5 Top tips to get the most from your winter wedding…

Winter doesn’t quite get the recognition it deserves when it comes to weddings. For one, it’s an event that all of your guests will really look forward to during these typically quieter, less social months. In Gloucestershire, February and April are typically amongst the driest months of the year, and April 2020 certainly demonstrated that it can offer the most incredible weather. January and February’s cold, crisp mornings are simply stunning and opportunities for wedding photos will be unique and spectacular.

Tipis are Nordic structures, designed to withstand the cold winters, so there’s no reason you can’t or shouldn’t have your winter wedding in Giant Tipis. Enter through wooden doors to your cosy and unique winter wedding reception. You’ll feel warm and cosy with the fire pits burning and the canvas tucked in all around, fastened closely to the ground. You can look out over the wolds with panoramic window panels, and an outdoor fire pit and festoon lit area will make the outdoor space just as atmospheric as the interior.

Sound interesting? Here are 5 of our top tips for planning your winter wedding

1. THE WINTER SOLSTICE

Nights draw in earlier on winter days so make sure you have adequate lighting. Festoon lights look fantastic and can be used to light up outside your tipis or to create a walkway to the loos. Solar lights or battery powered fairy lights look magical when wrapped around or hung from trees, and can be used to guide your guests back to the car park.

2. FIRE PITS AND THERMOSTATIC MARQUEE HEATERS

We know that worrying about the cold is possibly going to be your biggest concern if you’re planning a winter wedding, let alone a winter tipi wedding. However, we just wouldn’t let your day be ruined by not recommending how to warm up the space. Nordic tipis are made for cold temperatures, and thermostatic marquee / tipi heaters are an effective and inexpensive way to warm them up. Indoor fire pits are almost synonymous with tipis to give off a warm ambience too. Depending on the size of your event, you may want one or two heaters, but either way it’ll be money well spent knowing that you won’t need to worry about you or your guests feeling cold.

3. INCREDIBLE PHOTOS

Don’t miss those amazing photo opportunities! Crisp mornings, the Cotswold hills shrouded in mist… we live in one of the most beautiful places in the country and winter here is beautiful! If it’s an icy morning, your wedding dress will look incredible against the frosted backgrounds in your pics.

4. CATER TO THE SEASON

We’re talking about food that’ll make your guests feel warm and gooey on the inside. Ask your caterer to get creative, swap your cold canapes for hot ones and serve hot cocktails, mulled wine and hot chocolate in the evening. We’ve got so many wonderful farms and delicious, seasonal produce around us, you can have amazing food, support local farms and keep down your food miles.

5. HIRE BLANKETS TO COSY UP IN

While dancing and a few boozy drinks are bound to keep you warm, offering blankets and hot water bottles is a lovely touch, especially for less mobile guests who might want something to cosy up in. Blankets are easily hired (Cotswold Tipis hire them in sets of 20) or you could offer blankets and hot water bottles as your wedding favours.