Practical tips for Bride on Wedding Day

Easypeasey

Hi all,

Looking for practical tips for bride on her wedding day? Obviously goes without saying enjoy and savour every moment. But little things people recommend to give them a pick me up during the long day, things to make sure they do spend timing doing and don't waste time doing.

Thanks

lazygal

Don't let anyone bother you on the day.
Give yourself plenty of time to get ready.
Have everyone who'll be getting ready in the house or wherever with you do a full check of their outfits a few days beforehand so they'll know if they need to get extra tights or a different shirt or earrings.
Break in your wedding shoes.
Make sure you and someone else knows how to bustle up your dress and practice this so you won't need to worry about it on the day.
Don't be late to the ceremony, you don't want to piss your guests off.
Carry your bouquet at bellybutton height (mad tip but I found this a good one!!) and it'll look better in the pictures.

Milly33

So glad you mentioned the bouquet tip... Mum is always telling people this and the amount of brides I see then going no carry the bouquet properly it looks so much better

wuffly

Don't let anything get to you on the day (Delegate a friend or family member the job of dealing with anything that comes up, give their details to the hotel and relevant suppliers like the photographer and band you won't have your phone most of the day anyway)
Screw the weather, you look fab and your photos will be just as gorgeous if its raining
Don't be on time (I was, I had to leave for 10 mins as over half the guests were late!!) but don't be too late 10 mins max
Eat breakfast and or lunch if you can, have rice krispie squares (no chocolate just in case lol) in the bm's bag if you need a sugar buzz between photos etc... your other half will appreciate it too.
Don't let the photographer run your day unless you are happy with their schedule (ours kept us on track) make a list of the photos you want and who you want in them and have someone on both sides to round people up. i know this sounds anal but there are a few group shots I wish I had gotten and my other half didnt get one with a close relative that passed away shortly after. Having the list would make it quick and painless. Our photographer told us but we didnt do it properly.
Make sure you have planned your thank you's with whoever is doing the speeches so no one gets forgotten
Touch up your make up before the reception
Someone will always do and or say something stupid just breath and tell yourself not today bitches!
I enjoyed going around to the tables during the meal to see people as some of them i didnt get the chance to chat to again, but its not for everyone but I did inhale my food as well
Have a few drinks but pace yourself, you want to last to the end and enjoy it and remember it!
Try to make sure the band doesn't start too late so the smallies get a few dances before bedtime if you are having small people
If your having anything like a photobooth make sure people use and use it yourself
Dance like its your wedding because it is!
Stay as long as you can it really is worth savoring
Enjoy!!

Pistachios & cream

Leave water and some food (energy bar etc) in the wedding car. It's possible you won't eat much in the morning so might get hungry or have a sugar low when doing photos.

Also have a few bits to do running repairs in the car. Baby wipes, lipstick, hair clips extra make up. My sister in law had a guest leave a load of makeup on the strap of her dress when she kissed her in the receiving line and i had to try and get it off with makeup wipes.

If getting married from home order in breakfast from a local shop centra etc, the smell of a fry cooking can be hard to remove from a house.

As above make sure everyone has their outfits sorted. If you have room have them all laid out the night befroe.

Remove all tags in the days before.

An Bhanríon

During the dinner take a bit of time out from chatting and let yourself have a good look around the room at all the people who have come to celebrate your day with you.

Get some time alone with your husband to relax and take in the day. Even ten minutes. I was determined to do this and nearly failed because when we left the reception room we kept on bumping into guests who wanted to talk to us. But then finally we got to a quiet place away from everyone and got to sit down together for a few minutes. It was just lovely.

And certainly, have somebody else to deal with the band, dj, hotel, etc. We organised our wedding ourselves. Pretty much the whole thing. But we asked family members to deal with any issues that might arise with the hotel, dj, etc., so we could just relax for the day. It's very important to take off your 'organising hat' on your wedding day. If the cake is not on the cake table exactly how you wanted it or a bit of decoration hasn't been put up, just ignore it. Little things like that will happen but you are not there to fix these things. You are there to relax and celebrate with family and friends.

Milly33

Like the delegating mention. I have heard it a lot about getting things ready but never thought for on the night if something went wrong.. I am going to think who is tec savvy etc..

Thanks all loverly tips here

CaraMay

Don't be more than 10 minutes late. It starts the day off on a bad note for the guests

I'm taking lots of notes here!!!

Milly33

going to have to get a new notebook

Arbiter of Good Taste

ahayes84 wrote: »

Also have a few bits to do running repairs in the car. Baby wipes, lipstick, hair clips extra make up. My sister in law had a guest leave a load of makeup on the strap of her dress when she kissed her in the receiving line and i had to try and get it off with makeup wipes.

As a last resort, a bit of chalk could be a lifesaver!

goldenhoarde

wuffly wrote: »

make a list of the photos you want and who you want in them and have someone on both sides to round people up. i know this sounds anal but there are a few group shots I wish I had gotten and my other half didnt get one with a close relative that passed away shortly after. Having the list would make it quick and painless. Our photographer told us but we didnt do it properly.

As wuffly said you don't know who will not be there at the next occasion. You'll need one person from either side who know the people and can round them up (Bossier the better!!!). Make sure the photographer knows the ones you want (a written list might be best on the day - 4 copies - 1 for u the photographer and the helpers). This is easiest done in the reception venue onces the guest have settled in but before the meal.

wuffly wrote: »

Make sure you have planned your thank you's with whoever is doing the speeches so no one gets forgotten

This because the best man "assumes" the groom or some else will do it or vice versa. A list of who YOU want thanked and make sure that someone who is speaking has them on their list.

Say a few words yourself if you feel up to it- actually say them even if you don't think you're up for it. You only get married once!

