Meet Nicola and Ritchie – their wedding was not a disaster. As you can see from this photo they had an amazing day and so did their guests.  We often get testimonials and reviews from our couples, but this was a wedding which saw us getting compliments via social media from guests as well.  That is very rewarding!  So what went wrong on Nicola and Ritchie’s wedding day?

It rained – a lot.

But it was ok!

When I see this picture of Nicola and Ritchie dancing in the Marquee, I know that is not where they were supposed to be. In fact everyone at the wedding knew that this wasn’t how it was supposed to be – dancing was supposed to happen on the dance floor set up outside the tent.

Which leads me to a tale of a wedding day disaster that did not ruin a wedding day.

True Story – When Things go VERY Wrong at Weddings

Nicola and Ritchie had designed their reception to be a relaxed cocktail style event – outside in a large paddock.  There was a marquee with tables for guests who wanted to get under cover and in case of rain. But the real action was supposed to happen outside. Their carnival style wedding featured an outdoor stage and dance floor, games area and caravan bar.  There were also portable toilets set up just out of view of the Marquee and the catering team were under a tent, behind a grove of trees.  The day of their wedding was hot, but rain wasn’t predicted. Yes it was summer but everything indicated that an evening under the stars was possible and the tent was always there in case of seasonal rain.

Stormy Wedding

Just after the Ceremony storm clouds started to roll in.  A storm wasn’t expected – trust me, I had been watching the radar for days, but sometimes things just happen that no one expects.  This is true in life and very true at weddings.  When we saw those clouds we worked out very quickly that we were going to get hit and we sure did – not once, but 3 times across about a two hour time-frame.  It was so fierce that everything had to be moved inside. But even under cover, in the very large tent, water was an issue. The dance floor was abandoned. The band couldn’t play safely. The caterers had to use umbrellas to deliver food. People got wet going to the bar and the toilet.

This wedding had all the makings of a wedding day disaster!

As a Wedding Coordinator, these are the moments you dread, but also that you know you have to step up to.  It is easy to Coordinate a wedding where nothing major goes wrong. Of course, something always goes slightly wrong, but what happened at Nicola and Ritchie’s wedding was so much more than that.

But as you can see from the picture above, Nicola and Ritchie, did not let those storms spoil their day and neither did their guests.  I never saw a tear or a tantrum, despite everything being soaked including dresses and hair.  In fact no one missed a beat.  Everyone went with it and got on with celebrating with Nicola and Ritchie.

Friends, Family and Professional Vendors to the Rescue

Nicola and Ritchie are a gorgeous couple with friends and family who truly adore them, so for sure, this is a big reason why this wedding was still spectacular, despite the weather. But I know that their entire vendor team played a significant role too. Without us, of course, they would have managed, but they would have been ‘managing’ instead of partying.  We mopped up, moved furniture, assisted the caterers and bar staff to carry out their duties safely and as dryly as possible. We escorted guests to and from the bathroom under umbrellas and helped Nicola and Ritchie’s friends set up a DJ desk on tables in the middle of the tent so everyone could still dance the night away – and dance the night away they did.  As the storms passed we re-set the outdoor areas so guests could spread out and enjoy the stars after-all.  And never once did the events of the day spoil the fun or change the flow of the reception – in fact we stayed pretty much on time all day and gave Nicola and Ritchie lots of dancing time, which was one of the things they wanted.

An On The Day Coordinator – Insurance for your Wedding Day

So what is the point of this story?  Certainly not to scare you.  In fact I hope it inspires you to not get too stressed about things going wrong on your wedding day. I know from working with 100’s of couples each year that this is a big concern for many of you as you plan your weddings.  Whether it’s a little hiccup, or something more dramatic like a kitchen fire, bad weather or power outage, it’s how you handle it that will make the difference to your day. And if you have an experienced On the Day Coordinator on hand, you won’t have to carry the burden of having to handle it; they will do it for you whilst you getting on with the business of enjoying your wedding day.  Hiring a Wedding Coordinator is like an insurance policy for your wedding and around here, we think every couple deserves that peace of mind.

If you think you could use some help on your wedding day, check out our range of services (you’ll find us at weddings all over Australia).