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- Bring a camera with you when you are planning your wedding. Capture your wedding
preparations to complete your scrapbook. After all, 99% of your wedding is done
before your wedding day but very few people record all of your efforts to making your
day a treasured one.
- When shopping for wedding vendors be sure you find one that suits your style and
budget. Do not make hasty decisions. A quick and easy way to gauge whether or not
you are dealing with a reliable and honest wedding vendor is that reputable vendors
seldom ask for a commitment or deposit on the first consultation. Do not feel pressured
to leave a deposit immediately.
- Assign a "wedding day coordinator" (if you are not hiring one). This person will assist l
with any problems that day so you can enjoy the day as much as possible. Make sure
your coordinator knows your tastes and understands your priorities.
- If you are hiring a wedding planner, make sure you know exactly what they are
offering and for how much. Some planners do only whole weddings while others do
only the day-of. Choose the best one to suit your needs and budget. Just as important
or even more importantly, make sure that they suit your style. Do not hire a formal
wedding planner when you are planning a celebratory (wild and fun) wedding. A good
way to see if you have the right planner is to ask vendors about their style. To check
their professionalism call the planner and pretend you are a vendor and see how long
it takes them to respond. As a paying customer, they usually call back right away
especially if you are new client. Seeing how quickly they reply to their vendors truly
tells how they generally run their operation. This will be a true representation on their
professionalism. How good of a job do you think they are doing for their client after
they collect their deposit?
- One or two days before your wedding, forward all your calls to your coordinator, let
him/her deal with all of the little things that come up just before your wedding. Use the
final days before your wedding to rest and get ready to enjoy the day. A day at the spa
or playing a round of golf will help you relax (unless you play golf like me).
- If you are taking pictures in a park on a hot summer day, pack a cooler in the trunk of
your car containing drinks for the wedding party. Be sure to include bottled water for
the bride as grape drink on a wedding dress (although colourful) can be disastrous.
Straws would be helpful for preventing spills too. Throw in some moistened face cloths
for the guys too.
- Groom or Groomsmen should carry some tissues in case someone starts to cry at the
alter. They haven't started making formal dresses with pockets yet!
- Carry around throat lozenges or cough candies to take when your throat becomes dry
or your voice starts to go hoarse. Remember to drink water throughout the day.
- A plant sprayer for the bride's bouquet can help keep her flowers fresh all day.
- Pack a sewing kit, make-up kit, white chalk (for lipstick or pen marks on white clothing),
safety pins, rubber bands, hair pins, plastic bags, band aids and paper towels for
emergencies.
- Pack crackers, cookies, buns, candy bars, energy bars, muffins or light food in case
you get hungry and do not get a chance to eat or in case your stomach feels upset -
anti-acids are a good idea too.
- Cell phones or 2 way radios (FSR's) can keep wedding coordinators, family and the
wedding party well organized.
- Add half an hour to every location you plan on moving to on your schedule. This way
you will be realistically on time and you won't be rushing to the next event to make up
time.
- If you are doing a dress change, make sure you have cut the wedding cake in your
wedding dress for your pictures first. Some traditions imply that changing back into
your wedding dress on your wedding night is bad luck not to mention very time
consuming.
- Make a list of who is being driven in what car on your wedding day. This is one item
that (although not critical) is often overlooked.
- Charge any batteries you may need for the day (cameras, video recorders, cell
phones, etc...) the night or day before.
- Bride's, remember to wear or bring a garter that you're going to toss.
- Bring extra small bills and coins for unexpected expenses (Parking, Tipping, etc...)
- When your helpers are receiving gifts, provide them with a felt pen to mark on the gift
who is presenting the gift so you can thank them personally for the item they have
given you. Cards often fall off the gifts if they are taped on the outside.
- If you are expecting a lot of gifts or cash at the church or reception, set up a procedure
where some is in charge of making sure the gifts are secure. This is especially
important if your wedding is high profile. Do not leave them in your car. Ferry the gifts
home or some where safe if you have to. If you are getting a lot of cash, make one
person responsible for it. If everyone collects cash for you, it is easier to be misplaced.
- Gas up all of the cars the day before.
- Make back up plans. What are your plans if it rains or snows? Ask all of your vendors
what their back up plans are (back up cameras, spare wedding cakes, blown speakers,
what flowers are second choice if not available that day, dresses not ready, tux doesn't
fit, not enough parking at reception, etc.)
- Go over everything everyone is responsible for on your wedding day. Try not to give
one person too much as it will be easier for them to forget. Most people can do 2 or 3
things well without too much trouble but asking them to do 7 or 8 may bring
disappointment.
- Get your MC to announce all of the events to maximize the exposure. For instance the
cake cutting ceremony only takes about 2 to 5 minutes to do. If the guests aren't aware
that you are doing it, it will be over by the time they find their camera and walk over to
the cake table. Announcing toasts and reminding guests to stand for the toasts are
often over-looked. This is not critical but does look better on video and pictures when it
is done properly. If you are doing something special, announcing it will get you more
pictures.
If you have any other helpful suggestions, please email them to me! Thanks for visiting our
website and remember the MOST IMPORTANT thing to do on your wedding day is to HAVE
FUN! When polled people say the 2 most memorable days of their lives are their wedding day
and the day their first child was born. Make the best of your special days!
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