What if it rains?

[pancake]

Hi all,

We're being married in 9 days and today I looked at the wedding forecast for the town where it is happening and it forecast rain with 95% probability! Our ceremony and photos are planned to be outdoors.

I know that >7 day forecasts are not reliable, but at the moment my neurotic side is getting the better of me. Summary of my (defective!) thought process:

- what will happen to the photos? (our families will not be there and we want the photos to make them feel like they are)
- if we have to move it inside it will be a disaster and it won't be what I want
- I don't want it to be grey and rainy on my wedding day as it would be a "bad omen" (bear with me: I am NOT a superstitious person but my mind is playing tricks!)

Of course I know that the only thing that really matters when it boils down to it, is that we have chosen each other and the wedding will be beautiful regardless of the weather. I am overjoyed to be marrying this man, so I don't know why I keep managing to stress about these things.

But does anyone else share this kind of bad thought cycle/catastrophise about the wedding day?

Did it rain on your wedding day?

 

[RaiKai]

Rain on the wedding day is considered good luck in many cultures!

I think all you can do is hope for the best, and be prepared for the worst (and rain really is not that bad). Be flexible. Particularly over things you have zero control over. It takes away a lot of anxiety.

I had my wedding out on Vancouver Island in the winter. It rained a bit (somewhat expected as it was rainy season) but we also had sun most of the day. Everything was indoors though so no worries there and it was rather cozy even with the rain - made everything seem even greener. There were other surprises (i.e. the flowers were not delivered) though that I had to just roll with. I could not change it and just had to go with it. I don't regret anything about the day (and even brightened at the idea of how much I saved on flowers by them NOT arriving as they were intended too!).

I have seen weddings that were planned for hundreds of guests.....only to end up being held in a tiny room with just the bride, groom and officiant as a winter storm or hurricane blew in to shut down the entire city. They still looked delighted. And I cannot imagine rain will have that same effect on the wedding, even if it is different than planned.

 

[choro72]

It rained on BOTH our wedding! For the US one, our ceremony was planned indoors, but the photo session was before the ceremony at a park. During the photo shoot it rained as if someone gathered all the water on earth and dumped it on us.

We all laughed. My now DH''s tux, that he had dry cleaned the day before, was soaked. Everyone was so busy trying to protect me that they all got their beautiful hair, dresses and suits soaked. We were rushing to get inside the car that my dad left his shoes at the park (my cousin grabbed them). We had the photographer take pictures of the shivering, dripping, beaming bridesmaids. My SIL stopped by Walgreens (without being asked to. I love her) to buy a bunch of hand towels. Our hair weren''t curled anymore, and our shoes were dirty. We wiped ourselves quickly, and by the time the ceremony started we were dry enough. We stayed warm from the adrenaline rush. Nobody knew the difference because we were all excited and happy.

I wouldn''t change the experience for anything in the world. These unplanned excitement make the best stories and memories. I hope you have a great wedding!

 

[sonnyjane]

We got married on the beach in Maui and yes, it rained during our ceremony. Luckily it was just sprinkling though, and not a downpour! My hair is definitely frizzy in my pictures which I don''t like, but that''s primarily because I wore it down for the wedding. If I had it in an up-do, I''m not sure you would have been able to tell.

 

[everything posh]

It is actually good luck to have rain on your wedding day! My hubby and I got married In Athens Greece in July. The temperature was about 100F and after our ceremony and pictures it rained for about 30sec!! Just a sprinkle! Our reception was outside as well at a club overlooking the sea and thankfully it didn't rain and everyone had a great time!

All you can do is hope for the best. 9 day forecasts are definitely not reliable! I also agree with the above poster that says the excitement and unplanned moments make great memories too!!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

Well, hopefully the weather is wrong, but the best way to handle it is to have a positive attitude and a backup plan.

- Can you rent a tent just in case?

- You can make plans for some rain pics out doors (with big umbrellas) and do the formal portraits indoors?

But I understand where you are coming from. My ceremony will be outdoors at a vineyard, there is space indoors if it rains, but it won''t be the same. Remember what you said, at the end of the day you are getting married!

 

[les12]

I''m actually getting married next friday, and there''s rain in our forecast too!! Our reception is being held in an outdoor location, which we''ll have tents for, but the thing I''m worried about is people finding places to park and walking to the venue. It''s in our downtown area and guests will be walking a block or two to get to the building, where the reception is on an outdoor terrace. It''s scary to think about but there''s nothing you can do! I''m praying for my wedding day so I''ll put in some prayers for yours too! Good luck!!

 

[doodle]

Absolute worst, you''ll get wet, and you''ll have a story to tell. Just roll with it--YOU''RE GETTIN'' MARRIED, WOOOOOO! Some friends of mine got married a few years ago, and their ceremony was planned at an outdoor venue with no back-up plan. Literally AS THE CEREMONY WAS SUPPOSED TO START, it started pouring, and I mean seriously pouring. Luckily, a nearby opera house let them move the ceremony to one of the halls in the theater, so they got married in there. Anyway, my point is, if you ask my friend her favorite memory from her wedding, she still busts out laughing and says, "Standing in the bathroom while all my bridesmaids and I used the hand dryer to blow dry our underwear!" You''re going to be so incredibly happy on your wedding day that water won''t stop ya, and as for the pictures, rain can make for some gorgeous shots. Check out here and this one and this, too.

 

[pancake]

Thanks all for your words of wisdom!

I have (thankfully - especially for my partner!) come out of my panicky thought vortex and am feeling positive about it all again!

We are lucky that we only have ourselves to worry about (it''s just the two of us!) - and that it''s pretty easy to cover two people with an umbrella! Our ceremony is supposed to be on an outdoor terrace but there are two other rooms which can be used indoors (and they are beautiful) if it rains.

Plus, we have the chance to have the glorious sunshine next year when we have our reception back home (European spring ceremony, Australian autumn reception - best of both worlds!).

(An aside - the online forecasts for the tiny town where we''re marrying are wildly divergent still - so the rain may yet hold off!

 

[Clairitek]

It threatened rain in the same % as your forecast on my wedding day and we didn''t see a drop. However, it was totally overcast but I think that actually worked out better for pictures. We werent squinting and the photographer didn''t have to deal with avoiding (or editing out) shadows. The colors around us really popped against the soft grey sky so a little bit of cloud cover could work out for you (hopefully with the precipitation).

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Pancake, honey please take a deep breath. It rained literally non stop for 32 days prior to my wedding last summer. The day before (the 4th of July) was the first sunny day and the weather was AMAZING on the 5th. It would be wise to have a back up plan in place. Speak with your photog, ask them what/where they suggest doing pictures in the event of rain. also, just because the forecast says rain doesn''t mean it will rain all day and be gray and gloomy. Just try and keep an open mind and not stress. This is one thing that you have absolutely no control over. So for your sanity, develop a plan B and then just let mother nature do her thing. Regardless of the weather, your day is going to be amazing!

 

[treefrog]

Haha. It''s hard enough to get accurate forecasts 48 hours out! Nothing to worry about at this point.

I''ve seen wedding photos (on here, I think) where the bridal party had matching umbrellas. It is a very different look from traditional photos and can actually add a lot of flair to the photos.

Treefrog