Couples feeling some relief over tying the knot as restrictions ease

After two years of cancellations, postponements and small ceremonies, Angela Hodel says the wedding industry is ready for a packed season of nuptials.

The wedding and events planner and owner of Imagine Events said the removal of proof of vaccination and masking restrictions by the end of the month have couples excited but wary of more potential change ahead.

“Because of the ongoing landscape of having restrictions and then not having restrictions and then having them again, I think people are kind of already preparing for kind of the worst-case scenario,” Hodel said.

While the removal of restrictions means couples with a fast-approaching date won’t have to deal with the extra pandemic hassle, couples with dates further away are still reluctant to feel relief, having seen many changes already while planning for their special day.

It’s a reality of weddings that most couples have accepted since COVID-19, Hodel explained.

She said there have been a lot more outdoor weddings with smaller guest lists planned because preparing for a “plan B” can mean fewer changes later on, plus no masks. The feeling of relief comes when a couple comes within a month or two of their date. The promise by Premier Scott Moe that masking requirements will expire at the end of the month has been especially well-received.

“People that are having their weddings, they don’t want to have to wear masks,” Hodel said, referring to their ceremony, photos or any other special moment in between.

Given the penchant for Saskatchewan’s weather to change quickly and without notice, the possibility that a wedding gets sent inside becomes a lot less tiresome without a mask requirement.

Hodel said some couples will likely still require proof of vaccination, but in other cases, venues will continue to require that on the behalf of couples. She thinks this is likely particularly with the upcoming spring months, just after the mandate is lifted.

“Some of those restrictions will still be in place just depending on when and where the couple is getting married,” she said.

That isn’t likely something to throw most couples into a frenzy at this point in the pandemic, though.

“People — now that we’ve been through this for the past two years — are very accepting of whatever the rules might be in place for their day,” Hodel said.

Many last-minute changes have made couples over the past two years flexible and willing to accommodate various scenarios so they can finally say “I do.” But that doesn’t mean couples are necessarily less stressed when it comes to preparing for their big day.

“No, no! Not at all!” Hodel said with a chuckle when asked if there were fewer bridezilla moments now, with couples having become so well-adjusted to pandemic planning.

Hodel herself said she doesn’t like to use the term “bridezilla,” because planning a wedding can be stressful in any situation.

“Wedding and event planning can be very overwhelming, regardless (of) who’s getting married, regardless of whether there’s COVID or no COVID,” she explained.

“I think people are just more flexible in regards to their planning and their expectations.”

She said trends for the upcoming wedding boom in the warmer months of 2022 will include smaller guest lists and more outdoor events, like intimate backyard and barbecue celebrations.

“If there’s anything that we’ve learned over the past two years is that there’s less chance of restrictions and changes … if you can have a safer, socially distanced wedding,” Hodel said.
“People are just a bit more comfortable with that.”

The era of large guest lists of several hundred people that was much more common pre-pandemic seems to have largely passed, although some couples do opt for more people.

Hodel said the biggest change is that more people are planning local elopements — similar to a destination wedding, but where a couple and their select guest list will travel to a local prairie destination instead, like a fishing resort in northern Saskatchewan.

“I think that’s a really fun trend for people to do to support their local economy,” Hodel said.

Imagine Events also offers a pop-up wedding service as its take on the mini-mony — a smaller wedding ceremony that Hodel said is a classier take on the city hall vow exchange.

She encouraged couples who are engaged or planning their weddings already to heed her advice that it’s “never too early” to start planning.

That’s especially true with this wedding season already nearly fully booked. Hodel said everyone from wedding planners to photographers to DJs have full calendars.