I haven’t met too many people who don’t like some type of beach. Lakes, Rivers or Oceans; it really doesn’t matter what kind, you’ll usually find me near a body of water. My favorite thing is to walk on the beach and just take it all in. The consistency of the waves, the hard packed sand under my feet, the volleyball game up on the soft sand, and the wedding usually being set up on a Saturday afternoon.
I’m so fortunate to live near some of the country’s top beaches ranked in the top 10 year after year. In honor of Beach Weddings, which are popular here in Florida my post will have a spring break “beachy” theme. This particular beach visit was to Caladisi Island, which is only accessible by boat, but is part of one of Florida’s amazing state parks Honeymoon Island. They do adorable weddings here on the main beach, and have a catering team there to make the event a one stop shop. However, you’ll find me taking the ferry over to the lesser know Caladisi Island.
Walking on an unspoiled beach where there are no other people is one of life’s greatest gifts. This day my walk happened right after high tide, so the shelling was pretty epic for this experienced Florida native wedding planner! I kept finding scallop shells that were all types of shades of blue. It prompted me to think of all the traditions that are woven into weddings, just like these shells were woven into the sand. These gorgeous shells have little “feet” that are my kryptonite. I won’t pick it up if it has it’s little feet broken off. (I should be sent to shell snob jail!) How many of our wedding and engagement traditions have feet? Meaning, grounding in tradition. Whatever traditions you choose to have at your ceremony or nuptial events, ensure they are grounded in what you as a couple believe. There was a shell that only had a few streaks of blue left, this made me think of couples that can add new traditions due to a lack of existing ones to their wedding. Some couples choose to have their families play a smaller role in their celebration. Which is completely beautiful too, and doesn’t make their union any less perfect.
Traditions that are popular to include and ways to put an updated twist on them:
- Something Borrowed – tradionally a piece of jewelry. Update this with a piece of vintage jewelry given to you from your beloved.
- Something Blue – while we all want to be as cool as Megan Markle and sew a piece of blue fabric into our outfit from our first date, you might consider switching up your right hand ring to include saffires, or a blue ribbon tied into your bouquet or boutineer. As long as we all promise no tacky blue garters around the rear view mirror of our Pontiac trans am.
- Something Old – this one screams to the veil. However vintage veils crumble to the elements. One way to bring this back is to have a vintage lace pattern laser cut into your veil. Using modern technology to create something old is a big win in my book!
- Something New – this can be something “new” to you as well. I find this the most liberal of the traditions and one that couples usually don’t have any trouble accomplishing. If you are making a significant purchase for your big day…think about future uses.
The Lightning Whelk shell I found was reminding me to prepare for inclimate weather, beach wedding or not. So many times I have seen couples ignore weather and/or the comfort of their guests when planning the big day. The small expenditure of extra fans, heaters, or a rain tent can be a huge lifesaver. A few tips for indoor weddings:
1. Have the temperature for the cocktail hour and the reception brought down to a comfortable temperature of 72 degrees at the beginning of set up time. This should be at least four hours before the reception so the building has time to cool down. Most Banquet Captains will have to get an engineer to gain access to the air conditioning system in a hotel ballroom. Another pre-emptive measure is to make the temperature change in any space a line item on your wedding reception banquet event order.
2. A popular wedding option is to have an outdoor ceremony and an indoor reception. When negotiating with the venue, be sure to discuss a “rain backup” space for all outdoor schedules functions. Ensure that they are included in the price and contract of your event, so they can’t sell the space to someone else.
3. In the event of rain or inclement weather, appoint someone ahead of time to run point. This person will communicate with guests any special instructions and leave you to celebrating with your sweetie.
I hope my trip to the beach inspired you to think about wedding traditions and wedding day weather, just like it did for me!