經濟衰退引發冬日婚潮

Brides are increasingly shunning summer weddings and getting married during winter instead to cut costs amid the economic gloom, figures suggest.

Register office data shows that thousands more people are tying the knot between October and March than in previous years, to save money on hosting receptions.

Companies offering wedding services are also reporting booming business as couples take advantage of prices thousands of pounds cheaper than during the peak summer months.

The number of couples getting married in winter has risen by up to 15 percent in some areas, with winter weddings now accounting for more than 30 percent of all marriages in Britain.

The trend is even said to be having an impact on wedding attire, with more designers offering coats, shawls and different coloured dresses from the traditional white and ivory gowns bought by most brides.

Belinda Hanks, editor of Confetti, the online bridal store and magazine, said: “One of the main factors behind this has been pressure on budgets.

“With the economy the way it is, couples are realising that if they go for a winter wedding they can get a much better deal.”

“You can shave down your budget by around a quarter if you marry in winter through savings on venue hire and catering – you’re talking about thousands of pounds.

“This has been a growing trend over the last couple of years.”

The site has seen a 25 percent rise in the number of brides preparing for winter weddings.

According to the most up to date marriage data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) the number of marriages in the winter months has increased by around seven percent in two years.

In 2006 there were 25,880 marriages in the March quarter and 41,150 in the December quarter. This rose to 27,610 and 44,015 respectively for the same three-month periods in 2008.

More recent figures from local authorities suggests that the trend has continued to accelerate with thousands more weddings scheduled for the next three months.數據顯示，越來越多的新娘避開夏天而選擇在冬天舉行婚禮，目的是在當前經濟不景氣的狀況下減少開支。

戶籍登記處的數據顯示，爲了節省婚宴的開支，十月到三月間結婚的新人今年比去年多了幾千對。

婚慶公司也報告說，由於冬天婚禮花費比夏天高峯期要少數千英鎊，許多新人選擇在冬天結婚，這使得冬天婚慶業的生意紅火了起來。

在冬天結婚的新人數量在部分地區增加了15%，現在英國冬日婚禮比例佔全部婚禮的30%以上。

據稱這一潮流甚至對婚禮服裝也產生了影響，更多設計師提供婚禮用的外套、披巾以及有別於傳統婚紗顏色的各種顏色的婚紗。大多數新娘購買的都是傳統的白色和象牙色婚紗。

網上新娘用品店和雜誌“五彩紙屑”的編輯柏琳達•漢克斯說：“冬日婚慶火爆的一大因素是來自預算的壓力。”

“在經濟形勢依然不妙的情況下，情侶們意識到如果他們選擇在冬天結婚，會划算得多。

“如果你在冬天結婚，在場地租用和辦酒席方面就能縮減約四分之一的預算——可以省下幾千英鎊呢。

“近幾年越來越多的人選擇在冬季結婚。”

該網站發現，準備在冬天舉行婚禮的新娘人數增加了25%。

根據英國國家統計局最近更新的關於結婚的數據，冬季的婚姻登記數量在兩年內上升了約7%。

2006年在一月到三月這個季度結婚的共有25880對，在十到十二月這個季度結婚的有41150對。2008年一季度和四季度結婚的夫婦則分別上升至27610對和44015對。

來自地方相關部門的最新數據顯示，冬日結婚的趨勢將繼續上升，在未來三個月還將舉行數千場婚禮。