Ah, weather. Planning an outdoor summer wedding in Ontario is truly like rolling the dice. I like to practice some intense manifesting when it comes to the weather and of course plan everything as if we’re going to get the perfect sunny and clear day. Yet Mother Nature has her own plans. I know the stress of refreshing the weather every 5 seconds, I talked a bit about this in my own bridal shower post here. In the end, the best we can do is have a solid rain plan and do what we can to still give our couples as much of the feeling and experience as originally envisioned.

I knew Tina & Scott from our Trinity College days so when they reached out to plan a chic and fun celebration in Toronto (they were living in NYC) I was so excited to help plan their special day. Through virtual site tours (before COVID made it a necessity) we booked the Gardiner Museum and planned for a a very elevated and contemporary wedding. When COVID hit, we postponed the plans, yet as time went on Tina and Scott knew they didn’t want to postpone again and didn’t want to be severely restricted in terms of service. They decided to significantly scale down their celebration and host it at Scott’s family home in Toronto.

Getting ready at my personal favourite, the Four Seasons in Yorkville, Tina and her bridesmaids spent a relaxing morning getting ready before heading over to the ceremony. Scott got ready at his family home and the ceremony took place at the family’s church.

When we decided to go ahead with this church and backyard plan, we didn’t have much time to make it all a reality since we waited as long as possible to see what the restrictions would be like. Blush and Bloom took my design and ran with it. They were completely on the same page and absolutely nailed the bright yet chic and garden focused vibe we were going for. In the end, it did rain and you can feel through the photos what the bright florals did for the whole atmosphere.

Since U of T and Trinity in particular holds such a special place for T & S, the plan was do take all of their photos on campus. As soon as they left the church and made it to campus it started raining. These are some of my favourite photos of them from the entire day. You can see how they didn’t let the weather spoil even a second of their day. They rolled with it, had fun and still got what they originally wanted.

We decided to keep the family and wedding party at the house for their portraits so Tina and Scott had some time to swing by the hotel and freshen up. Again, these bathtub photos get me every time. Chic and fun was the name of the game and you can just tell they had a great time (baos from Tina’s mom included!).

At home weddings have quickly become my favourite. You have more flexibility and can do some pretty neat things in your own space. Knowing we wanted to create and in and out kind of atmosphere in the house and backyard, we suggested a food truck in the front yard to save on catering/food display space and create a really fun element for the guests. Food Dudes were going to be the original caterer at the Gardiner anyway so it worked out perfectly that they have a stellar food truck already in their arsenal (this was my original plan for my own backyard wedding but didn’t make sense with just 25 people).

With a food truck in the front, grazing stations in the house and the bar in the back, it still encouraged flow and allowed guests to move through spaces without being stuck in one place. We modified the backyard plan due to the rain and had to put the bar on the deck under the tent (instead of a lounge) and moved lounges inside (which blended perfectly with the house and existing furniture). Tufts and Toile still installed lights in the backyard as the original plan called for a secret garden type of feel. With the tree cover and breaks in the rain, a lot of guests ended up staying outdoors anyway and Tina and Scott were able to have their first dance in the garden like atmosphere we envisioned.

As you can see, the rain didn’t stop this gorgeous celebration. Yes it wasn’t exactly as planned (x2 if you count the pre-COVID plans!) but we still managed to give them the look and feeling that they wanted for their day. The best part of this experience for me was how open and trusting Tina and Scott were. Planning their wedding from afar, they pretty much HAD to put their trust in me and with COVID and all the last minute changes, it was imperative to our successful relationship. A Pastiche Couple through and through.

My advice? Plan for the best, prepare for the worst and keep an open mind. Roll with whatever happens, stay focused on you and your partner and trust your vendors. The rest will work out, promise. Need a trusted professional to help guide your planning? I am currently taking on clients for 2023 and would love to meet the next Pastiche Couple. Reach out here!

Did you have a rainy celebration? How did you feel? Any tips? Let me know below!

The Team

Planning, Design & Styling: Pastiche Events @pastichebydesign

Photography: Christine Lim Photography @christinelimweddings

Florals: Blush and Bloom @blushandbloom

Vintage Lounge Rentals & Lighting: Tufts and Toile @tuftsandtoile

Catering: Food Dudes @fooddudes

Cake: Cakes by Mickey @cakesbymickey

Tent & Tent Lighting: Advanced Tent Rental @advancedtent

Rentals: Event Rental Group @eventrentalgroup

DJ: @whoiscpark

Stationery: @zola

Dress: @alexandragrecco via @lovelybride

Shoes: @jimmychoo

Intimate Wedding Series // Tina & Scott's Chic Rainy Backup Plan

The Team