Wedding blog

6 Steps How to Postpone Your Wedding

In light of the current situation, many wedding couples face the hard decision to postpone their wedding or are left with uncertainty if their big day can take place as planned. If you are one of those brides or grooms, this blog post is for you!!

These 6 steps on how to postpone your wedding help you get through this emotional time quickly and easily without feeling overwhelmed!

Step 1: Get organized

In order to be efficient, you must stay organized throughout. I recommend that you create a spreadsheet with 4 columns:

Vendor
Postponement/cancellation policy
Fees
New possible dates

Include every vendor you have booked for your wedding, starting with your venue, followed by your most important vendor(s) e.g., photographer. Remember to include any hotels or transportation you have booked for your guests, rehearsal dinner, or the morning-after brunch.

Then go over your contracts and fill in the information about postponement or cancellation policies. If your agreement doesn’t mention anything, reach out to your vendor and ask them to send over their current policy.

Step 2: Be proactive

Once you have filled in the vendor and postponement policy in your spreadsheet, reach out to your vendors. Start with your venue and ask them about possible postponement dates.

To be most efficient, send bulk emails and include the following information:

You decided to postpone.
You are already working on new date options with your venue.
You will send out information about the new dates as soon as possible.
Any other information that you feel is important for your vendors to know.

Your email could read something like that:

Due to the current situation, we have decided to postpone our wedding. We are already working on new date options with our venue and will send them to you as soon as possible. Even though we have the postponement policies from your contract, please let us know if you have any extenuating circumstances policy in effect for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Step 3: Inform your guests

Now it’s time to reach out to your guests! If your wedding is less than two months away, make phone calls, send emails or opt for group chats and messages. Start with your closest family, your wedding party, and continue with the guests who live furthest away. This gives your out-of-town guests as much time as possible to cancel their travel arrangements.

Let your guests know that you will send formal announcement cards via mail once you have a new date.

Wording idea:

In light of the current situation, we decided to postpone our wedding until it’s safe for all of us to celebrate together! We will share the new wedding date as soon as possible.

Step 4: Update your wedding website

If you have a wedding website, put up all the new and essential information so your guests have a platform they can return to if they have any questions.

Think about adding FAQs to make it even easier for your guests and in the long run for you, as the same questions will come up repeatedly.

Question ideas:

What’s the new date?
Will the venue be the same?
Will the time stay the same?
What about accommodation for out of town guests? Is it still the same hotel?
Will you send out formal invitations closer to the date?

Step 5: Send change-the-dates

If your wedding is several months away and you have already sent out save-the-dates or invitations, mail change-the-dates that match the look and feel of your original invitation suite.

Wording ideas for change-the-dates:

Regretfully, due to the current situation, the wedding of Jane Dunn and John Smith has been postponed. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please save our new date [insert date and time].

Postponed! We regret to inform you that due to unforeseen circumstances, the wedding of Jane Dunn and John Smith has been postponed. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please save our new date [insert date and time].

New plan! Due to the current situation, the wedding of Jane Dunn and John Smith will not take place on [insert date] as originally planned. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please save our new date [insert date and time].

Change of plans! We are saddened by the current situation and have decided to postpone our wedding. Please save our new date [insert date and time]. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Update! Due to the current situation, we have decided to reschedule our wedding. It will now take place on [insert date and time]. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Step 6: Remember your WHY

In stressful situations, it’s easy to get lost in worries, frustration, and disappointment. I truly understand that. But, I firmly believe this time can also be a time to grow closer together. Remember why you want to get married in the first place! Because you LOVE each other! And no change of dates, no postponement, no virus will change that!

If you have any more questions about postponing your wedding, please get in touch with me! I’m here to help you get through this!

Love, Michaela