Love in the time of coronavirus

Couple are scrambling to prepare last-minute wedding alternatives

Walking into the wedding, guests were greeted with servers holding silver trays full of hand sanitizer and were handed a glass of Champagne by a waiter wearing a white glove. A pack of Lysol wipes was placed at each guest’s seat, and rolls of monogrammed toilet paper were available too. It sounds like a parody you’d find on Saturday Night Live, but in the time of COVID-19, it just may be the reality of nuptials in 2020.

The big question on the minds of engaged couples is whether or not to go through with wedding plans in the coming weeks and months. For some, that involves the costly and time-consuming process of cancellation;  for others, however, the show must go on. It’s not the first time that uncontrollable disasters have struck the wedding world: Hurricanes derailed beach weddings in the Caribbean; Zika worries deterred many from destination weddings in Mexico and beyond for years; and Sept. 11 instilled a fear of flying that still lingers. To that end, from Joan Estrada Special Weddings, we will coming up with creative ways to keep newlyweds and their guests safe.

“Couples are not going to stop getting married because of coronavirus" 

We’re moving quickly as an industry to help them pivot and prepare.We, like many other planners, has gone into crisis-control mode, advising couples to be flexible about changes. We have helped brides borrow dresses when their original gown shipments were halted, and others we have negotiated with venues to decrease change fees. We are helping them to decide if they should commence the celebrations: we recommend that they take a look at their guest list . If most of their guests are between 20 and 40 and very healthy—only then would we think the wedding should take place. However, if it’s important for the couple to have their grandparents and older guests there, we recommend the couple reconsider or postpone. But if it’s all a go on the planned day, here are some top tips for guarding against COVID-19.

Here some tips

From Joan Estrada Special Weddings we are working with our couples to add sections to their wedding website and send communication to guests about safety procedures, including washing hands, carrying hand sanitizer, and interpersonal touch.

Make hand sanitizer available

A silver tray full of mini bottles of hand sanitizer would surely be a sight, and at Joan Estrada Special Wedding we have made this standard for all upcoming events. 

Plenty of planners shared examples of how to beautifully display bottles of hand sanitizer. 

You can include them as part of welcome bags or set one at each place setting at the reception tables. 

We suggest monogramming the bottles with the couple’s logo—something she has surprisingly we have done for a wedding before. 

Skip the hugs

As hard as it may be, avoid person-to-person contact. We suggests getting signs printed that urge guests not to hug or shake hands upon greeting

Get Intimate

Some couples can consider switching to a more intimate affair, that can be with a select group of friends and family or even an elopement. “Once the dust settles, they can have a big party to celebrate with everyone later in the year,” It’s not unprecedented; this formula is enacted by couples from India for example, they do all the time, even without the threat of COVID-19.

Live-stream it

At Joan Estrada Special Weddings, we have employed tech to help solve a wedding conundrum: what to do if Grandma and Grandpa can’t fly because of the coronavirus. We invested in 360-degree virtual cameras that will allow us to live-stream the wedding ceremony, toasts, dances, etc for an upcoming celebration. “We are putting together a how-to guide and sending it to the family members who cannot come so that they can still watch and experience the event live.” There are a lot of other options as well, including online streaming services, and, of course, you can always have your cousin run FaceTime on an iPad. It’s not the most elegant, but it gets the point across.

Opt for white-glove service

Everyone is putting on gloves. We purchased white gloves for staff to wear during the event, like valets, coat checkers, and servers passing out drinks—or hand sanitizer.

Swap out the buffet or family-style meal

No one wants to put their hand into a cheese station when there’s a risk of coronavirus exposure. One easy way to mitigate this risk is to switch all buffets to plated meals. During cocktail hour, drop appetizer stations and have hors d’oeuvres passed out on individual plates. Choose a multicourse, plated dinner instead of having guests line up at a buffet or digging into family-style entrées and sides at the table.

Keep smiling

It’s a common piece of advice to go with the flow on the wedding day as snafus do arise. Just stay safe and keep smiling.

 “Don’t let a virus steal this amazing life experience from you,” 

 “It might be different than what you planned, but you might discover that it’s even more meaningful and romantic.”