TRAVERSE CITY — June is national wedding month -- but a growing number of people ‘tying the knot’ are opting for spring and summer weddings.
Grand Traverse County accounts for 6% of Michigan weddings with the location becoming a destination wedding area.
“The different wineries, the bay, the views, I mean it’s just beautiful,” said Natalie’s Bridal and Tuxedo owner Natalie Lange.
Laura Muzzareali, manager of Venue Blue, said she sees a number of downstate couples coming to the area for ceremonies along the water.
Some couples are setting new wedding trends.
“The biggest wedding trend I’m seeing is reception dresses, the brides switching into a separate dress just for the reception and doing a second reveal.”
“There’s different floral patterns for a garden wedding, just something different,” said Lange. “We have red wedding gowns, you know, so these also come in ivory and white also. But for some people who want to think outside the box, this is a pink with big rosettes on them.”
And the 2025 wedding trends don’t stop there.
“Another trend I’m seeing is wedding weekends, there making it a whole thing for themselves and their guests,” said Muzzareali.
And for those looking for a more cost-effective trend,
“Another trend is people getting married on weekdays, they’re doing that because it’s a little bit cheaper. Venues tend to be a little bit cheaper on weekdays” said Muzzareali. “Then there’s more availability for the rest of their venders. A lot of their photographers aren’t booked on Thursdays or the caterers, and so there’s just more availability for them to get married on a weekday.”
32-year-old wedding industry veteran and owner of Natalie’s Bridal and Tuxedo, Natalie Lange, said over her decades long career wedding styles have come and gone. But one thing that always remains the same is brides looking for a beautiful dress within budget.
“We have dresses that range anywhere from $99 to $2,000. Right now, everything in the store is marked down. I’ve got dresses that are 80% off so there’s some significant savings and great deals.”