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Despite its seemingly quaint setting, the backyard wedding can still retain the lavish feel of a costlier ceremony. Couples simply need to apply the venue savings to a few select splurges to establish a similar feeling of luxury.
Choosing the Right Backyard
If you’re like many of today’s young couples, you don’t actually have your own backyard just yet. Or, if you do, it’s not exactly big enough to allow for several rows of chairs and a reception tent. After all, as experts from “For Dummies” point out, the ideal wedding ceremony will allow for at least 8 feet per attendee.
You may need to ask a loved one to play host for your big day, so think carefully about the backyards of your friends and family members. Which setting is most picturesque? And who will be most amenable to inviting strangers into his or her backyard? Location also is important, with the ideal being a backyard within driving distance of the majority of the guests.
Pre-Wedding Gardening
Your wedding ceremony and reception may be situated in a family member’s backyard, but that doesn’t mean it has to actually look like the stereotypical backyard wedding. The best way to infuse natural beauty into your ceremony is to surround guests with beautiful flowers. Not only does this make for a prettier wedding, it also eliminates most of the expense related to hiring a florist. However, given time restrictions related to the blooming of perennials and annuals, you’ll want to carefully tailor the type of plants to the predetermined wedding date. SheKnows suggests coordinating the rest of the wedding decor with the colors of the chosen flowers.
Clean-Up Considerations
Whether your wedding is held exclusively in the backyard or also involves indoor space, you’ll need to keep the pre- and post-ceremony clean-up in mind. Prior to the big event, a thorough cleaning will need to take place, particularly if the host possesses a tendency towards clutter. Consider hiring professionals to take care of both the in-house cleaning and landscaping, as this saves both you and the host a ton of time and aggravation. Post-reception cleaning also will require careful consideration, as it’s in bad taste to leave your host’s home in a state of disrepair. The trash pileup may be far more than any homeowner can handle alone, so visit Next Day Dumpsters ahead of time to procure the proper receptacle.
Reception Dinner: To Cater or Not to Cater?
Depending on the size of your wedding and your host’s kitchen setup, you can either offer guests home-cooked meals or hire a caterer to take care of all things involving food. In most cases, the caterer will be the better option, as, again, this saves the host from undue stress. The great thing about catering a backyard wedding is that you aren’t limited to in-house catering. Inside Weddings recommends hiring a caterer who specializes in backyard ceremonies, since this expert can better advise you on the best layout for a killer reception.
