Home weddings are favorites of couples who want very intimate and meaningful weddings. Whether in the backyard, lawn, or indoor; it’s laid back, cozy and less capital intensive. Besides, planning a home wedding comes with less pressure and restriction. You decide what happens especially indoors, how it’s modelled, personalizing details as you wish.
Weddings at home let you incorporate any ritual and saves you from losing money in case of cancellation. However, planning a wedding at home has its own challenges which border more on guest comfort and aesthetics. To help you through these, we’ve put down some dos and don’ts from an experienced point of view.
Don’t forget to prepare for the weather
The elements can go a long way to make or mar your big day, so be prepared. If you’re planning a wedding at home in the summer, hire giant air-conditioning for an indoor wedding. If you’ll be outdoor, industrial fans are your best bet. For winter weddings, heaters, misters, and humidifiers should be at strategic points in your venue. For normally cold or mildly hot days, pay attention to the tiny details. Get umbrellas, hand fans with a wedding program on it, cozy blankets, pashminas, and even slip-ons for the guests. The better prepared you are, the smoother your day goes.
Do check your city rules
There is variation in the rules governing different cities and residential areas even in the same country. While some residences permit event holding and have a high threshold for neighborhood disturbances, others ensure protocols for hosting events. So before picking a wedding date or even hiring vendors, do your thorough research on the rules applicable to event hosting in your area. It will be heartbreaking to have law enforcement shutting down your home in the middle of celebrations because a neighbor complained. Lastly, extending some invites to your neighbors can do the trick.
Do provide sufficient restrooms
Unless you live in a castle, your restroom arrangements are for private usage. It may not have the capacity to accommodate the heavy traffic of everyone in one day, causing the sewage to fill up or something else. Moreover, we advise that for health’s sake, private restrooms shouldn’t be accessible to the public. On this note, hire portable bathrooms. You can make them two; one for the guests and another for vendors. Situate them at a discreet distance but place descriptive signage to lead everyone there. Also, light the path and leave some toiletries for the user’s benefit. This will save you lots of stress cleaning and disinfecting your bathrooms instead of resting after the wedding.
Don’t skip hiring professional Wedding planners
Having a family-oriented wedding right in your home may look so easy to pull off. Unfortunately, the place of wedding planning experts cannot be overemphasized. Bring professionals on board to help you create a seamless flow of events. They lift the burden off you while coordinating everyone. They know the best people for your events because that’s their forte. It would be disastrous to hire a decor vendor whose specialty doesn’t include interiors or caterers who have no idea about hosting in private homes. A professional wedding planner will guide and help you through all these. Depending on your budget, you can hand over the planning to them or consult with them. Following their guidance, you know who to hire and what to look out for.
Do provide ample parking space
With over ten guests gracing your home at the same time, vehicle parking can be an issue. You don’t want your guests parking their vehicles indiscriminately along the streets and blocking your neighbor’s entrance. So, to be on the safe side, hire your neighborhood parking lot for the day if you have one. If you don’t, hire a parking lot close to your home where guests and vendors can move to and fro on foot. If all these options aren’t available, advise the guests to come in taxis. Make it more appealing by pooling coupon incentives on transport businesses like Rideshare, Taxify, or Uber.
Don’t forget the backup power supply
Regardless of how reliable and steady your power supply is, don’t forget to hire a backup. A generating set is your best bet for when your electricity runs out. Hire one that can accommodate the equipment and appliances being used at your wedding and in your home. It’s always better to have one with minimal sound so that it doesn’t disrupt or make it hard for voices to be heard. Move the generator to a discreet position in the backyard or shed, away from the eyes of everyone. Pass all the wires through pipes or fancy covers so that you can run them through the house without creating potential danger or chaos.
Home weddings are fun to plan and even more cozy because you’re on your turf. Our tips and small wedding etiquette will help you pull off a wedding at home.
Author: Kate Motina
Kate heads the Wedding Forward content department. She’s an expert on wedding showers, honeymoon plans, destination weddings, photography, videos, and themes. Give her a wedding vision and she will give you a perfect wedding plan from her fingertips. She also has her unique articles on the site. She is a health and fitness enthusiast, and she’s crazy about photography!
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