The weather plays an important role in weddings, especially if the ceremony or some of the day's activities are planned under the open sky. The weather creates the mood of the day, affects the comfort of the couple and the guests, and also sometimes forces to make adjustments in the planned wedding scenario, so the upcoming weather forecast causes quite a bit of stress for couples. However, it is worth remembering that your love festival will be perfect in any weather, as long as various organizational and practical nuances are thought out in time, as well as you take all the turns of events with an open mind and adjust to the fact that all possible scenarios will be equally successful.

Wedding planners Iluta Piternika and Renāte Mākulēna share their experience and recommendations to make the wedding perfect, despite the surprises that Latvia's changing weather can bring.

Let's start with the fact that it is simple to accept - the weather in Latvia is unpredictable, especially in summer. From thunderstorms to heat waves - in Latvia we can experience all the possible magnificence of nature. In fact, it is a great advantage because, as Renāte Mākulēna confirms, you can use any weather to your advantage on the wedding day if you know the right tricks and keep an open mind.

She recommends evaluating how much the mood will be affected by weather that does not match your plans, if you have chosen to hold the wedding ceremony outdoors and you definitely do not want to change it. You should try to adjust to the fact that the event will be a success in any case, instead of living in stress all the time waiting for the wedding because the only scenario that you have dreamed of may fail due to unfavorable weather forecast.

Venue selection and plan B

Iluta Piternika says that, of course, every couple believes that it will not rain at their wedding, but reality remains reality, so she advises against open-air ceremonies by the sea, in forests and elsewhere, where there is no possibility to quickly implement plan B. She recommends choosing places for ceremonies and photo sessions where there are rooms nearby to shelter from the rain.

More and more couples are daring to hold their wedding dinner outside, it is also possible to implement it, only on the condition that they also have a plan B in mind. The main thing is to be able to adapt in case on the wedding day it turns out that the idea of celebrating under the open sky cannot be implemented due to the weather. However, this does not mean that it is not worth the risk. She held a wedding last summer in a place where there was a very beautiful area, but a small celebration hall, so the dinner tables were set under the starry sky and everything turned out charmingly, not a single drop of rain fell.

Piternika's advice for couples who are not so important that the wedding scenario is planned exactly and who are ready to leave room for interpretation in it - watch the weather forecast on the morning of the wedding and if the ceremony is scheduled for five, but it is clear that it will rain, but the sun will shine at six, then change the plan and move the ceremony to six. It is not impossible and nothing can be missed on a day dedicated only to the couple. There might even be a rainbow that will make everyone happy.

Renāte Mākulēna adds that you can plan ahead to rent a canopy, which will allow you to hold the ceremony in the planned place, preserving the feeling of the open air, if it turns out that the weather does not allow it to be done completely under the open sky. It is also worth thinking about a structure that will provide a leeward wind during the ceremony and celebration, if strong gusts of wind surprise you on the wedding day. In any case, when planning to use some rooms or build sheds, if necessary, the service staff must also be informed about this plan B in order to be able to implement it together.

Comfort of the bride and groom

If you plan to spend a large part of the wedding day outside, you should think about matching the makeup and the wedding hairstyle. For an outdoor wedding, natural makeup in a thin layer that won't smudge, and hairdo that will look good even if it's slightly affected by the wind. Renāte Mākulēna tells how important it is to find a good make-up artist, beautician or make-up artist who will be able to apply make-up that won't run off with sweat drops in the summer heat or that won't wash off in the rain. In addition, a trial of both wedding makeup and hairstyle should be done to understand how durable everything will be.

When choosing a wedding dress and wedding clothing, you should consider how it is suitable for different weather conditions. Renāte Mākulēna reminds that, although the new couple may feel neither cold nor hot in the emotions of the wedding day, they still need to think about additional clothes or the possibility to transform them. If it's cold, the bride should keep a blazer, jacket or other clothing that matches the wedding dress and theme.

If the wedding date is in winter or early spring, late autumn, she recommends also providing boots, woolen socks, beautiful gloves. It is also advisable for the groom to think about additional clothing. Although men always say that everything will be fine with them, experience shows that they are not always right in this matter. After all, the comfort of not only the bride but also the groom is important on the wedding day.

