With this ring, I see shed: Celebrants reveal couples are ripping up all their big plans for their big day and tying the knot in the back garden
Couples desperate to marry during Covid are ripping up plans for their big day and getting hitched in their back gardens.
Wi t h numbers attending weddings cut to just 20, including the bride and groom, home celebrations have taken off.
The walk down the aisle has instead become a stroll down the garden path to exchange vows yards from the drying green and kitchen window.
Rebekah Morris, 25, married her Australian fiance Matt King, 30, at her grandparents’ home in Cumbernauld.
She linked her dad Gordon’s arm as neighbours cheered in the quiet North Lanarkshire cul de sac. Her grandparents Christine and Larry built an archway of flowers over the path to the back garden.
Rebekah met Matt when she worked in Perth, Australia, two years ago and the couple soon became inseparable.
“My visa expired and I returned home to Glasgow with Matt and we arranged to marry in the plush Eastwood House in East Renfrewshire on August 1,” said Rebekah. “However, when lockdown closed venues, we had to abandon our plans. Matt’s family had to cancel their flights from Australia and we didn’t know when we would marry.”
When weddings resumed in July Christine and Larry kindly asked if they wanted to marry in their back garden.
Rebekah said: “I had almost grown up in the house, from when I was baby, and it was a wonderful idea.
“Home is where the heart is, they say, and we planned for 15 guests. My beautiful dress was perfect for a posh venue or garden and I left by the
front door, down the garden path, while neighbours cheered and raised glasses in the street.”
Matt’s family were booked up to visit Scotland before the coronavirus pandemic but their flights were cancelled due to the new restrictions so they instead watched online from Australia, eight hours ahead.
“My gran has always doted on her garden and it was a picture,” said Rebekah. “We were offered an alternative date at Eastwood House but by then we had our hearts set on marrying at home. There’s something very romantic about marrying at a house with wonderful childhood memories.”
Her brother, David, iced a three-layer wedding cake, despite not being a baker. The traditional handfasting was with a tartan ribbon and a scarf with the Australian flag, and the garden was decorated with eucalyptus leaves.
Humanist wedding celebrant Maureen Kettle said: “Rebekah and Matt are the sixth couple I have married at home during Covid. Others have taken their vows in woods by their homes.
“Love will find a way. If a family home is filled with happy memories then it’s a perfect venue. Rebekah’s family and indeed her neighbours made their day special.”
Disposable cups of fizzy wine were placed in the street for the neighbours to toast the couple and some had festooned their gardens with beautiful flowers.
Matt said: “When Rebekah left the front door I could hear a big cheer and knew she was about to arrive.”
Rebekah added: “Our original venue was costing £ 1,000 to hire alone, without buying even a sandwich, far less the wedding meal. No doubt our funds will go on something else, but that is the nature of life.”
Indoor and outdoor wedding venues are currently restricted to a maximum of 20 people, excluding celebrant and interpreter.
Outdoor marriages or civil partnerships are recommended due to the reduced risk of transmission.