We all know the Christmas fairy tales and Christmas stories we used to hear as children. Last year, Lara and Levin told us their own Christmas story and gave Christmas new magic. But getting married in 20 days – is it possible?
Yes, it is and how! Planning a wedding in 20 days is an impossibility, many thought, but we made it possible for the love of these two. We are happy to tell you the story of two people who went through a roller coaster of emotions with us and trusted us to organize their special day in 20 days. We would like to tell you about our Christmas fairy tale and how to organize, plan and realize a wedding in 20 days and what challenges we had to face.
But now let’s go back to the start to tell the story of this unique couple from the beginning. Christmas is the celebration of love, the time when you get together with the whole family and enjoy time with good food. However, last year Lara and Levin thought that they would like to make this special day even more special and unique and planned their wedding in no time.
Some of you may remember our social media call in October, where we were looking for spontaneous brides and grooms who would like to get married on Christmas 2021. We were sure that such a spontaneous wedding is feasible in two to three months, we already had experience with that. But when no one came forward and the time was getting shorter and shorter, we were also slightly unsure whether a Christmas wedding is still realistically feasible.
When we had almost given up hope, Lara became aware of Liebesding’s campaign. For her, it was clear: “I will get married at Christmas!” On December 3, 2021, she called Levin and told him about her plan. He was enthusiastic about the idea and onboard from the second one. So when the first meeting with Liebesding took place on December 6, our machines were running hot and the entire Liebesding team and the bride and groom put everything in motion to pull off a wedding in 20 days.
In the normal planning phase of a wedding, we as planners recommend starting early enough. First, the search for the location. This can be very time consuming for some couples – many venues are booked up early. Therefore, it is usually important to start looking at the location 16 to 12 months in advance to find the perfect venue for the wedding. In addition, it is important to find the perfect service providers for the special day, such as a wedding designer, photographer, florist or caterer. This should also be tackled early because many service providers are already fully booked for special dates or certainly already have some open inquiries. For Lara and Levin, things were a little different. The planning phase was shortened from 16 months to 20 days. So it was from 0 to 100 in just a few seconds! No, we’re not talking about a fast sports car here, but the commitment to planning the wedding!
To be honest, we imagined the implementation a little easier. But we love challenges! We certainly underestimated finding the location at first. Although it was the team’s first priority, we didn’t expect so much time to be invested in finding the location. Many restaurants were closed that day, already had a Christmas party planned, or had no staff available for Christmas Eve. Even the adjusted Corona measures, did not make things easier for us. However, we did not let ourselves be dissuaded from our plan and the bridal couple also participated intensively in the search and visits to the locations.
The Huus Gstaad finally won the race. The first milestone was set and parallel to this, further clarifications with the individual service providers were already underway. What definitely has to be considered when getting married on such a special day is that many service providers themselves celebrate Christmas and want to spend the day with their loved ones. Not every service provider is as crazy as the service providers of this wedding and willing to push their own celebration into the background in favour of a dear bride and groom. Therefore, this search was also a race against time. In the end, however, we found super providers who supported our idea and the love of the couple. The family party at home was cancelled or postponed and we all made the journey to Gstaad together.
What also turned out to be a sticking point was booking an appointment at the civil registry office for the marriage preparation procedure as well as the wedding date on December 24. Both finally worked out in time and the two were able to perform the legally binding act on the morning of Christmas Eve in addition to the free wedding ceremony.
Communication and trust with the service providers were the be-all and end-all for this wedding. The good cooperation made the uncomplicated and professional implementation of this day. In addition to the organizational aspects, the artistic was of course also included. So a part of the Liebesding team was also busy with the design concept. Goal-oriented sessions on colours, style, flowers as well as the general concept were held. While one part of the team took care of the planning with the wedding speaker, florist and photographer, the second part just created a coherent mood board. The short planning time was first seen as a critical sticking point. But with time, the pressure became our positive companion and everything went hand in hand.
After many long, hectic and yet successful working days, the wedding could take place at the Huus Gstaad on December 24th. Lara and Levin celebrated Christmas in a different way and probably gave their families the greatest gift.
It would not have been possible without the entire team of the bride, groom, groomsmen, both families and the support of our wonderful service providers. In the planning of a wedding, the exchange among each other, as well as mutual trust, is essential. Especially when there is such a high time pressure for the implementation.
The cooperation between the Wedding Planner and the bridal couple was unique and wonderful in this example. The fast, solution-oriented and uncomplicated communication, the mutual trust and the regular exchange made the implementation for this day special.
The whole thing would never have been possible without you, Lara and Levin! We would like to thank you all for your commitment and hope you enjoyed the day as much as we did!
All the best to you both and who knows, maybe we will celebrate Merry Wedding again this year instead of Merry Christmas!
Do you also have an unusual or special idea for your wedding? Or are you looking for a slightly different implementation? Get in touch with us!
We would be happy to hear from you – your Liebesding Team
If you’d like to learn even more about this wedding, feel free to listen to the episode “A Wedding in Just 20 Days – Lara & Levin“, from Bridezilla, the wedding podcast by wedding speaker Robino Rich.
