Silly_Girl Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 I'm sure you'll mostly say 'my wedding day was perfect' and I hope it was but if you could have done any of it a bit differently or afterwards wished you'd left something out/added something in please do share your tips with me... The basics are all in place now, venue, catering etc, so now it's all the details and order of the day etc, the nitty-gritty! I'm grateful for any advice. Thanks! Link to post Share on other sites
sweetjasmine Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 I'm sure you'll mostly say 'my wedding day was perfect' and I hope it was but if you could have done any of it a bit differently or afterwards wished you'd left something out/added something in please do share your tips with me... The basics are all in place now, venue, catering etc, so now it's all the details and order of the day etc, the nitty-gritty! I'm grateful for any advice. Thanks! Hm, tough question. I wish I had been a little clearer with the bridal party as to what needed to happen. Throughout the planning phase, I took care of everything on my own. A few people in the bridal party chipped in with advice and whatnot, but they weren't very involved. That was fine, but when the day came, they were still sitting back and had no idea that, ahem, the bride and groom might need a little help with a few things. If you're the type who's reluctant to bark orders, my advice would be to be explicit and clear about what needs to be done so people can volunteer where they feel comfortable. I didn't even realize how much s&%# would need to be done the day before and the morning of until it happened. Mom and I were up until 3 am the day before putting together the centerpieces and seating chart. My future SIL was staying in the same B&B with us, but instead of lending a hand after dinner, she went straight to bed without even asking. It put a damper on things for sure. There were a few minor things that fell through the cracks. The ceremony venue coordinator was going to take care of handing out programs, but she had to run off to help the groomsmen, so MIL had to step in at the last minute and make sure everyone got one. We were supposed to get a throw bouquet with the flowers (they threw it in for free), but they didn't actually give me one. I didn't notice until the DJ said it was almost time for the bouquet throw, so my maid of honor was gracious enough to let me throw her bouquet, which she couldn't have taken on her flight back home anyway. My maid of honor helped set up the reception site, so I had to make a last minute list of things for her to take care of, like making sure the toasting flutes and cake cutter got to where they needed to go. We did a lot of DIY stuff, so this may not be an issue depending on how you're handling it. Other than that, things went fairly smoothly, so I can't say much. It's a good idea to keep all the paperwork in order and check in with vendors multiple times to make sure they have the right information. A few of our vendors had poor communication/writing skills and took way too long to return calls, and it was often stressful. Our rental vendor screwed up and brought the wrong kind of heater at the time when guests were supposed to be arriving. They were supposed to come 30-60 minutes early to get the place warmed up in advance, so my guests were cold for a long time. Our DJ screwed up the father/daughter dance -- I had to pull a quick trick out of my hat and pick a comparable song that we had also provided to them. It wasn't the end of the world, but my dad was upset that they didn't check the music in advance. The files we sent them were fine, but it got corrupted when they burned it onto a CD. I can't think of anything that was really missing. We didn't rent a limo, and it turned out fine. We were supposed to do an anniversary dance, but the DJ forgot -- nobody noticed or cared. As for advice... One piece of advice that was passed on to me -- when you're entering the ceremony space or walking down the aisle or whatever it is you have planned, take a deep breath and look at all the people around you. Don't stare ahead or space out because you're too nervous. Enjoy having everyone around you. As for flowers, if you have a separate ceremony space, it's a waste of money to go all out with floral arrangements. You're only going to be there for, what, half an hour to an hour? We had two altar arrangements, and my mom's florist friend recommended that we just pick cheaper flowers with the same general colors because who the heck is going to be able to tell the difference anyway? We opted for handmade pew decorations instead of fresh flowers. As for the bouquets, the bridesmaids bouquets had six flowers each and a little bit of hypericum berries. I've seen some huge bridesmaid bouquets, but the small ones were perfectly fine. I found it helpful to have a set schedule for the day of. Things can get a little crazy. Photos and greetings take a lot more time than you might imagine, so that's something to consider. Something will almost certainly go wrong, and let me tell you, it feels great to laugh it off and say, "Oh well, too late!" The absolute best part, though? In the days after, you get to wake up next to your spouse, and you're just simply married, with no more wedding crap to talk about or stress about or think about. Greatest feeling in the world. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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