Over the weekend, I asked my best friend if she considered a backyard wedding. Already, the backyard wedding is a celebrity trend. Just ask Tori Spelling who wed Charlie Shanian in 2004 at the Beverly Hills estate of her father, TV producer Aaron Spelling… but then again most of us dont have a spare 56,000-foot garden. On a more relatable level, Elton John and David Furnish celebrated their 2005 wedding at John’s Windsor Estate, where guests socialised on two giant tents in his backyard. Liz Taylor married Larry Fortensky in 1991 at Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch, in Los Olivos, California and Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston tied the knot in 2000 at the Malibu estate of TV producer Marcy Carsey.

I remember watching a video of Ellen Degeneres and Portia di Rossi’s wedding in their own backyard. It was an intimate and elegant affair. Ellen had joked that she was going to use her Emmy as a cake topper!

One of the biggest advantage of a backyard wedding is no venue fee (which can be huge in some popular and expensive places) In addition, you avoid getting tied up with a certain contractor or vendor which the venue is contractually obliged to recommend (e.g. specific catering company tied to the venue) and you will avoid the ridiculous corkage fees that venues charge. Backyard weddings offer a chance to bring in the most competitive and unique caterers and if you were on a budget, you could even make the food yourselves.

Ive researched somethings you should watch out for in planning your backyard wedding:

1. Cost - I initially thought that a backyard wedding would be significantly cheaper since you dont have a venue fee or expensive vendors and corkage fees to worry about. However, I have read that some backyard weddings can go over the average $20,000 wedding budget because there are more costs of hiring equipments and tableware. The most expensive costs will be decorating your home and your backyard. One couple spent thousands renovating their backyard but they thought of it as investment in their home and they were happy to have spent their wedding money on that. Here is a breakdown of one couple’s wedding under $4,000!

Venue: Free (backyard)
Music: Free (family friend played ceremony music on guitar & we used an iPod for the reception)
Photography: Free (brother-in-law is a photographer)
Officiant: Free (cousin got certified online)
Food: $500
Wine & Drinks: $100
Cupcakes & S’mores: $125
Table & Chair Rentals: $350
Centerpieces: $70
Save The Dates/Invitations/Thank Yous (With Postage): $260
Favors: $75
Servingware: $250
Fabric For Tablecloths & Runners: $300
Lighting & Candles: $120
Flip Flops/Photo Clothesline/Welcome Sign: $75
Mosquito Sticks/Candles/Spray: $50
Bouquet: $20
Attire: $500
Photo Booth: $1200 (the one big splurge- and so worth it)
TOTAL: $3995

2. Logistics - Remember to look at realistic physical constraints you may have. Ask yourself if your backyard can actually hold as many wedding guests as you would like to invite. Remember the parking restrictions or arrange a shuttle from the wedding ceremony to the reception. In addition, think about your neighbours and how to keep them content. You may not have to go out of your way as to invite them to the wedding itself but a slice of a wedding cake and some other gifts may appease them in some way.

3. Hiring arrangements - With a backyard, you will have a blank canvas and so you have to source your own tables, tents, table ware etcs. Use a catering company or ask friends.

4. Weather considerations - You may not be able to have an open air wedding in the winter. However, if you have a good tent/marquee and some heaters, you too can have a winter wonderland! Remember that backyards may not offer much flexibility in terms of dealing with tempermental weather. One of my work colleagues just came back from a wedding in Bordeaux this weekend and it rained heavily for a few minutes… thus soaking their marquee was only suitable for sunny weather. You need to think of all alternative arrangements and may even want to hire a backup hotel.

For your final consideration, remember that if you do decide on a backyard wedding, then years later, when you watch the autumn leaves fall and your children playing in the yard, you can look back on your glorious wedding day and recall the exact place you exchanged your sacred vows… sigh.. now isnt that just special?