Reet O'Reilly

Jun 26, 20226 min read

Coping with Covid | Alex & Jade's Postponement Story

I first met Alex and Jade back in October 2019 when they came to chat about their big day as we lodged their Notice of Intent to Marry. As you can see from their photo, they were very excited to be planning their wedding day and so they should be, it is certainly an amazing and exciting time in any couple's life.

Jade and Alex were very organised having set their wedding date for 1 May 2020 at Burnham Grove Estate in Cawdor, near Camden. They had locked in their A team wedding vendors and I was delighted to be on that team. At that time, they felt like they were on top of their wedding planning and by all accounts, Alex and Jade were sitting pretty sweet.

Then just four weeks out from their big day, their plans were all up in the air as they struggled with the reality of what the Covid-19 pandemic really meant.

I reached out to Alex and Jade and we discussed ideas and options for them to consider going forward. I recall chatting about what was most important to them because I believe you need to answer that question first, before deciding on what needs to be done next.

Alex and Jade are a beautiful couple who were happily married in March 2021 after postponing their wedding for about eleven months. They have Peggy, their much adored fur-baby and are soon expecting their first human baby and we are all very excited for them. When I reached out to Alex and Jade, they were more than happy to share their experiences about coping with Covid while planning their big day especially as it may assist others going through the same ordeal.

Photography | Margan Photography

When you started planning your wedding day, what was the most important to you both?

"The most important things to us were that we wanted our guests to have a great day and to have ample amounts of food, drinks and fun music! And, we wanted our wedding day to feel like it really reflected us as a couple, and that it was a relaxing and fun day."

When you first realised the restrictions caused by COVID-19 would possibly impact your plans for your wedding day, what was your initial reaction?

"My initial reaction was nerves and also fear that something we had been putting a lot of energy and time into planning was being stripped from us and we had no control over the outcome."

After you had time to absorb the situation knowing that it had impacted your big day, how did you feel and what were your concerns?

"We felt really devastated and also were really concerned about the possible financial impact as it was such an ambiguous time without clear direction.

We had already paid most of our vendors in full as we were only 4 weeks out from our wedding date, and were worried that we might lose all of that money.

We hadn’t spoken to our venue or any of our vendors yet and we didn’t know what to expect. It was so stressful and again, completely out of our control."

What actions did you take and what changes for your wedding day, did you make?

"As soon as we could, we initially contacted our venue Burnham Grove Estate to ask what our options were.

We were offered a change of date or a cancellation which meant we would have lost our deposit. We opted for a change of date as we knew we still wanted to go ahead with our wedding at Burnham Grove."

"We looked at the list of available dates we were offered for later in 2020 and in 2021 and decided to bite the bullet and postpone for nearly a full year. We were thinking things should be back to normal by then and that it would also give us the best chance to try to keep all of the same vendors.

We postponed 11 months because we wanted to ensure that our day would be as close to what we had imagined as possible, and going ahead in 2020 was definitely too vague and uncertain, in our view, with constantly changing rules and regulations.

We then had to accept that we had another 11 months ahead of us to wait to be married."

How did your wedding suppliers respond to the changes and were they supportive?

"We commenced contacting our vendors one by one and giving them our top 3 dates for 2021. Fortunately this worked out for us and we were literally able to re-schedule each of them for a new date, a year later.

All our vendors were all so accommodating and amazingly supportive, even though their businesses were being challenged and I’m sure they incurred significant losses themselves.

On the day that we sat down to rescheduling everything, we knew we had chosen absolutely honorable vendors with such integrity and passion for their work and we felt so blessed. I know a few friends in the same situation as us, who didn’t have it that easy."

How did the Covid restrictions change your wedding day?

"Fortunately by March 2021, most of the restrictions had eased. There was still a 30 people limit on the dance floor which didn’t really affect our night at all. There were still QR codes for guests to scan and social distancing was still being encouraged but overall it felt like 'normal'."

Were you able to include guests who could not attend at your wedding?

"A friend of ours was able to Facetime his partner during the ceremony, so we could say hello. Other than that, we didn’t really have to do much differently! We were very lucky."

How did the changes ultimately alter your experience on your day?

"I really can’t comment on this, as to me it didn’t really feel like it impacted us on our actual wedding day. It was more so, all the anxiety in the lead up, and constant changing of regulations and protocols that was significantly more challenging in our case."

What positives or little rays of sunshine can you take away from this experience?

"It just definitely highlighted what was really important to us on the day. We knew that no matter what, our actual wedding day would be perfect.

What do you remember most about your wedding day?

"Feeling really in love as a couple and feeling the love and support of our friends and family for our marriage. And also, what an absolutely incredible job all of our vendors came together to do for us. We couldn’t fault a single thing, we had the most amazing, special day!"

What words of advice could you give to couples facing a similar situation?

"Make whatever decision is right for you! Whether it be to postpone, elope, cancel or whatever! Your feelings are absolutely valid, no one could anticipate anything like this ever happening and having a huge impact on the wedding industry.

Your special day will come, it will be everything you ever imagined and most importantly you and your partner will have each other throughout it all."

It was definitely worth waiting for...

A huge thank you to Jade and Alex for sharing their story and giving us their perspective. As you read, they postponed their big day for nearly a whole year and ended up having the day they were both dreaming of. They tell me it was definitely worth waiting for and their photos from Margan Photography captured a truly wonderful celebration.

If you are someone who is in a similar situation, having to postpone your big day, try and save yourself some heartache and anxiety by not panicking and I know that it is much easier to say, than do. Instead, do your research, get informed and speak to your vendors before locking in your new date, so they have every opportunity to be there for you when you do get married. After all, you chose them for a good reason, you love their work and I have no doubt that they want to be there for you. One thing is for certain, once you set your new date, you can let go of the current uncertainty that is surrounding you and your original date.

With everything currently happening in the world nothing is actually guaranteed, but that doesn't mean we should stop making plans to celebrate love and life with our family and friends. So don't give up, instead be prepared and remember change can be a good thing.