Renting an event place will cost thousands of dollars. Some venues are so expensive only the ultra-rich can afford them. Celebrities get married in courthouses and the backyards of their childhood homes. If Hollywood A-listers choose to walk down the aisle in their homes’ gardens, we surely can, too.
Honestly, it isn’t that impossible. Instead of throwing away money to rent a glasshouse garden, a resort, or a hotel ballroom, why not pay for commercial landscaping services in Raleigh? Isn’t it more practical to improve your backyard so that it can be used for future events instead of spending all your money on an event place you’re going to use for four hours?
Plan and Prepare
Write down all the things that you want to happen during the ceremony and party. Take a long look at your backyard and decide if it can accommodate the number of guests that you plan to have, as well as the caterer, tables, chairs, stage, lights, flowers, etc. Once that has been taken care of—and you have streamlined your guest list to include only the important people in your lives—you can prepare the backyard ahead of time.
Give yourself at least eight weeks to prepare the garden. That’s enough time to let the flowers grow and bloom, trim the grass so that it looks fresh, and put up structures for the lights and other electric requirements.
Use a Theme
Just because you’re having your wedding ceremony or reception in your backyard doesn’t mean that it should be underwhelming. You can decide on a theme that will turn your simple wedding ceremony and reception into something picturesque. Backyard weddings are good for whimsical, rustic, country, and vintage themes.
Rent Some Tents
This is the most important advice you’re going to get about planning a backyard wedding. Have you ever heard of summer showers? Holding your wedding during summer is no guarantee that the universe won’t gift you with some showers. You wouldn’t want to look like a wet duckling in your wedding gown. If you have an open backyard—no gazebo or glasshouse or pergola—rent some tents to make sure that your guests won’t be sitting under a torrent of rain.
Do Not Allow Guests to Crash in Your House
There will be some guests who may want to crash in your house because they’ll be traveling far away from their places. While you want to be a gracious host, that does not mean that your childhood home can accommodate all your guests. Certainly, you don’t want to be fighting over the shower in the morning of your wedding. Recommend a nearby hotel for guests who prefer to stay a day.
You will need a lot of help if you’re going to have a backyard wedding. You cannot tend to your wedding alone, so your groom needs to participate in the planning, decision-making, and executing such plans. Ask help from your entourage, too. They’ll be willing to lend a hand to make your wedding a success.