An Bhanríon

Just thought of this one so I said I would add it...

This is for the morning. Have a schedule printed of what time everything is going to happen from the time you get in the shower to the time you leave the house. Give everyone who is going to be there a copy or stick it up on the wall. You might not stick to it totally but it helps for people to know what time (ish!) everything is happening at. They may want to make a quick phone call or something and there is no point having a bridesmaid on the phone when she is supposed to be having her make up done! The morning goes by very quickly and you suddenly find yourself in the car on the way to the ceremony going 'OMG this is it!!!!!'

And don't forget to schedule eating into your morning. Do not leave the house on an empty stomach!

I had loads of lists for my wedding and they were really helpful. Especially stuff like the things you will need on the morning of the wedding, during the wedding day and the day after the wedding. For example, remembering to bring a top for the morning that when you take it off it won't mess your hair. It's those little things that are easy to forget when you get all excited and can't believe the wedding is the next day...

CorkClaire82

We had water and sweets in the car, I'd asked for the water to be there but my genius sister put the sweets in there as well, we horsed into them But definitely make sure to eat, I'd one canape at the reception and then I was starved by the time dinner rolled around.

It might not be possible in every location but maybe think about having your chairs facing the congregation for communion (church wedding obviously), it was lovely seeing all the people coming up.

I only heard about this afterwards but apparently talcum powder all over under the dress is a life saver. My dress was super comfy but after hours in it it cut a bit under the arms. Talcum powder helps stop this.

Break in ALL wedding shoes, including flats.

Tell a few people in each group you want photos with that you want that group shot and to nab you when they see you're free. It'll mean you get the shot quickly and you don't have to worry about rounding everyone up.

CorkClaire82

Oh I thought of more!!

You and your spouse stay on the dance floor as much as possible - no-one will leave the bride and/or groom on the dance floor on their own!!

Remind the person who has your bag to drop it to your room the day of the wedding, this didn't happen to us and we'd to ring my dad the morning after to get our bags so we could get dressed.

Tell everyone in the house when you (bride) want to get into the dress, this way they'll be organised.

pooch90

Pack your day after bag thoroughly, I ended up with no make up removal pads or hairbrush!!!

tickingclock

Have a bottle of water near you in the church. Most seats in the church for the bride and groom have chair covers so ask the best man to put a bottle under the seat.

If something does go wrong or not according to plan try not to get too upset about. Chances are only you will know the detail of it so others won't be disappointed.

ABajaninCork

Lay out everything you'll need for the day the night before. Make-up, perfume, undies, shoes, wipes, hair pins - EVERYTHING!!

Pack your morning after bag a couple of days before. Get it out of the way. Send someone to the venue with the bag the day before.

Delegate someone to lock up, set the alarm (if you have one) and carry the keys.

Remember to grab something to eat - it'll be a LONG day.

Rub a little sandpaper on the soles of your shoes. Yes, really! I did mine, and it was a good job I did. It rained on our wedding day, the floor of the cathedral was marble, and I nearly went arsey tarsey in four inch heels. Good job I was holding on to my new husband's arm at the time!

Gatica

on the lines of shoes, if the ground of where you want to get photos are grassy, then either bring flatter shoes you don't mind ruining or a tin lid to stand on! I heard of someone else doing it here on boards and thought it was a brilliant idea. Will save you needing to hover on the balls of your feel so as not to sink in the grass.

lazygal

Another few I remembered.
Don't drink too much. You want to remember the day. I'm really glad I didn't go overboard, I made up for it the next day at a party in my parent's house.

Decide what you want to do with your bouquet. I wanted mine put on a relative's grave so I made sure to take it home with me and hand it over to the person who would be visiting the graveyard. I decided last minute to do a bouquet toss and used the bridesmaid's bouquet.

Don't bother with the Spanx or sucky in knickers unless your dress really needs them. Wedding dresses are hard enough to hoick up to go to the loo without struggling with your knickers as well.


I agree with the comments on photographers. The best time we spent before the day was sitting down for an hour with our photographer in our venue and going through exactly what we wanted and how we would schedule the group shots. We were then able to make sure our families knew when they'd be needed and how long they'd be in front of the camera for. We spent about 30-40 mins in total on the more posed shots and then joined the party. I'd been to so many weddings where the couple miss out on the whole drinks reception becuase of getting photos done.

An Bhanríon

I'm obviously spending too much time reading this forum! Just thought of another thing. This is another 'before' tip.

Before your wedding day (at least a week before, I would think) try on your wedding dress with shoes, underwear, jewellery, stockings, etc. As in everything you will wear on the day. Have a good look in the mirror, get somebody else to look at you, walk around, try out a few steps of your first dance, walk up and down the stairs and sit down on a chair. This will stop you getting any nasty surprises on the day and gives you a chance to do a bit of practice with your dress. Somebody had told me this before my wedding and it was well worth it because I realised there were some steps in our first dance I couldn't do because of the cap sleaves on my dress. They would have torn if I raised my arm too far. Glad I didn't find this out in the middle of my first dance... although they did end up tearing a bit later when I got a bit overexcited on the dance floor!

I am so enjoying reading all these tips. It brings it all back...

Miaireland

Make sure you have heel grips, gel soles, plasters and vasline if your shoes start to hurt.

If possible get your readings, prayers printed out in large print so the readers wouldn't have to root for their glasses.

lazygal

An Bhanríon wrote: »

I am so enjoying reading all these tips. It brings it all back...

It really does!

Another tip, make sure the waitstaff don't clear your meals away until you're finished. We went around the tables during course to make sure we at least said hello to everyone, so it was nice to come back and eat when we were finished that, except for my lovely dessert which was whipped away!

Faith

This thread is brilliant! Really useful tips here. I'll be printing it out before my wedding