Practice makes perfect, but for your wedding you only get one go, so here are some tips from someone who has been up the aisle and back again! By Wollie Gr�inne Nugent.
My wedding day is over and the planning, for the past two years, has finally come to an end. Here are some tips I picked up along the way that I hope can help all aspiring brides to have the best day possible!
- Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate!!! Never underestimate the power of being the customer. This is a recession after all! When I finally realised this and put my Irish shyness cap away, I started to save some serious money. I didn’t have to act like a pushy contestant on The Apprentice either!
- Cut your guest list. The quickest and easiest way to save money during the recession is to cut down on the numbers. Do you really need your third-cousin-twice-removed’s ex-girlfriend there? I think not. Be vicious!
- Shop around. For cakes and other easily accessible things - you will be surprised at the difference in prices. You could also get a friend to make it and have it iced in a shop.
- Never put an R.S.V.P date on an invite. If you do send out a second-choice round of invites, there is a fair chance that people will get offended, and you certainly don’t want that.
- Don’t invite the kids. Most parents would like to have an excuse for a day away from their precious babies. Feeling like they are expected to bring the kids will just cause too much hassle.
- Set up a wedding website. If I had known how many people would view our wedding website I would definitely have chosen some better photos for our guests to see.
- Don’t expect interest for little every detail from the H2B. If I had known how little an interest my poor hubbie would have in minuscule details, such as the flower girl’s shoes matching the napkins, then I wouldn’t have been so deflated when he shrugged after every question I threw at him for two years.
- Try on different dress styles. Apart from finding ‘the one’ amongst them, you will have plenty of fun. Make sure to try on one over-the-top meringue style - just to say you did!
- Bring a spare bra to dress fittings. In case your dress fitter decides that you need a bra sewed into your dress. Walking to your car with everything hanging low is not a good look. I speak from experience!
- Invest in nappy pins. They are guaranteed to hold up any train, unlike the little loops of fabric dressmakers sew onto dresses.
- Don’t wear makeup to your dress fittings. If you look good in a dress without the slap, imagine how great you will look on the big day! Also, you don’t need to worry about it rubbing off on the dresses!
- Fake tan. Try a few different brands of fake tan. It will help you decide which one suits your skin-tone best and looks most natural.
- Never underestimate magic knickers. I am talking Bridget Jones style!
- Don’t sweat the small stuff! I guarantee you no one noticed that my mass booklets matched with my colour scheme. Concentrate on the bigger things like your partner and the guests!
- Sleep. Don’t live and breathe weddings seven days per week. Take time for the two of you so that you can both remember why you are getting married in the first place.
- Sort out the pre-marriage course and legal documents ASAP. Most couples tend to book the band before they check out the legal process. You have to give three months notice to the state for a civil marriage, so don’t leave it until the last minute.
- Book a videographer. You will float through the day so it is great to have the wedding on tape to help you relive and cherish every minute. You will be surprised to see moments that you may have missed.
- Make sure the groomsmen suits are all intact. We never checked the zips and one had a breeze all day. A simple thing, but easily overlooked!
- Make lists. They start out long, but bit by bit they get completed and give you a sense of control over the planning. Split them into months and you will find it easier to get everything completed in manageable chunks.
- Bathroom breaks. Go to the bathroom before you leave for the church. With everything going on it’s easy to forget, and trust me, after the church it is hard to find the time!
- Write down a list of the photos you want. It is easy to forget that you want a picture with your best friends when everything else is going on. You will regret it later if you forget.
- Relish every moment and make sure to eat. It is easy to get so caught up in the excitement that you forget to eat. You’ll be hungry by 3am when it is much harder to find food!
- Delegate, delegate, delegate. You are not a superwoman (sorry to burst that bubble) and you don’t want to tire yourself out ot make yourself ill before the wedding!
- 'Remember your guests' - an important tip that my father-in-law gave me, which was commented on so much during the day. Let your guests know you are thinking of them by organising the day with them in mind! It will help you not just have a good wedding, but a great wedding!
- Above all else, enjoy yourself! The planning and excitement will not last forever. It goes by in a breath and you deserve to enjoy every minute of it!
Main Image by Jonas Peterson.
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