Are you considering renewing your wedding vows? There are lots of reasons why you might want to reaffirm your love, whether celebrating an anniversary, including new children, getting through a rocky patch, or hosting your dream event. But whatever’s driving your decision, you’ll need to get planning.
The good news is you shouldn’t need to plan anywhere near as much as you might for an official first-time wedding. It’s unlikely you’ll need to spend as much either – which is great considering the average UK wedding cost £17,300 in 2021. Regardless, here are four key considerations when renewing your vows.
The scale of the ceremony
First, consider how big you want the event to be. You might want to go large if you had to have a much smaller ceremony the first time around. But in most cases, vow renewals are more low-key events.
Draw up a list of things you want to include – like a venue, refreshments and music – and create a plan to pay for it. That might mean using savings, borrowing from loved ones or taking out a loan, providing you have the funds to pay it back.
Your invite list
With an idea of the size of your ceremony, next up is your invite list. Drawing up invites can be awkward – especially if you don’t want to step on any toes. But there’s less pressure and obligation with vow renewals than there can be with full-blown weddings.
Want to throw a huge party with everyone you can think of? That’s your prerogative. Prefer something private? Then invite very few or no guests at all. It’s totally up to you!
One quirk is that you can choose anyone you like to officiate the ceremony. So you could ask a family member or friend if you don’t want to hire someone.
Location, location, location
A vow renewal isn’t a legal ceremony, so you can host it pretty much wherever you like without worrying about licensing restrictions. It’s common to choose a spot that holds particular significance for you and your partner.
That might mean hosting it in the exact location you met or a natural beauty spot you often escape to together. Or if you want to make things extra personal (and cheap!), you could even hold the ceremony in your garden.
Dress code
What will you wear for your second big day? Like all the points above, the choice is entirely yours. You could keep things smart casual or even don what you wore the first time around. Either way, don’t feel obliged to splash out on expensive get-up.
Just bear in mind you’ll need to give your guests dress code instructions too if you want to avoid a barrage of questions.
Renewing vows can be a life-affirming experience. If you’re confident you’ve weighed up all the points above, you’ll be set for a ceremony to remember.
