Sunday Wedding Trends for 2023: Sundays are the Best!
Surprise Your Guests with these Exciting Sunday Wedding Day Experiences
Guess what? Sundays are not about brunch anymore…
Don’t get us wrong, we love a crispy waffle with a side of sizzling bacon, but Sunday celebrations can be so much more than an early ceremony, brunch, and driving off before the sun sets. We know that you want your wedding day to be as unique as you are, so why follow everybody else’s timeline of what a Sunday wedding should look like? Sure, your guests may have work on Monday, so set them up for a great start to the week with a wedding day experience they’ll never forget! From unique decorations to entertainment, here are 6 Epic Sunday Wedding Trends to enrich your special day.
Abbey and Dan took some time to sit by the fireplace together during their Sunday evening wedding reception at The Gardens of Castle Rock. Photo By: Empiria Studios
#1 Delight Your Guests with Entertainment!
Wedding entertainment is perfect for a Sunday wedding! From caricatures to live painting, aerialists to fire shows, magicians to live bands, there are many alternative ways for your guests to have fun at your Sunday reception (and will give them a reason to stick around). Check out these really great experiences that Garden’s couples have provided for their guests!
Live Painting
Live painting is becoming increasingly popular and it’s not too hard to figure out why. Not only will you walk away with a masterpiece created on the day you were married, but your guests will be so excited to watch them as they work.
Judy and William pose by their wedding day masterpieces created by Paint My Wedding Day. Photo by: Dainty Meadows Photography
Aerialist or a Fire Show
Sam and Nick’s day included aerial silk performers who showcased their talents after supper and then ended their night with fire performers! Check out their wonderful, woodsy wedding by clicking the link below:
Live Band
Bands bring the music, but they also bring tons of personality. When it comes to your wedding day, why not have the party of your life? Live bands can perform during cocktail hour, for a portion of your dance, or jam out all night long. So whether you are hoping for an early night or to keep your guests dancing into Sunday evening, live music is a hit.
In The Fields played an eclectic mix of rock, pop, and country to entertain these wedding guests in the reception tent at The Gardens of Castle Rock.
#2: Create a Whimsical Ceremony Site with Wisteria
Wisteria (installed by Marah Cole Designs) was the cherry on top of Leah and Spencer’s Pretty Floral Garden Wedding.
Sigh. Wisteria. Does it grow naturally in The Lath House at The Gardens? No, it sure doesn’t. But, with the money you are saving by choosing a Sunday, many couples find that they can afford hiring a decorator to install this exquisite upgrade. Not only will you have a magical atmosphere for your “I Dos”, but your guests will be in awe of the most unique wedding ceremony space they have ever seen.
#3: Sundaes on Sunday
I scream, you scream, your guests scream for ice cream! An ice cream cart is the ticket between just another wedding cake dessert and serving your guests with a scoop of wedding day fun!
If you are going to provide a late night treat for your guests such as ice cream or wood fired pizza, make sure you note this on a timeline of events so your guests know what to expect (and stick around for).
#4: Game Night
Sunday night is family game night, so you know what that means? Beersbee, Checkers, Bocce Ball, Bags, Badminton, Crossnet, Spikeball, Ladder Toss, Kan-Jam, Giant Dominos, Giant Dice, Giant Jenga… you get the idea. Is this necessarily a new trend? Maybe not. But it’s a trend that we foresee as making your Sunday event one for guests to truly enjoy.
Simultaneous games of Kan-Jam and Cornhole kept these wedding guests thoroughly entertained during cocktail hour for this Sunday outdoor wedding reception.
#5: Food Trucks
Why brunch when you can have street tacos? Just to clarify, we love brunch. In fact, we love breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, supper, dessert, and everything in between. We just want to give you full permission to think outside of the waffle iron and give your guests an unexpected wedding day meal that matches your fun and relaxed style.
An added bonus to hosting a Sunday wedding is that many vendors have increased availability versus a Friday or Saturday. Photo by: Lily and Lime Photography
#6: The Last Dance
Okay… We’ll admit it. Not every couple chooses to stay until midnight on Sunday. If this is you, we think you’re going to love this new trend called “The Last Dance”. It’s a great way to close down the party and to see off your family and friends in a fun and unique way.
The “final dance” is an opportunity to soak in the energy and love of the day before departing. Photo by: Audrey Nicole Photography
Here’s how it works: First, go say goodbye to as many people as you can. (And if you tell your mom we told you to dance and ditch without saying good bye to her, we will direct her back to this post.) A quick hug and “thank you for coming” will suffice. (Again, a much longer hug for mom…)
Next, have your DJ announce your last dance and suggest your guests come to the dance floor. Your DJ can also take this opportunity to announce that your guests can line up for a picture opportunity after the song has ended as you exit to your car.
Then, you and your sweetie dance to the last song of the night. This is your opportunity to absorb all of the emotions of your wedding day and take in the very last moments. After the song is done, you guessed it, exit to your get-away car and your happily ever after as you are cheered on by friends and family. What a perfect way to end your best day ever!
An early night means your photographer is around to capture a departure photo AND your guests can get home in time to prepare for the week ahead. Win-win! Photo by Erin Kathleen Photography
Are Sundays Really the Best?
You don’t have to take just our word for it… After all, our couples are the ones that have planned and created their best Sundays ever! Read why these trend-setting Sunday couples loved their unique wedding day celebrations.
Shaylee and Blake: “I remember the excitement and all the happiness and love surrounding us [on our wedding day]. It was an indescribable feeling. Also watching family members dance on the dance floor was pretty funny too! We liked having a Sunday wedding because we felt it was unique… during the summer, people have so many weddings (and most aren’t on Sundays), so it made it easier on our guests availability!” Photo Credit: CLJ Photography
Sam and Nick: “We loved our Sunday wedding at the Gardens! One of our favorite moments – and our guests, too – was the fire performance! We loved letting our family and friends into our world and giving them a totally unique wedding experience.” (Curious about the fire performance? Click here.)
Tia and Justin: “We chose Sunday and loved that it gave our guests time to travel to our wedding and enjoy time relaxing beforehand! We wanted our rehearsal dinner (Saturday evening) to be a time where our close family and friends got to spend time catching up rather than scrambling for a wedding on Saturday night. It was great to have a slow pace to the weekend leading up to the wedding—it put us all in a stress-free mindset. We were also grateful to find out that most of our food + dessert options were available on Sunday (whereas most of them were already booked for Saturdays through the summer). Our guests have brought up how fun it was to have ice cream at our wedding as well, and because our wedding was on Sunday, we had time to figure out the logistics of keeping it frozen the whole afternoon.”
Curious if a Sunday Wedding is a good fit for you? Click here to learn more about the pros of a Sunday Wedding.
If you’re looking for even more guest experience ideas, check out our blog: 7 Ways to Guarantee Your Guests Have Fun on Your Wedding Day!
Special thanks to the photographer’s who allowed us to share their work for Sunday Trend Inspiration! Any blog photos not credited to photographer are by The Gardens of Castle Rock