Wedding Inspiration

Top tips for planning your wedding ceremony

It is so easy to get caught up in all the details of your wedding reception you can easily forget to remember how important the actual wedding ceremony is! Whether it’s a civil ceremony, humanist, celebrant led, religious, simple, modern or full of rich cultural traditions; the wedding ceremony is a big moment. It can so often be overlooked in the finer details.

Start Time

Timing is an essential factor for your wedding ceremony and the Nibbles2Nosh team at Upwaltham Barns can help you plan around your ceremony time.

Here are some things to consider:

If you start at lunchtime your guests will not have eaten before they arrive so make sure to provide delicious canapes straight after the ceremony.

Discuss timings with your photographer. Will you need time set aside for your couples portraits and group shots? How long will this take?

If you are having an autumn or winter wedding remember the clocks change at the end of October which will affect daylight hours.

Reserved Seating

Take the pressure off your wedding party and have VIPs and readers’ seats pre-reserved with their actual names on them. This will save any embarrassment or confusion about those important front rows and who is sitting where.

The Music

If you are planning to have live music during your wedding ceremony, make sure you let the musicians know your timings to allow them plenty of time to set up and be in position before your guests arrive. Musicians may have a few requirements so knowing these beforehand and talking to your wedding coordinator at Upwaltham Barns is always helpful. For example, they may ask for water to be provided or need to be near an electricity source. We will also need to know how many musicians to expect so we know how many chairs to put out for them.

If you have opted not to have live music at your ceremony, ensure someone is responsible for pressing ‘play’! They’re more than welcome to practice on the day before guests are seated for the ceremony. It is also likely that you will have various pieces of music throughout so create a playlist, make sure each track is named or numbered and are in the right order.

No Photos Please

You have paid a professional photographer to capture all those beautiful memories of your day so why not consider an un-plugged ceremony? Your guests will be more ‘in the moment’, engaged and won’t need to watch you through a screen! If this is something you would like, simply ask the person conducting your wedding ceremony to announce that there are no photographs allowed during the service. A small sign at the entrance of the East Barn or a note in the Order of Ceremony are also nice reminders.

Readings

Choosing the readings for your ceremony is one of the nicest jobs when wedding planning. Whatever type of ceremony you are having make room for some personal readings. The world is full of beautiful writing on love from passionate and intense novels to light-hearted and witty poems; there is something to suit everyone out there!

Personal readings are also an excellent way to get more friends and family involved in a special part of your day.

The Processional

The last few moments before the ceremony starts is the time to take a deep breath, feel calm and when the processional line up needs to take place.

There is no need to rush, and the Upwaltham Barns team will be on hand to make sure you all walk across the courtyard and down the aisle at the right time.

Top Tip: Take a last-minute look in the mirror to check you are holding your bouquet in the correct place.

The Final Checks

Whoever is walking you up the aisle is usually on your left, work out before the ceremony whether you will link arms or hold hands. Whichever you choose, just make sure you feel comfortable.

As you step into the East Barn, take a moment for your wedding coordinator to straighten out your veil and back of your dress before continuing up the aisle. We are there to give you that final ‘fluff’ and ensure you’re picture ready before you walk down the aisle.

When you are both standing in front of your family & friends remember to relax, smile and enjoy getting married!

For more wedding planning tips, take a look at these ideas to help you save money on your special day and don’t miss these top wedding planning tips from real brides.