom’s Suite portioned and individually packaged, rather than sitting out on displays (hummus tray, fruit and cheese spread, sandwiches) and also asked for the vendor meals to be packaged.
At the guest sign-in table we provided a bucket of new pens for the guestbook, and a second bucket for guests to discard used pens. We also had a framed sign that said “Let’s be Royal - curtsies and bows instead of handshakes and hugs.”
Also at the sign-in table we had masks available again, as well as buttons guests could wear if they’d like others to keep a distance, with a sign explaining “Distance is Temporary, Love is Forever - If you want to ensure social distancing and help you feel safe, feel free to wear a button.”
At the ceremony, the rows of chairs were spaced father apart than usual, and the ceremony was livestreamed to the wedding group on Facebook.
For the reception, the venue had an attendant to open and close the door, and bathroom doors were propped open. We had framed handwashing reminder signs (set to the lyrics of "Think I'm gonna Marry You") on the bathroom sinks.
The venue had plexiglass screens on the front of each bar and food station and roped stanchions around the cake. All plates and rolled silverware were at the stations.
Tables were 6' apart again, but sat groups of 10. It was open seating but we had a VIP table for guests ages 65 and older (there were only a handful of them).
I scheduled text reminders for the times I'd usually gather the wedding party, and communicated with the catering team and DJ mostly by text.
We had a star guide, so we made sure to provide a container of Clorox wipes for him so that he could wipe down his telescope between users.
It wasn’t perfect and there are some things I’ll do differently next time (like being better about keeping my mask on the entire 8 hours), but we definitely implemented measures that made this wedding more safe from germs than it would have been a few months ago. Overall, I think it was a success. Guests had plenty of ways to ensure their safety, while very much keeping the celebration fun and full of love. I am so thrilled that Mallary and Ryan were able to have the celebration they wanted, even during a pandemic. I can’t wait to share the professional pictures with you when I get them!
Jessica
Huge kudos to the vendors involved in implementing these measures, especially:
