We're living in wild times I must say! About 93% of our events and weddings with LVLF Events (formerly known as Chiellabrate Events) have been postponed, rescheduled, or canceled this year 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. If it were any normal season, we'd be in the thick of wedding season, however covid19 had other plans! Fun thing is that we still have a small number of events still on board and ready to party this year! We are always down to celebrate and make sure our couples are happy with their decisions and we support and encourage you to do what is best for each other and your guests, our main goal is to celebrate and keep everyone safe and healthy. Here is what we are doing to prepare and plan for this year's 2020 weddings.
ONE: We must remain calm!
If you are deciding to keep moving forward and hold your wedding, it is a great time to especially book an event planner to help organize and navigate you through this wild event industry! It is important to stay informed and make educated decisions as more (reliable & credible) news becomes available, to keep everyone safe and informed, we should follow all protocol and guides the CDC recommends.
TWO: Reminder to one's self, everything can be figured out, there is always a solution to every problem.
This is a mantra that always kept me going and reminder that nothing is impossible, even more so than ever! Guidelines and things are changing every day, hour by hour, by week. So we do our best to be properly informed and not make any knee jerk reactions. The best thing to do is take in the news each day and create a plan full of actions, we typically have a Plan B(ackup) in place, but it is safe to say we must also have a plan C, D, to Z so we can make quick and informed decisions.
THREE: Thoroughly plan ahead! I've put together a checklist for ourselves and our couples & clients that are holding their wedding or event this year, a compiled list gathered from wedding industry experts and articles;
A) Talk to your venue;
- What are their current safety and cleaning protocols?
- How will you be handling social distancing guidelines?
- Can they hold your event in an outdoor space?
B) Check in and speak to your all vendors;
- How are they handling safety guidelines?
C) Keep everyone in the loop;
- Make sure to inform the couple + all guests in person & virtual + vendors and associates, with the full timeline, safety and social distancing guidelines while still having fun!
D) Be considerate to your guests;
- It can be overwhelming for guests to wear masks and having to remember to wash their hands, sanitize, stay 6ft away, and not touch anymore, but you can leave subtle sign reminders or inform them before hand via your wedding website or email so everyone knows what to expect on the day of.
E) Keep a smaller guest count;
- Safety guidelines states to gather with no more than 50 guests, this year "less is more" could be no more true than ever!
F) Space out tables & chairs;
- Covid restaurant style seating as of lately only holds a small specific amount of people in their outdoor space, but create a map/layout of the exact seating arrangement you'd like to organize for your rental company and coordination team to follow
- Keep seating table arrangements at most 4-6 persons and ideally of the same family group or household
G)Wear PPE, masks gloves, face shields.
- It will be up to the couple itself if you decide you'd want to wear your face masks throughout the whole event or not, however, we'd recommend all your vendors (especially food & catering) to wear PPE for the entire event. We'd also recommend your guests wear them if they are not seated at their dinner table, but this is something you should discuss with your planner and vendors the weeks leading up to your event or wedding day.
H) Practice routine hygiene throughout your event
- Create a sanitizing station with extra masks, lysol wipes, hand sanitizer, gloves and first aid kit that every guest can help themselves. Routinely check in to make sure your coordinator and vendors know to also utilize this area to wipe down any of their equipment and personal items.
I) Hold a Virtual Stream of your Wedding
- You'd love for more of your family and friends to be there, but we won't be holding any weddings more than 50 people. Figure out if you can have a camera and or computer setup for a live stream of your entire day!
J) Go the extra mile:
1) Have all your guests and vendors sign waivers
2) Bring temperature gauge and check all attendees temperature
3) Have all guests write out the last 5 places they've visited
4) Have guests write out the last 10 people they've been in contact with
5) Rather, have all guests and vendors test for COVID at least 5 days before your event
6) Bring vitamin C, echinacea, and any over the counter immunity remedies that can
help with preventing any sickness
This may be a lot and totally understand how overwhelming it can be. With that said, LOVE IS NEVER CANCELED and anything is possible... as long as you have the right coordination and planning team to help you celebrate, you can do this! If you are still on the fence and not sure you should be having your wedding or event, take a moment to gut check! How do you really feel? How do your guests feel? Why do you want to hold your wedding this year? If you are still unsure, I'd recommend to just wait until a vaccine is out and the new normal is in effect.... either way we are here to support you!
Love and Life,
Chiell Ann