Wedding Day Tips

Hello to all the couples-to-be! This is such an exciting time for you and and I’m sure your mind is racing with all that needs to be planned. It’s all very exciting, but can also be somewhat overwhelming. You’re planning the day that you’ve been anticipating your whole life and yet you only get one shot at it! My goal is to make at least one aspect of the planning process simple for you, so I’ve put together a list of tips that I have learned to be useful over my years of working in the wedding industry.

01. Hire A Wedding Coordinator

I know, I know. It may not be in the budget to hire yet another vendor, but I cannot tell you how helpful it will be to have a wedding coordinator on your wedding day. Someone that is solely in charge of the vendors and making sure things stay on time is a huge help and definitely worth the money!

A few companies that my previous couples have used and loved: Events and Weddings by Mandy, TL Events, and Kendra Lee Events

02. Allow Plenty of Time for Prep

Grooms have it easy when it comes to getting ready on the wedding day. They wake up late, shower, get dressed, and they are done. The Bride has to plan for way more time than that. It can take a few hours for you, your bridesmaids, and mothers to get your hair and makeup done. Which means you need to plan more time than you actually think you need to get ready. Then, if any little hiccups come along you have time to straighten it out before getting stressed.

I know you have picked out the most amazing wedding dress and want to look your best, but please do not skip breakfast! Your wedding day will be a long day full of activities, so you may not get much time to eat throughout the day until dinner. The last thing you want is to be hangry during your ceremony!

03. Details Box

If your photographer set aside time to take photos of your bridal details (which they probably have), please put all these items together in a box to easily hand your photographer upon their arrival. It will help you and the photographer so much because you won’t be running around trying to find all your beautiful details in the girls crazy getting ready room (they are all crazy, trust me!) For more information on what to include in your wedding details, take a look at my bridal detail’s guide here: wedding day details.

04. Give a Copy of the Agenda to Everyone

To avoid any un-necessary confusion, send a copy of the wedding day timeline to everyone you can think would possibly need it: your vendors, the wedding party, your parents, and your family are a few who need to know when they need be present and ready.

05. Do The First Look

It’s not REQUIRED to do a first look on your wedding day, but I really highly recommend it. There are many pros to sharing a first look with your fiancé on the wedding day. For one, doing a first look helps calm your nerves and gives you a chance to actually interact with one another in that moment. Secondly, it helps amazingly with the timeline! Your guests won’t have to wait around for hours after the ceremony while you have all your formal portraits taken, instead you’ll be able to almost instantly go into your wedding reception to start celebrating.

06. Ceremony Tips

Unless you are having a full catholic mass (or another religious service), then I would plan on keeping your wedding ceremony around 20 - 30 minutes max. If it takes too long for the big kiss moment to happen, guests can get bored which I know you don’t want!

Consider sunset time when deciding on the start time of your ceremony. I recommend 1-2 hours before sunset. I have several reasonings behind this idea, but I will only share a few. First, you don’t want the sun to be blinding your guests. If it’s an outside ceremony and too close to sunset with the guests facing the sun they won’t be able to see a thing (and neither will the bride as she walks down the aisle hoping to see her groom crying). Second, this will give you some time to capture beautiful golden hour couple’s portraits after the ceremony when you’re all giddy from being newly married.

Extra Tip: stop and do a second kiss when walking down the aisle to get a photo of your guest’s faces being happy for you in the background.

07. Reception Tips

First, keep the first dances short unless you have a choreographed dance. It can get awkward if you’re just swaying on the dance floor to a full 3 minute song with all eyes on you. I know it doesn’t sound like long, but it is. If you have a choreographed dance, then this doesn’t apply to you at all! It’s fun for you and the guests to watch an exciting first dance.

Second, a 3-4 hour reception is enough to celebrate your big day. If you want to party longer than that, I highly recommend doing a fake grand exit. A fake exit will allow for more guests to experience this moment with you and it gives the older crowd a moment to leave before the real party gets going (if that’s your plan!)

This is a newer trend, but having a fake wedding cake can speed up the process of getting your guests what they want - cake! I’m not a baker, so I don’t know all about this but what I’ve seen is one layer of the wedding cake on display is real which the couple cuts and eats together. Then, there is separate sheet cake in the kitchen that can be pre-cut and plated for the caterers to serve to your guests much quicker!

Last, this should go without being said, but feed your vendors. Please! We have all worked hard to make your wedding day dreams come true and we need the food to keep our energy up to the end of the reception.

08. Be Present!

This one is easier said than done, but try to be really in the moment for all the moments on your wedding day. You’ve spent countless hours planning this big day, so you might as well enjoy it and live in the moment! When it is all said and done, you want to be able to remember your wedding day and not feel like it just flew by without you.

I hope these tips helped!

If you’re still searching for a wedding photographer, don’t hesitate to reach out! If you’re one of my brides, thank you so much for trusting me with your wedding day memories!!