COVID19 has affected our lives greatly in many ways and it has also caused a great deal of stress among couples planning their wedding. In March 2020, around 73,600 weddings and civil partnership ceremonies were affected in the UK when weddings were banned. Come October and with some restrictions being eased couples can now get married with a limited number of guests ranging from 15 to 30 depending on location.
Considering all the time and effort you and your significant other have put into planning your special day it’s simply understandable to feel frustrated with how this global pandemic and restriction inconsistency has shattered all your plans. As a result, your wedding may have been postponed or certain aspects of your special day needing to be changed to adapt accordingly to restrictions in your locality.
So what does this now mean for you?
The changes to be made will be different in some ways for each couple, but all will have to make certain changes regardless of the situation. Perhaps you have spent a fortune on wedding invitations that have already been distributed or received RSVPs back from guests for your venue. Whatever it may be, your guests will have to be informed about any changes and the most important change that needs to be communicated about is the wedding date.
Communicating Changes
Weddings are just one of the many special events that have been paused by the Coronavirus and with restrictions slowly being eased in many places as of late you can anticipate a surge of events being rescheduled, venues being booked and people excited to attend missed events either for business or leisure. That said, you can expect calendars to fill up fast. Sending new invitations can be a problem if you have a new wedding date, but no new locked in venues and vendors. So the next best thing to ensure that your guests can mark your new wedding date in is by sending out Save the Date cards. This will give your dearest and nearest a chance to make plans ahead, or give you a heads up if they won’t be able to make it allowing you to also make changes keeping in mind local restrictions.
Too Soon or Too Late with Your New Wedding Date
While sending out save the date cards is incredibly helpful to your new wedding plans, your new wedding date is a factor to consider. Is the new date just around the corner? Or is it months away?
It wouldn’t make sense to send out a traditional save the date card with the typical wording and no specific details if your new date is just weeks or a month away and you have secured venues. You’d be spending a lot more on wedding stationery than necessary. In this scenario, having your cards made from a stationery vendor that offers custom save the date cards would be a gem. There is also pre-styled announcement stationery that can be overprinted with your custom details available at affordable prices. You don’t even have to go all formal. Simply ask your guests to re-save the new date and time for your wedding which will be held at the venues you have gotten for the ceremony and reception. If you need them to RSVP get them to email or text in response as soon as possible.
If you don’t have the specifics locked in, but you want to keep your guests in the loop then your save the date card can be short and sweet. Indicate resaving your new date and let them know that you will be following up with a formal invitation. This will eliminate the guessing game feels for your relatives and friends as a save the date stationery will confirm that they are still on your guest list. In fact, when you keep your guests informed there is a greater chance that they will say no to other commitments scheduled on your new wedding date.
Stay Classy Amidst the Chaos
Just because this pandemic has caused chaos and rearranged our lifestyles, it doesn’t mean that it gets to make us lose style in what we are passionate about. This includes announcing your wedding. Your wedding will be the rainbow after the storm in your life and those dear to you so make your announcement cards unique and elegant to set the tone of your wedding. It doesn’t have to be crazy expensive either. You can find wedding invitation stationery vendors today offering reasonably priced custom cards that are foil stamped, embossed, letterpressed and colour printed to suit your wedding theme.
Since save the date cards are less formal than wedding invitations there is no need to overthink the design when changes might still be made to your theme. You just need to get your guests excited and captivated so choosing a versatile design helps. Don’t forget that these cards are meant to be functional and not just stylish so do not leave out the important details you have ready.
Your wedding plans may still need to evolve depending on the unforeseeable changes brought on by COVID19, but it is essential that you remain flexible and keep an open mind to the possible changes you will need to make. No matter what happens, at the end of the day what’s important is your celebration of love no matter how big or small, and the person you will be spending your whole life with.
