Nontraditional weddings are becoming more and more popular these days. We (the owners of Mundo Catering, Javier and Sarah), had a nontraditional wedding and wanted to share a few ideas with you as you plan your big day.
Our Favorite Nontraditional Wedding Trends
Gone are the days where a couple got married in a church and had a lavish reception elsewhere. Instead, venues are changing, clothes are changing, food is changing, and even wedding formats are changing. Here are a few of our fave trends that we used in our own wedding – and which we hope you’ll consider in yours:
1. Rock your frock
We aren’t living in the Victorian era – so why does the bride have to wear a long white dress or the groom wear a suit? Heck, weddings no longer require the dynamic of a bride and groom. They can have a groom and groom or a bride and bride, too.
We love the trend of wearing clothes that look fabulous and make you feel amazing. If you don’t love white, go with a different color! Sarah still wishes she had rocked the purple dress she initially chose for her wedding day (she conceded to her mother and wore a white dress).
Additionally, there’s no need to have a matchy-matchy or uber formal bridal party. Instead, the couple to be wed can just pick a color or theme and ask the bridal party to match it.
2. Don’t suffer through “wedding food.”
Ugh, how many of us have tossed down a few extra glasses of bubbly to get that cardboard wedding food tastes out of our mouths? Instead of going with overpriced, and frankly gross wedding food – try something fun!
Serve finger food, have a potluck, go with breakfast for dinner, eat off a taco truck, or go with “late night” food like sliders or pizza.
Sarah and Javier are professional caterers, so of course, the catered their own wedding. They cooked a Mexican buffet of carnitas, shredded chicken, rice, and beans for their 300 guests. Javier’s family surprised the couple with pickled habanero to highlight the special night. Sarah didn’t have a label for the surprise menu addition, so one family member had a bit of a surprise in his meal – but it all ended up okay.
3. You are not stuck with cake.
Not everyone likes cake, and frankly – you don’t have to have it at your wedding if it’s not something you want. There are a million other delicious desserts to serve like cookies, donuts, brownies, macaroons, gingerbread, pantone, truffles, and more.
Sarah and Javier had “cupcakes” displayed on cookbooks. The trick was that the cupcakes weren’t cakes – they were incredible brownie and tiramisu cupcakes cooked by Sarah’s aunt. People still ask for the recipe!
4. Don’t want to plan it all? Hire a wedding coordinator
Traditionally a bride dreamed of her wedding day for her entire life. All she had to look forward to as a youth was the prospect of bagging a good husband.
This does not represent our modern couples. If you or your partner want a fabulous day, but don’t want the stress of pulling it together or are too busy – hire a coordinator. A wedding coordinator is there to both provide guidance and to think of every single detail of your wedding – so you don’t have to. Sarah wishes she had hired a wedding coordinator as she and Javier got married during a time when they were both extremely busy professionally, and it would have taken some of the stress off of the wedding day to have had a wedding coordinator.
5. Want to get hitched now but don’t have the time or budget for an immediate honeymoon – no problem.
There’s no rule written in stone that you have to, 100%, always have your honeymoon right after your wedding. If it’s not convenient for you to take a vacation after your wedding day – then don’t! Just plan the honeymoon for another date when it’s convenient for you and your spouse.
Sarah and Javier stayed in a B&B during the wedding, but Javier had to go back to work a couple of days after the big day. So, they split the fun and had a European vacation a few years later. This made the wedding and vacation much less stressful and allowed them to enjoy their time together.
Sarah’s advice for planning a nontraditional wedding is: prepare in advance and have the right people there to help you.
Are you planning a nontraditional wedding? We would love to cater your special day! Contact Mundo Catering to find out how we can help.