Postponing Your Wedding: Advice From Wedding Couples

April 20, 2020
Weddings

Love is not canceled: Advice from Spruce Mountain Ranch couples who have postponed their weddings.

Who knows better what you are facing and feeling during these uncertain times other than Spruce Mountain couples, who have faced postponing their weddings due to the COVID-19 pandemic? We reached out to our Spruce Mountain couples who have already made the decision to move their wedding date, and they had some advice and support to share with others in this same situation.

"Once we made the decision and acted on it, we felt a huge sense of relief and clarity..."

When making the decisions to rebook, which vendors did you speak with to help make this decision?

Lauren & Johnathan: We prioritized a few ways. We made sure we started with an idea of how much we had committed in non-refundable deposits to understand our financial risk posture. Turns out that wasn't a huge deal, as we were very blessed by all of our vendors who graciously let us change dates at no cost! After that, we tried to prioritize vendors who could only support single events in one day (venue, event planner, photographer) before vendors who could support multiple events (caterer, bar, my DJ service). Our coordinator, Erin Hehn, was SUPER helpful with advice and support as well. Luckily, we moved the wedding far enough out that we had everyone available on the first date we picked!
Megan & Scott: We initially spoke with our wedding planner to get her opinion on the entire situation and then reached out to Spruce Mountain Ranch. Ultimately, it came down to the venue and making sure there was availability down the road. Our whole wedding was planned around a vision we had specifically at SMR. We figured we could rearrange some of our vendors if needed. We never had intentions of finding a new venue so that's why we reached out to SMR early in the process to gauge available date options.

Did you rebook your wedding for 2020 or 2021?

Lauren & Johnathan: We re-booked for 2021, the same weekend as our original wedding.
Camille & Luke: We rebooked for 2020.
Megan: Scott: We rebooked for 2020, same year. Having been together for twelve years, we did not want to delay any longer than we had too and went with a date that was available later in the year.

Is your new wedding date during the same time of year? If not, what obstacles/pleasant surprises did you face with a wedding in a different season?

Lauren & Johnathan: Yes! We had gotten so far in visualizing and developing color schemes, flowers, and other things for springtime we weren't sure how we felt about other seasons. Plus we knew we wanted to maximize our chances of being outdoors, and have the garage doors open at the Colorado Room (open on May 1) so it made it pretty easy to pick.
Camille & Luke: My new wedding date is two months after my original date. This is a positive because it is more likely to be warmer outside and there won’t be a risk of it snowing.
Megan & Scott: Our new wedding date is not during the same time of year. Our initial date was 5/2/2020 and we changed to 9/27/2020. We were excited for a beginning of May wedding, so we could have the summer months to look forward to; however, September is a beautiful time of year in Colorado and we are looking forward to the warmer weather, Aspen leaves changing, and not worrying about the potential for snow.

Is your new date on the same day of the week?

Lauren & Johnathan: Same day (Sunday), different date (by 364 days)
Camille & Luke: No. My original date was a Saturday, and the new date is on a Sunday.
Megan & Scott: We unfortunately were not able to keep a Saturday wedding and had to change to a Sunday. We found that our guests were very understanding given the limited number of date options that we had.

Are you changing your budget now that you’ve rebooked?

Lauren & Johnathan: No - the plan is basically to have the same wedding a year later. Though I will say having the extra time for some of our DIYs is almost a relief!
Camille & Luke: No. My budget will not change, and everything stays the same with all my vendors.
Megan & Scott: No, our budget will remain the same. However, we plan on making changes for the better as we have realized the more important things to the both of us.

When rebooking, were your vendors helpful in moving deposits to new dates?

Lauren & Johnathan: Every single one of them was so helpful, patient, gracious, understanding. I almost cry whenever I think of how much love we were shown in this process - and it makes me extra excited and confident that all of those wonderful qualities will translate to our wedding - gonna be the best day ever!
Camille & Luke: Yes, all my vendors were great to work with and moved my deposits.
Megan & Scott: Yes, our vendors were very accommodating in moving deposits and updating our contracts with the new date. We did not have any fees associated with rescheduling and we were able to use all of our vendors that we had booked for the initial date.

Are you seeing a drop in guest attendance with a rebooked date?

Lauren & Johnathan: We're a little far out to know for sure but we actually had quite a few family members unable to attend this year, who have said they can probably come next year. Silver linings!
Camille & Luke: This is unknown as of now. I am assuming a few will decide not to come if it is still risky to travel because of COVID-19.
Megan & Scott: Not at this time. We called all of our guests to notify them of the postponement and they were all very relieved of the change considering the current restrictions in place on travel and group gatherings. We wouldn't be surprised if more people attend because the no's we received are now able to make the new date.

What one piece of advice do you have for others who are facing making the decision to rebook or cancel their wedding?

Lauren & Johnathan: Trust your gut. I knew internally for a while what the right call was before making it, and it ate me up inside. Once we made the decision and acted on it, we felt a huge sense of relief and clarity that we had done the right thing to protect ourselves and our loved ones, which took away almost all the sadness about waiting another year. We don't want our special day to be overshadowed by anything and now it won't be because we moved it.
Camille & Luke: My one piece of advice would be to decide what your priority is. If you value celebrating with friends and family, then it is worth it to reschedule. Your wedding guests will understand the decision you make, so it is better to focus on what will make the two of you most happy.
Megan & Scott: Be very proactive in your decision to postpone your wedding. We were fortunate to receive a venue date within the same fiscal year and during peak season because we remained vigilant and were willing to take advice from experienced individuals in the industry. Make the decision based on your specific situation. Initially, I was very defiant in not rescheduling. At that point we had picked the date 15 months in advance and were ~45 days from our date and I wasn't willing to compromise all that we had planned. I said I'd be willing to reduce our guest count but wasn't going to change the date. That was until we actually had to come up with those 50 guests (that was the first restriction that limited large gatherings to <50 people). In reality, it was going to be less than 50 of our guests because you also have to account for yourselves and your support staff (priest, wedding planner, catering staff, etc). It was at this point I realized we were no longer having a wedding of our dreams and instead were having to act according to restrictions that were wayyyy out of our control. I'm a firm believer of focusing on the things that you can control and a large piece of our story that we could control was to change our date and that's what we decided to do in order to be able to have the wedding we always dreamed to have.

Anything else you would like to add?

Lauren & Johnathan: I got some great advice from a friend whose wedding was postponed due to a hurricane - she said "ultimately you are getting married in the eyes of God, the government, and your friends and family. If not getting married is heartbreaking for you, consider getting married in the eyes of God and the government (and maybe some family) now, and save getting married in the eyes of your friends for later." That's what they did, and they are so happy for it.
Megan & Scott: This industry has shown an immense amount of support from all vendors and no one has been shy to offer up their advice or suggestions so be willing to ask questions if you simply do not know. For most of us, this is our first time planning a wedding and even though our vendors have not experienced a time like this they do have the knowledge to help you through these difficult times.

We want you to know, that your special day is important to us, and we are doing all we can to accommodate you throughout this unsettling time. If you have questions about our current policies, please see our most recent communication here or reach out and talk with us directly 303.400.2515.

We also asked some top professionals in the wedding industry to share their advice and support with you on what it means to postpone your wedding. Check out what they had to say in our blog Postponing Your Wedding: Vendor Advice