Preparing For Rain On Your Wedding Day
Chances are you may have some difficult mothers to deal with on your wedding day, but the most unforgiving of all could end up being Mother Nature. One of the most common statements I hear during consultations includes “It won’t rain on my wedding day”. Most couples actually state it as a fact, sending it out into the universe almost in a threatening manner.
When it comes to weather, positive affirmations will only take you so far.
If they work to calm your nerves, great. BUT, you still need to make arrangements for inclement weather should Mother Nature not get/ignore your memo.
The first step towards preparing for rain on your wedding day is (you guessed it) ACCEPTING the fact that it could potentially rain (or worse) on your wedding day. This is not the end of the world. It will not “ruin everything”. It will just provide new opportunities to make the day even more special.
The rainy-wedding-day bride above said “Storms will always remind us of our vows, which is a pretty magical thing.”
The second plan of action would need to be: FIND A PLAN B. Your Plan A will obviously be your first choice when it comes to your plans, but having a clearly defined Plan B will help with any nerves as the day inches closer. Think of it like this, you have a beautiful Plan A and have been only preparing for that for the past 12+ months. Now, it’s a few days before your wedding day and they are calling for rain which RUINS most of those amazing ideas. If you have a Plan B, you can shift your focus, but if you don’t… well, you’ve seen the show Bridezillas, right?? ;)
Ok, how do you prep for rain?
Obviously, if your ceremony is scheduled to be outdoors, having a covering of some sort on standby is recommended. If that’s not possible, or if there is a nearby structure (building), that is a great option, too. Once of the biggest things brides forget to consider is HOW they will get to that structure if it’s raining. Chances are you’ll have to walk outside at some point. Either appoint someone to be your umbrella carrier for that time period or know a route that will keep you covered.
From there, you can have some fun with it. Look into a cute pair of rain boots for yourself and your girls maybe. Purchase some fun umbrellas for the bridal party and guests. Maybe have some shawls/pashminas in a basket for guests if it’s gets windy, too.
One thing I HIGHLY recommend is making sure the guests know that your event will be an outdoor function so they can prepare too. This is best done with a wedding website but word-of-mouth does wonders too.
Whatever you do, please don’t think your day will be ruined. Because it simply won’t be.
You will still get some amazing photos. You will still make amazing memories. And at the end of the day, you will have a new spouse, which is EXACTLY what was supposed to happen. Focus on that and everything else will happen exactly as it was supposed to happen.
Special thanks to Lisa Rhinehart for providing such amazing rainy-wedding-day photos of such beautiful couples.
Her advice to couples:
“Bottom line is when they go with it and have fun, it results in very romantic and original photos if the photographer knows how to handle it and has gear that can stand the rain.”
