Garden Weddings - Beautiful & Enchanting
Article courtesy of Ruby Rain
There is nothing more enchanting than a garden wedding. With the recent global recession, garden weddings became a more popular, cost-effective option for bride and groom to consider. Garden weddings are a fabulous way to celebrate your union; taking advantage of nature’s beauty and the fabulous weather that we have in South Africa.
The following tips and hints will help to make your garden wedding a stunning success:
- Always have a Plan B – Mother Nature is not always very forgiving.
- Have a ground cover, at least on the dance floor so that guests’ shoes do not sink into the grass while they are trying to move around.
- Ensure that bridesmaids and maids of honor wear heavy fabrics that will not blow up if a wind arises. The wedding dress should be made from a breathable fabric so that the bride does not become hot and sweaty.
- Ensure that your invitations inform guests that your wedding will be outdoors so that they can prepare accordingly.
- As the bride, your hair will need to be suited to an outdoor occasion; able to weather a breeze, if need be.
- Do not negotiate on the quality of your sound system as outdoor venues frequently allow for more ambient noise than indoor venues.
- Opt for a band rather than a DJ as this sets the classical country theme a little more effectively.
- Hang magical lighting (in the form of tin lanterns or fairy lights) in the surrounding trees for a dreamy look and feel.
- Ensure that there is sufficient lighting in the garden, so that guests do not tumble into a flowerbed or over a water feature.
- Opt for natural colors and light fabrics, reminiscent of the natural theme.
- If the garden is in full bloom, you may find that there are enough flowers around you to be able to rely solely on them. However, you may have to add to these. In this case, choose flowers that will complement the garden.
- Ask your venue host or groomsmen to visit the venue in the morning and rake up leaves and fallen flowers or fruit. Find out more about outdoor wedding venues in our Picnic Weddings category.
- Great guest gifts include personalized flower pots with seeds, a sapling, or one of the lanterns from the trees around you.
- Make sure that the food you choose to serve will be alright if it is a hot day and avoid dairy-based items as well as those containing raw egg (such as mayonnaise).
- Serve plenty of cool refreshments, particularly if your wedding is in the daytime, when guests may become hot. Consider offering jugs of lemonade or iced tea.
- Include bug repellent in your décor to avoid being hassled by flies or mosquitoes.
- Tie the place cards or table plans around a tree with a beautiful ribbon to make it a little more interesting for guests to find their seat.
- Take advantage of existing water features by adding petals or floating candles to them.
- Use flowers and natural materials (such as quills, feathers or dried grasses) in your décor and on your invitation.
Ruby Rain has a wide variety of garden themed décor to make any garden wedding a mesmerizing and enchanting event. Please visit us to view our catalog of décor suitable for any garden wedding.
Decor Special
Ruby Rain decor is offering 10% discount on all decor from our catalogue booked before the end of March 2011. Please visit our website on www.rubyrain.co.za to view our catalogue.
