People intent on being lucky in love, especially wedded bliss, have snagged a special date – the seventh day of the seventh month of 2007 – to say their I-do’s.
Seven, always considered a lucky number, appears in triplicate only once this century, and the fact that the numeric rarity lands on a Saturday is driving a rush to altars everywhere.
The next time this much luck is on the calendar will be July 7, 2077, a Wednesday.
More than 31,000 weddings are planned for Saturday, according to, nearly three times the typical 12,000 weddings per day for July.
People in the $66 billion wedding industry say Saturday is shaping up to be the most popular wedding date in years.
“It’s crazy,” says Judi Folga of Willowcreek Floral, a wedding- service company serving the Western Slope. “This seven-seven-seven is just a phenomenon.”
She’s doing seven weddings that day and had to turn away four others.
It’s a similar story at Park Avenue True Value & Rental of Montrose. “We have nothing left to rent, and if we did, we’d have no one left to put it up,” owner Chris Adams says.
With demand outstripping supply, prices have soared.
“Most vendors, including myself, are a little less inclined to negotiate with price because of the popularity of the day,” says Heather Allen, a wedding planner at Table Six Productions in Denver.
The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park is sold out, with four weddings that day. It turned away at least 10 more.
The Denver Botanic Gardens will put on seven weddings and two receptions. The popular nuptial spot turned away 20 to 30 other couples.
The Colorado Rose Cake Co. of Berthoud will crank out 10 wedding cakes for 7/7/07 couples.
“We’re pretty well maxed out,” owner Marci Perrotto says.
Happy Feet Weddings of Loveland is also booked solid.
“Between the four of us (pastors), we’ll be doing 14 weddings,” says pastor Manon Weber.
Many people began to book the date last year, although some optimistic stragglers continue to work the phones.
“I still get messages from people asking if that date is still available,” says Debbie Golden, events coordinator at the Grant-Humphreys Mansion in Denver. “They’re laughing their heads off, saying, ‘You probably think I’m nuts.”‘
She understands, however, that the venue is particularly popular for those seeking lucky marriages.
“People like the numerology of seven-seven-seven, and then our address is 770 Pennsylvania St.,” she says. “Someone also mentioned to me that the letters of our address, Pennsylvania Street, have something to do with seven.”
The numbers may line up for a jackpot of a wedding, but the stars aren’t necessarily in alignment. Maria Shaw, astrologist for the National Enquirer, has prepared hundreds of wedding charts for her clients. Her expertise leads her to look askance at all this 7/7/07 hoopla.
“It is Mercury retrograde through July 10,” she says. “There will be a lot of snafus on that day. The bottom line is that it won’t ruin your marriage, but it may ruin a bit of your wedding day.”
Mercury rules transportation, travel and communication, she says, so when it is in retrograde – or moving backward – chaos rules.
“The groom will be late or flights will be delayed,” she says. “There will be traffic jams getting to the church, or miscommunications will turn a size-16 wedding dress into a size 6.”
This may be news to many wedding planners and brides, but Deanna Emery of Denver says she has all her bases covered.
“I’m not extremely superstitious,” she says, “but that’s why I hired (a wedding planner) to manage the day of my wedding, so I can be sure my vendors will be there on time. If for some reason the cake van breaks down, she’s going to get the cake there. I’m not about to have any mishaps.”
At bottom, says Shaw, we’re a superstitious bunch.
“We don’t want to marry on Friday the 13th if we can help it. We all try to find four-leaf clovers or seven-seven-sevens,” Shaw says. “I believe if you really love someone, then love can conquer all, no matter what’s in the stars.”
Or how the numbers are played.
Staff writer Colleen O’Connor can be reached at 303-954-1083 or coconnor@denverpost.com.
