Outdoor wedding?

Question

We have no date set, yet. We've been engaged for almost a year. We are going to start planning soon and are wondering what are some unique ideas for an outdoor wedding? It will most likely be at a local park that has many pavilions, stone fire places, cabins, lots of woods and it is on a river. The wedding and reception would be at the same place. Any ideas to make it wonderful and unique??

Oh yeah, the weather thing. We are planning to rent a few large tents or canopys. There will be a pavilion also.

Answer 1

To make your wedding unique, make it about you and your guy. Base it around colors, images, and themes that mean something to you.

Are you interested in your families' cultural heritages? There's usually something interesting you can do to express that. For instance, my background is Scottish so my wedding involved a lot of bagpipes and tartan. My husband is part Japanese, so his mother provided some fabulous homemade sushi to the buffet table. Most cultures have an interesting musical instrument or a delicious traditional food that would appeal to your guests.

Do you have an interest you can reflect? A favorite color or flower people know you love? A pastime people connect with you. Chances are you can find a way to make it a part of your day, whether it's boating, video games, or lacrosse.

Oh, and I have two words of advice as a fellow outdoor bride: pass on the trained gown and have the bridesmaids in flat shoes. Heels will sink in the ground, and all a train will do is pick up several pecks of dirt. My sister-in-law wore a hoopskirt and train at her outdoor wedding and wound up with the hem brimful of dirt, twigs, and leaves. By the end of the day it was a mess.

When I got married in the same spot a few years later, I got smart and had my wedding gown hemmed to the tops of my feet and wore really cute flat dancing shoes. My skirt was clean as a whistle at the end, and several people commented on how nice my little red dancing ghillies looked with the gown.

Keep the hemlines out of the dirt, and wear cute, flat shoes. You'll never regret it.

Answer 2

However you envision it--after all this is your wedding. What makes it unique is that it is YOURS with your colors and your vision.

So when you envision how you want to get married what do you see--hundreds of people, small family, formal, informal?

I think a unique idea would be to get married on the river. Either both of you in a canoe or on the dock, something like that so that the pictures would have you and your husband and the water.

Seperate the wedding location and the reception a bit so that your wedding wont be interrupted by the people setting out the food and whatnot.

What time of year do you prefer b/c that affects a lot too. A winter wedding you might want to stay away from the water and focus more on the stone fire places. A nice roaring fire, mulled cider for your guests. A summer wedding you would like to focus more on the water and floral arrangements with iced beverages.

For an outdoor weddings--I would have the bridesmaids in tea length dresses with a more informal look, something they could wear again. The groomsmen in suits more like a latte suit. The flower girl looking more like a wood nymph than a miniture bride.

But I can see colors of the woods reflecting pastels of spring, boldness of summer, rusts and browns of fall. Use the flowers that are there naturally, instead of bring in many unnatural looking things. How to make it wonderful and unique is to incorporate what makes you as a couple wonderful and unique. What do you find special about your future husband?

Answer 3

i had my wedding at a lake which also had a beautiful dock and confrence center for the reception. the cremony was beautiful because on the dock all you could see behind us was blue water and a few garlands along the rails of the dock. it was great for kids too because they were able to go walk around the lake and even rent a canoe with their parents. as for the weather, either rent tents or have a backup place like a church fellowship hall.

other than that, personalization will depend on the tiem of year you have your wedding - the flowers and colors you use can make it stand out, as well as the favors you give. the only outdoor wedding I've been to was in a park and they gave us all 2 skipping stones with their monograms - 1 to keep and the other to skip at the river as they exited from the cremony.

Answer 4

An outdoor wedding can be unpredictable in terms of weather. It depends on your location.

As a bride, you'll be under a lot of pressure. Do keep your day simple, but spectacular!

Answer 5

If it's going to be at night: lots of tulle and white christmas lights will make a classy statement (buy them on sale after Christmas- you'll be able to get them for really cheap then). Try the Japanese laterns hanging down from the inside of the tent as well.
For the centerpieces, have potted flowers, the same color as your wedding.
If you're going to have kids, what about having a "kid station" at the river's edge, where they can fish? Hire someone to man the station, and have about 3 fishing poles at the ready.

Answer 6

Don't worry so much about making it "unique".....make it you!

Weddings have been going on for centuries so chances are you are not going to be the first to do anything. So what if you aren't the first bride to do it? Great ideas get repeated for a reason.

No other couple is exactly like you with your exact tastes so as long as you concentrate on making it expressive of you and your fiancee it will be unique. You don't want people to walk into your wedding and wonder if they are at the wrong one because it isn't anything like you.

Answer 7

for Oct. why not go with a fall harvest. Lots of pumpkins, scrawcrows and lots of mums and fall colors. Have a apple dunking setup for the kids, and the adult can enjoy their time more.

Answer 8

not really, a beach sounds nice