There’s nothing worse than having to deal with a bridezilla on the day of the wedding. There is also nothing worse than being the husband and having no idea what is going on, or even what has been done and what hasn’t, so if you are a happy couple who wants to do everything they can to try and avoid either of these situations then take a look below.
Do: Send Out Your Invites Early
This may sound a little bit obvious, but there are a lot of big things that you need to plan for. This includes the cake, the dress and even the venue. When all of this is going on, it can be hard for you to keep track of everything else and this includes your invites. For this reason, you’ll want to send out your invites as early as possible and this helps to ensure that your guests will actually show up. There’s nothing worse than planning a wedding, only to find that half of your guests are already double booked at someone else’s big day!
Don’t: Have Your Ceremony and Reception Far Away from Each Other
You may have the perfect venue in mind, but if you can’t have your reception there for any reason then you may be forced to choose another venue. This is completely understandable, but the last thing you need is for all of your guests to get dressed up, only to find that they have to drive for an hour to get to the next location. You also need to think about the times of the ceremony and reception as well. If they are hours apart from each other then your guests will be begging to take their heels off, and you’ll see a lot of slackened ties in your photos! It helps to have the venues fairly close to one another and if you can’t do this then think about arranging transportation for them. If you have to have the reception and the ceremony a couple of hours apart then consider finding somewhere comfortable for your guests to relax during this time. They’ll thank you for it.
Do: Write Names on the RSVP Slips
You may write the name of the recipient on the envelope, but if you don’t write it on the RSVP slip then you’ll never have any idea of who is coming and who isn’t. If you ask the guest to write their own name on the slip then you may end up playing a game of “guess the handwriting” and this isn’t good at all. If you want to make things extra-fun then one way that you can do this would be for you to ask the guests to request a song for the night-do. Make sure that you give yourself the chance to remove 10 or 20 songs from the list, and tell your guests this as well. When you do this, you’ll easily be able to explain why one person’s song didn’t make the list. After all, you don’t want to have sombre music playing right when the party is about to get started. Another way for you to make things easier would be for you to have checkboxes on the invites for the meal they want when they arrive. This will save you sending out another batch of notes at a later date.
Don’t: Have an Awkward Destination
You may think that an exotic wedding that is far, far away is fun, and you may even be able to picture it yourself as well. The problem with this is that a lot of your older relatives may not be able to make the trip and they may not be able to afford the trip either. That doesn’t mean to say that you shouldn’t have the wedding of your dreams, but it does go to say that a lot of your guests may end up being unhappy about it. If you want to make it easier on everyone then make sure that you plan it well in advance, and that you also provide them with the lowest possible price. A lot of places will give you a group rate if you book through a reputable provider. All of this can make a huge difference to your guests. Remember that you may be paying thousands for your wedding, but that doesn’t mean that your guests should be as well.
Do: Write a List as you Go through your Gifts
When your wedding is over, you may find it hard to remember who gave what gift. The last thing you’ll want to do is thank Aunt Maureen for the gravy boat when really it came from Uncle Benjamin. That would end up in an awkward conversation. If you want to avoid all of this then one way for you to do this would be for you to write down notes as you make your way through the gifts. That way, when you get back from your honeymoon you can easily keep track of who gave what and you can even make the appropriate thanks when you see them. This will make everything so much easier and it will take a lot of stress away from writing out the thank you notes.
Don’t: Expect Perfect Weather
If you are getting married in Britain or anywhere else that has awful weather then it helps to be prepared. Even though you may be getting married in summer, you still need to plan for the worst. The last thing you’ll want is for your guests to look like they have just been through a spin cycle on the washing machine in all of your photos. If you want to avoid this then you need to plan on having it rain. It helps to pack 10 or 20 coordinated umbrellas so if it does rain when you are having your group photograph outside, at least you’ll have fun looking back on the day and it will make a great memory as well.
Do: Chill Out and Stay Calm
It’s your wedding day, so something is bound to go wrong. You may find that the cupcake tower
falls to the ground halfway through your speech and you may find that the canopy collapses halfway through the day. Either way, it’s important to stay calm when things like this go wrong. You have to make sure that you relax and enjoy your day for what it is. Your wedding day is going to be one of the most memorable days of your life so if something does go wrong then just try and laugh about it. Spend the time to unwind, and remember that everyone is there to support you no matter what.
Don’t: Just Pack Heels
If you are walking down the aisle in high-heels that can be compared to an NYC skyscraper then good for you, that’s fabulous. The problem is that you won’t want to stay in those all day, so it helps to pack a pair of converse so that you can relax in-between photo opportunities. The last thing you’ll want to be doing is nursing your poor, swollen ankles when everyone is on the dance floor, so bring some flats with you and try and change into them when your heels are not required. This will help you to enjoy your day a lot more and it will also help you to be more comfortable as well, which is ideal when you just want to sit back and take in the fact that you’re now married and are surrounded by your family and friends.
Do: Spend Time with Your Hubby
On your wedding day, you may spend so much time trying to get everything sorted out that you don’t actually spend any time with your new husband! On your day you need to make sure that you realise what the day is all about and that you are continually doing everything you can to make it about yourselves and not about other people. Take 5 minutes out from time to time and remember why you are getting married, and make sure that the other person is more than happy with the way that things are going.
Don’t: Focus on Having a Huge Cake
You’ll probably be thinking that when you have a wedding, you have a huge cake with multiple tiers. This is great for photos but it’s not great for your budget, and for this reason it’s a good idea to have custom made wedding cakes instead. When you have custom wedding cakes, you can make the whole thing more personal to you and it is just as good for photographs as well. You can be as fun or as outrageous as you’d like to be, and it is a brilliant way for you to give the guests something to smile about as well, so don’t be afraid to go the extra mile and be creative.
Do: Change your Engagement Ring to your Other Hand
During the ceremony, it helps to put your engagement ring on your other hand. When you do this, you’ll make it way easier for your husband. He already has enough to worry about with writing his vows and with trying to keep track of everything with his groomsmen, so by changing your engagement ring over beforehand, you can be sure to make things much easier and he’ll be sure to thank you for it.
Cover image courtesy of Darling Don’t Panic
