Outdoor Wedding Advice from Style Maven and Pro Blogger Mackenzie Horan

Whether she’s curating her uber-popular Instagram feed or sharing recent travels and fashion/style tips on her Design Darling blog, Mackenzie Horan is a busy entrepreneur. When it came time to plan her Sept. 2017 wedding to Will Beuttenmuller, she knew she wanted a tented wedding by the sea. Now that their wedding is in the books – you can see it here on our blog! – we asked her to elaborate on the planning and the end result.

1) Did you always know that you would be an outdoor kind of bride?

I always knew I would get married on Nantucket and we wound up borrowing many details from my parents’ wedding there 31 years ago. While we briefly considered other venues for our reception, having a tented party overlooking the Atlantic Ocean that was within walking distance of the chapel just felt like the perfect fit for us. Crossing the bridge and seeing our wedding tent for the first time is a moment I’ll never forget!

2) What are your top advice tips for couples planning an outdoor wedding?

Be prepared! We completely lucked out with beautiful weather on our wedding day, but I was able to relax in the days leading up to it knowing that we had a rain plan just in case. Thankfully the tent had sides that could be rolled down (which we used as it got chillier at night), but I’d also ordered several dozen clear umbrellas for our guests that I returned after we wound up not needing them.

3) Can you describe one planning hurdle along the way that was unexpected?

I think I underestimated how difficult it would be to plan a destination wedding from afar. We’re lucky to be able to visit Nantucket all the time so it didn’t really feel like a destination, but the island shuts down in the off-season and I spent months waiting for replies from certain vendors. We weren’t initially planning on hiring a wedding planner, but bringing someone in as a month-of coordinator was the best money we spent in the entire planning process. Having someone super organized to get all our vendors on the same page and streamline our day-of timeline was truly priceless because it meant my husband, parents, and I could really relax and enjoy the day! (P.S. If you’re planning a wedding on Nantucket, Caroline from Milly & Grace Weddings is your girl!)

4) What was your favorite part of the tented reception?

Can I say everything?! Walking up and seeing the flags on top of the tent blowing against the ocean backdrop was just a striking visual, but the tent honestly got better as the sun set and the lights twinkled over the dance floor. I never wanted to leave!

Images courtesy Cameron & Kelly Studio