An ideal wedding is supposed to be the most important and happiest day of your life, but this year, due to COVID-19, the wedding industry has been altered. Whether it be because a family doesn’t feel comfortable flying or because they can’t find decent weather for an outdoor venue, “Weddings this year have been majorly affected.”

Brides and grooms have had to make a big decision about whether or not to cut the guest list or to simply keep everything virtual. For those brides and grooms that decided to cut the list, a big decision had to be made. For this article, I interviewed my cousin, Tracy Kaufman, who got married in November 2020, and two of her friends, who got married this past year.

When I asked Tracy about cutting the guest list, she replied, “No, we didn’t because we did everything outside. It was a higher limit. We invited close to 200 people, but only about 40 felt comfortable coming.”

I attended Tracy’s wedding, and it was very safe. We wore masks at the ceremony, and right when it was time to eat and drink, we were separated by families and were able to eat a delicious meal. The night was extremely fun, and they did an excellent job.

Some people weren’t as lucky, like Tracy’s friend Alli who said, “Yes, we cut the list from 200 to 150. We had to make decisions based on family and close friends. We had to consider who would be devastated if they couldn’t spend that weekend/day with us.” She could still celebrate and enjoy her day, just not the way she always thought she would.

Another huge problem is the weather as many weddings are outdoors, and the weather is a factor that people cannot easily control. The weather on the day of Tracy’s wedding was cold, considering it was mid-fall, but they did everything they could to supply heaters at every table and allow people inside the building for heat and restrooms. Poor weather definitely can’t stop weddings. However, it definitely can majorly affect it regardless of anyone’s wishes.

Since so many weddings were pushed back, finding a venue at the same time as many other couples has been and is very difficult. However, when I asked Tracy if she had a hard time finding a venue, she replied that she did not.

“We booked the venue in the summer of 2019. Our original wedding date was May 31, 2020. We decided to postpone it at the end of March 2020 to November 2020. The venue was very accommodating and changed the date,” Tracy explained. For couples that didn’t get as lucky as Tracy and her now-husband Bryan, they had to do a lot of researching to find the perfect venue.

Alli said, “The venue wasn’t hard to find, but they canceled all events of 2021 … so we were forced to find a new venue. Luckily we have a large backyard … and we made the venue outside for more people. Some couples decided to make the best out of what they could and just did backyard weddings. Especially after this year, it makes sense that couples are grateful to have each other, allowing them to value their marriage or relationship with their significant other much more.