Guests should not be forgotten either. Renāte Mākulēna recommends providing, for example, blankets, raincoats and, after the ceremony, the possibility to warm up with coffee, tea, balm or other hot drinks. Guests can also be notified in advance that they should arrive in appropriate clothing if the ceremony or any activities are planned outside. You may be instructed to bring raincoats, umbrellas, blankets, or anything else that you are not prepared to provide yourself but may be useful for an outdoor ceremony or celebration. It should be kept in mind here - if it is important that every last detail is coordinated and contained in the overall style, then it is better to provide all this to the guests, so that everyone does not come with an umbrella of their own color.

Rain on the wedding day

The biggest fear of future spouses is probably rain on the wedding day. However, it is an external factor that cannot really be influenced. You can only change your attitude towards it, so it is preferable to approach this problem a little philosophically. Iluta Piternika tells its couples - if you are not ready to kiss in the rain, then don't plan an outdoor wedding in Latvia at all.

If a couple wants to control everything in life and worry about everything, then every drop of rain will knock them out of their balance and comfort zone. She herself has been to weddings where the ceremony started two hours later because the bride was crying because of the rain and didn't go to get married while the groom was stressed about what was going on. Therefore, you should honestly evaluate your character and how you are likely to react if something does not go according to plan, and choose the wedding venue and concept accordingly.

If the couple sticks to the idea of holding the ceremony under the open sky and believes that a sudden rain will not be able to spoil their mood on the special day, then all the practical nuances can also be solved. Iluta Piternika reminds us that there is such a thing as transparent umbrellas that work wonders. She says that it is not for nothing that many wedding photos receive awards in the "Ceremony in the rain" category.

Transparent umbrellas are very photogenic and there are many pictures on the internet of beautiful ceremonies in the rain, so it can definitely be done. It is important that umbrellas are for everyone, including the registrar, because in her experience there is a case where a representative of the registry office arrives with a bright red umbrella, even though the wedding was held in white.

Renāte Mākulēna also says that in wedding photo sessions, the rain often brightens and highlights the colors in pictures and videos, especially in summer. in this respect, however, she reminds that the photographer and videographer should be chosen responsibly, because only professionals and artists with experience will be able to capture the scenes brought to life by the rain in all their glory.

If the weather does not meet the couple's wishes, there are quite a few beautiful indoor photo session locations in Latvia, which, of course, must be agreed in advance. Another nuance - you need to make sure where all the technical equipment necessary for the wedding will be placed, such as photo, sound and other equipment. It's best to just plan a safe and dry place for all of this so that you don't have to move the equipment in case of rain.

Prepare, but do not exaggerate the importance of the weather

Iluta Piternika, while organizing weddings for many years, has observed that couples are worried about the elements of nature until the wedding, but on the wedding day they are overwhelmed with each other, emotions and do not notice them at all. There have been many situations where you have to start right away, like the first look, she warns the couple that it's raining outside, but they haven't noticed it at all. The day's events continue and the rain is not a source of stress at all. According to her experience, she could not say that any couple was completely unhappy on their wedding day because of the weather. The same is confirmed by Renāte Mākulēna. She has encountered various weather conditions in her wedding planning experience: rain and +16°C in June, snow and +3°C in early May, rain during the ceremony, +33°C in August and so on.

However, all the couples' weddings were perfect! The weather should be nothing to fight against. Nature also tends to bring surprises and you have to allow yourself and use natural phenomena to your advantage. Iluta Piternika shares another idea - if it really rains on the wedding night and the bride has another outfit, then you can invite a photographer, videographer and organize a party and dance in the rain. In the evening, everything has already been done, the ceremony and the photo session have already taken place, so you don't have to be afraid of the rain anymore and you can turn it into an effective performance. Photos and emotions will be grand. If there is a pool nearby, you can safely jump into it. The main thing is to make the most of the situation.

When discussing wedding scenarios for different weather conditions, Renāte Mākulēna always advises couples to listen to themselves. How important is the weather to you? Is the weather a problem? Or something we know we can't change? And if we can't change it, why not enjoy the moment with each other and guests, despite the elements? It's all about how we look at it and how we feel about it.

Author of the article: Renate Berga

Story: wedding planners Iluta Piternika / MintDeco and Renāte Mākulēna

Photo: Scarlet O'Neill, M&J Studio, Gabe McClintock, Jordan Woth,