Video Blog Episode 7 – exactly 1 year to go!

Ciara Crossan — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 10:20:12 +0000

This week, Liz opens up about how tough the planning is when her family and friends live so far away. Watch the vid to catch all the updates on the date, church and venue!

Missed previous episodes? Catch up on what you missed so far with Liz’s Bridal Video Blog…

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VBlog Episode 6: Kilts & Colour Schemes

Ciara Crossan — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:00:26 +0000

This week, our Bride-to-Be Liz talks about the Colour Scheme for the wedding, setting the date and discussing the ceremony type with the priest.

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Disaster Dates! Dates to Avoid in 2009 and 2010

Ciara Crossan — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 22:53:50 +0000

Generally immediately after engagement, the first thing a couple does is decide on their wedding date. (After she has the ring on her finger she is probably not likely to let him wiggle out of it at that stage!) The date will set the whole tone for the wedding including venues, menus, colour schemes etc. depending on the time of year and the season. Here are some dates that you might consider a ‘no-no’ in terms of wedding planning. This is just intended to be a guide and force you to consider hard the impact the date has on your wedding. You may want to think twice before scheduling your wedding at these times.

Holiday Weekends

Holiday weekend wedding have pros and cons. You’ve got an extra day for the festivities (and recovery!), plus with the new reforms of Marriage Law, civil ceremonies can be held outside of the registry office which opens up Sundays as a potential day to get married. It can be easier to host the affair on Sunday, which is often less expensive than Saturday events. However, costs of travel and hotels may be higher. Also, having your wedding on a holiday weekend might adversely affect your guest list. Some families have standing holiday weekend plans or traditions that they’d prefer not to have disrupted.

St Patricks Weekend
If you are getting married in Springtime, consider the implications of having the event on St Patricks weekend, which is the weekend closest to the 17th March. In Dublin, and other large cities there will be road closures for parades and festivities and if you are travelling from church to venue, consider timing if you have to drive through small towns as almost everywhere will have some sort of parade, no matter how small!

2009 – 14th/15th/16th March
2010 – 13th/14th/15th March

Whit Weekend/May Bank Holiday
Always falls on the first weekend in May. Watch out for seasonal local festivals such as the Kinsale 7’s Rugby weekend in Cork, which could make planning a wedding particularly difficult due to an increase in visitors, lack of accommodation and lots of revellers on the streets during the day and night.

2009 – 2nd/3rd/4th May
2010 – 1st/2nd/3rd May

June Bank Holiday Weekend
The June Bank Holiday is always the first weekend in June. Beware that it can fall on the last days of May leading into June, such as in 2009.

2009 – May 30th/31st/June 1st
2010 – June 5th/6th/7th

August Bank Holiday Weekend
Each year, many events are scheduled over the August Bank Holiday weekend – make sure you check your wedding location for possible music festivals, sporting fixtures or other events that may disrupt your plans.

2009 – August 1st/2nd/3rd
2010 – July 31st/August 1st/2nd

October Bank Holiday Weekend
Last weekend in October annually, usually in the lead up to mid-term break in Primary Schools.

2009 – 24th/25th/26th October
2010 – 23rd/24th/25th October

Religious Holidays

Be mindful of religious holidays (yours and your guests’) when planning your wedding. There may even be restrictions at your church or house of worship as to whether you’re allowed to marry at these times.

Palm Sunday

2009 – April 5th
2010 – March 28th

Easter Sunday

2009 – April 12th
2010 – April 4th

Passover (begins at sunset the night before)

2009 – Thursday, April 9th
2010 – Tuesday, March 30th

Christmas

2009 – Friday, December 25th
2010 – Saturday, December 25th

Costly Holidays

If you’re looking to marry around Valentine’s Day, be wary of your floral bill, especially if you’ve got your heart set on red roses — they’re likely to be more costly than at any other time of the year. Likewise, reception sites often charge a higher fee for a New Year’s Eve wedding. These can be a romantic dates to get married, but beware of date availability. Some venues will get booked up for Valentines Day and New Years Eve, years in advance and costs may be higher due to the popularity of the dates also.

Valentines Day

February 14th 2009 – Saturday
February 14th 2010 – Sunday

New Year’s Eve

Thursday, December 31, 2009
Friday, December 31, 2010

Notable Holidays

April Fool’s Day
If you and your fiancé are jokesters at heart, this could be the perfect wedding day for you. If not, choose another day.

Wednesday, April 1st 2009
Thursday, April 1st 2010

Mother’s Day (Always a Sunday)
Make sure your mom is okay with sharing this weekend with your wedding — but it could be the perfect opportunity to honour her. If you do choose it, at your day-after brunch make a toast to all the mothers in the room.

2009 – 22nd March
2010 – 14th March

Father’s Day (Always a Sunday)
Ditto for Dad.

2009 – 21st June
2010 -20th June

Halloween
Avoid it if you’re terrified that someone might actually show up in costume!

2009 – Saturday, October 31st
2010 – Sunday October 31st

GAA All Ireland Final (Always a Sunday)
A huge influx of people travel to Dublin each September for the All Ireland final and this may be a consideration if you are getting married in Dublin or the surrounding towns due to increased traffic. Usually held on the 3rd weekend in September, date for 2010 has not yet been confirmed.

2009 – 20th September

Quirky Dates

8/8/08: Although it lands on a Friday, numerological significance and the novelty of marrying on a date that occurs once in a lifetime make 8/8/08 an attractive wedding date.
03/06/09 falls on a Friday
09/09/09 falls on a Wednesday

Other Dates to Avoid

College graduations, big conventions in your city (call your local chamber of commerce), and any annual charity events that involve your family or close friends. Other notable festivals include:

Kilkenny Cat Laughts – around June Bank Holiday weekend
Oxegen Music Festival, Punchestown/Naas, Co. Kildare Mid July annually
Galway Races – last week of July annually
Electric Picnic Music Festival, Stradbally/Portlaoise, Co. Laois – last weekend in August/First weekend in September annually
Guiness Jazz Festival, Cork – October Bank Holiday weekend annually

How about you…any disaster dates you want to tell us about, or local festivals items that I have not covered here…leave a comment and let all our readers know!

Like this? You might also like:

The Bride is Always Late: Irish Wedding Blog from WeddingDates.ie » wedding date

Video Blog Episode 7 – exactly 1 year to go!

VBlog Episode 6: Kilts & Colour Schemes

Disaster Dates! Dates to Avoid in 2009 and 2010

Holiday Weekends

Religious Holidays

Costly Holidays

Notable Holidays

Quirky Dates

Other Dates to Avoid