Season Switch: Meet our couple who postponed their wedding due to Coronavirus
Season Switch: Meet our couple who postponed their wedding due to Coronavirus
The outbreak of Covid-19 has affected matrimonial plans across the globe, and nothing weighs on us more than having our own couples left devastated after having to postpone their long-awaited celebrations. However, with a little patience, a positive outlook and a new range of Pinterest boards at the ready, one of our many couples who have postponed their plans talks us through their process of switching seasons and counting down to their new wedding date.
A huge thank you to Francesca and Tom, who have opened-up and shared insight into their experience during this challenging time. We hope that their journey will inspire others as we assure you we will get through this together.
Over to Francesa and Tom!
Sx
A bit about us…
Tom and I have been together for just under three years. Tom is a pharmacist and I work in the travel industry. We have been engaged since Christmas Day 2018.
Realising we might have to postpone…
Back at the start of March, as the news coverage of COVID-19 started gaining momentum, I began to worry that our date could be affected. I found myself frantically googling scientific predictions, trawling through the terms and conditions of our wedding insurance and having nervous hypothetical discussions with our families.
What we did next…
The hardest part was the waiting. Our advice to any couple currently weighing up their options for postponement is to start the conversations early and understand the position of your suppliers, venue and insurer.
For us, it wasn’t just as simple as whether the government would ban gatherings over the weekend of our wedding. The health risks to our elderly, pregnant and vulnerable guests was a worrying thought that wouldn’t have gone away even if the government restrictions were relaxed. Also, the lockdown has meant we haven’t been able to have wedding dress fittings, pick up our groomsmen’s suits, have meetings and collect hired decor.
Selecting our new date…
It was really important to us that we had a weekend wedding, as many of our friends and family are scattered around the British Isles, and we wanted to make sure our wedding could feel like a holiday for all of us. Losing our May bank holiday was tough, but when we looked at the available dates we could move to, one stood out. If we were trying to recreate the joy of a bank holiday, there is one time of year that always brings joy… December! If we couldn’t have the Spring wedding we wanted we realised we could embrace the change and have a Christmas wedding instead.
Tom and I got engaged in December 2018, and it has always been a special time for our families and us. At first, we felt disappointed about losing alfresco drinks, a day two BBQ and springtime florals but on reflection, these aspects are all-weather dependent anyway and not guaranteed. Most of our previous visits to Dewsall have been in the autumn/winter and we have always thought it looked just as beautiful covered in snow as it does bathed in the summer sunlight.
Next steps…
When our would-have-been wedding date rolls around in May, we are planning on celebrating somehow. Part of me hopes it rains on that day and the other part of me hopes some of the government guidance relaxes so that we can celebrate with our family and close friends. We’ve got a special bottle of champagne saved for the occasion.
In the meantime, now that our wedding theme has changed, I am enjoying doing fresh mood boards and using the quarantine time to make DIY Christmas ornaments as wedding favours.
As a couple, Tom and I always try to focus on the positive and not dwell on things that are out of our control. We are grateful to have had support from Dewsall and all of our individual suppliers.