How to Postpone a Wedding
Postponing a wedding is probably not your first choice, but it happens. Contemplating postponement with your fiance can be one of the hardest conversations to have and an incredibly difficult decision to make. Although we cannot help the decision-making process be any less challenging, we can help with the steps to take once you've decided to pull the trigger. We’ve consolidated the process into three easy steps for brides to effectively and efficiently do the legwork of postponing a wedding.
Step 1: Contact all your vendors
Contacting your vendors may seem like common sense, but the trick is to make sure you’re asking the right questions. The first thing you want to address is if there’s a fee to postpone. Be sure to ask about ALL possible postponement dates. Sometimes there’s no charge to postpone if you choose a date within a certain amount of months or within the same calendar year. Get as much info as possible and request that they be specific!
You also want to ask vendors what future dates they have available. For example, ask about Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays in September, October, and November. Get more options than you think you need in case one of your vendors has minimal availability (for example if your beloved videographer is booked every Saturday for 6 months!) Once you know all your vendors’ availability, you’ll be able to cross reference and pin-point dates they’re all available, or more likely, dates most have available. It’s not always possible to reschedule all vendors to the same date, so be prepared to sacrifice one of them, or to choose a date that maybe wasn’t your first choice in order to get the majority of them on board.
The last question you want to ask vendors is how much it would cost to cancel altogether. It’s not that you would cancel the wedding, but you may need to cancel services if you opt for a new date when a vendor is not available. This information could sway your decision. For example, if there’s a large fee for canceling your photographer, you may prioritize him and choose a date that he can do instead of another date where more of the vendors align.
Step 2: Check with your VIPs before signing new contracts or addendums.
Reach out to parents, grandparents, siblings, and your bridal party. You may be ready to pull the trigger on a certain date and then find out that your MOH will be on a cruise that weekend. Can you say #gamechanger?! And wouldn’t you rather that be a close call than a huge dilemma?
Once you’ve put all the pieces together and choose a date, it’s safe to request updated contracts/addendums from vendors for your new date. Read the new addendums carefully. Be sure everyone has the correct date and that the fees and payment schedule are included and correct. It’s a good idea to have all addendums signed before moving on to step three.
Step 3: Notify guests of the postponement AND new date
By doing this step last, you’re bypassing loads of questions from all your guests. If you notify them of a postponement before you have your new date, you’re bound to hear from your mom’s Aunt Em wondering when the new date is. Wait until you have all the info and notify everyone of the postponement and new date at the same time to eliminate confusion and extra work.
Once you’ve arrived at notifying the guests, that means it’s time to let yourself have a little fun! At this point you’ll be able to see the light of the end of the tunnel, so find some ways to make it fun! Get creative with how you share the news. There are free apps where you can make a quick graphic to match the style of your wedding. Draw something up on your phone or computer and start sending it out! Don’t feel confident that you can create something you’re proud of? Reach out to a graphic designer or your invitation vendor to see what kind of postponement announcements are available for purchase.
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