A new study by Ramsdens Jewellery has revealed the top 10 wedding trends to look out for in 2021 as a direct result of COVID-19. The coronavirus pandemic has put the future of weddings into question, with the restrictions being placed on nuptials forcing couples to change their original wedding plans.
A few of the key questions answered were:
Will winter weddings takeover in popularity from summer weddings?
Are destination weddings decreasing in popularity?
Are small weddings here to stay?
Top 10 wedding trends in 2021
According to wedding search trends from June 2020, here’s the top 10 wedding trends to look out for in 2021 according to Google data:
Small wedding (+122% YoY)
Garden wedding (+115% YoY)
Winter wedding (+84% YoY)
Church wedding (+52% YoY)
Wedding insurance (+50% YoY)
Engagement rings (+22% YoY)
Men’s engagement rings (+22% YoY)
Men’s wedding rings (+22% YoY)
Intimate wedding venues (+13% YoY)
Destination weddings (-45% YoY)
Overall, the most popular trend is small weddings, with a +122% rise in year-on-year searches since June 2019. This is then followed by garden weddings and winter weddings.
Small weddings are here to stay
There’s a lot of uncertainty around when larger weddings will be allowed to go ahead again. And, even if the rules do change, some couples may feel uncomfortable planning large gatherings. So it isn’t a surprise that we’ve seen a significant increase in the number of people searching for small wedding rules and inspiration. It looks like a lot of events planned for 2021 will be quite intimate, with shorter guest lists.
Micaela Karina, Wedding Photographer and Owner at Micaela Karina Photography, has witnessed this first-hand and says the trend was beginning to emerge even before COVID hit. “I’ve noticed more and more couples focus on smaller weddings,” says Micaela. “As Instagram and blogs showcase more alternative ways of getting married (like eloping), more couples were already moving away from big, expensive, debt-inducing weddings. The pandemic has only encouraged this more as couples are ‘forced’ to consider downsizing. I think smaller weddings (less than 50) will be a common theme for a long time to come.”
More people will be having garden weddings
We now know that there’s a lower risk of coronavirus spreading outdoors, so it makes sense that there’s been a 115% increase in the number of people searching for garden wedding inspiration, when you compare June 2020 to the same month of last year. It seems safe to say that we’ll see a rise in outdoor weddings for 2021 as brides and grooms look to eliminate any possible risk of a cancellation.
Alice Higgins, Managing Director at The Events Executive Ltd, has also witnessed this changing trend. “Here at The Events Executive we specialise in outdoor weddings and have seen the increase in their popularity,” says Alice. “Not only does it give people more reassurance regarding restrictions, but it also gives them more flexibility and freedom to design their day exactly as they want to.”
There’ll be more winter wonderland weddings
With the majority of 2020 summer weddings being cancelled, many have been moved to the end of the year or even postponed until 2021. And, as there’s bound to be an increase in demand next year, this might have forced more people to look at winter dates. So it’s no wonder that many people have been searching for winter wedding inspiration. In June, there was an 84% increase compared to the same month last year. It looks like a lot of couples could be planning winter weddings for this year and the next!
“The latter part of next year is looking to be incredibly busy, with some venues saying that they have wedding bookings for every day of the week.” Alice Higgins, The Events Executive Ltd
Wedding insurance – more important than ever?
2020 has shown that, no matter how carefully you plan your wedding, some things are completely out of your control, so it’s unsurprising that there were 50% more searches for wedding insurance this June compared to the same month in 2019. It’s likely that far more couples will make this a priority in 2021.
Charlotte Kaye, Wedding Photographer and Owner at Charlotte Elizabeth Photography, has noticed that “wedding insurance has changed dramatically over the past year. A lot of companies that my past couples have used are currently not taking on any new business, meaning that word of mouth referrals are leading to dead ends.”
Engagement rings
Lockdown has been an intense experience for everyone. Whether spending so much time together made couples realise they wanted it to be that way forever or the global pandemic put things into perspective, there’s been a significant increase in people searching for engagement rings. In fact, in June alone, 55,000 more people searched for engagement rings compared to the same period of last year, so we could be set to see a wedding boom in 2021. And it’s not just women who have seen more proposals in lockdown: there’s also been a surge in people searching for men’s engagement rings online. This suggests there may have been a rise in same-sex couples deciding to settle down, as well as women choosing to throw tradition out the window (it is a leap year, after all). This could well contribute to a surge in weddings in 2021.
Most of us have had more free time during lockdown, and it looks like some couples have been using their quiet evenings and weekends to make some progress on their wedding plans. In June, there was a 22% annual increase in searches for men’s wedding rings.
Intimate weddings
Understandably, a lot of couples planning their weddings are hesitant to arrange an extravagant affair with a long guest list. They might not want to put their guests at risk or could be worried that the 30-person limit is going to be in place for quite a while. So, it makes sense that there was a 13% year-on-year increase in people searching for intimate wedding venues in June 2020. It certainly looks like weddings could be much smaller in 2021.
Closer to home?
There’s been a sharp decline in searches around destination weddings, and it’s easy to see why. A lot of travel plans were cancelled this summer due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and it’s still unclear when things will go back to normal. So, it’s very likely that more couples will decide to say “I do” closer to home in 2021, instead of celebrating abroad.
Pictured venue: Newton Hall
While nothing is certain in these strange times, it looks like many couples are still planning their weddings for 2021, although they’re likely to look a lot different to the weddings that might have happened if coronavirus wasn’t dictating what is and isn’t possible. But despite these changing trends, it seems there is still a huge demand for weddings – and a whole host of possibilities open to couples looking for beautifully intimate celebrations.
To see all 10 trends in detail and to learn more, visit the original blog post published by Ramsdens Jewellery.