Congratulations! You’re engaged to the one whom you’re soul loves, and I couldn’t be happier for you! This is such an amazing time in your life, and you should be enjoying every single moment of it.
As you’re probably figuring out in your wedding planning journey by now, there’s a lot of little things that go into planning a wedding. However, wedding planning doesn’t have to be a prescription for stress. Don’t let these biggest wedding planning mistakes put a dampener on your big day!
Not Hiring a Day of Coordinator
To be honest, it’s a mistake to not hire a full-service wedding planner for your wedding. However, I totally get that you may want to plan your wedding yourself. But really, save yourself the stress, and stop being stubborn! It’s not just something wedding planners are forced to say when we tell you that you need one. My advice? At least save room in your budget for a day of coordinator. Save yourself, your friends, and your family the headache and actually enjoy this huge party you’ve been planning for the past year!
I can confidently say that my wedding would have not gone so smoothly without my day of coordinator. (and I plan weddings for a living!) With the off and on threat of stormy weather that led to a lot of things having to be done at the last minute, I think I would have gone crazy if I would have had to make all of those decisions in the moment while trying to get my dress on.
Instead, my coordinator really allowed me to enjoy my day and be a guest at my own wedding. I mean, I didn’t even know about anything that went down outside of my bridal suite. (Which is how it should be!) I trusted her with my vision and my plans for my day, and she was driven and determined to bring it to life. Plus, if I say so myself, she did an amazing job!
If you are in need of a day of coordinator for your wedding, contact me today! I’m still booking 2017/2018 weddings! I’d love to chat with you about how I will make your dream day a reality. (Plus, I do travel!)
Blowing off Budget
I know I talk about the importance of budget in pretty much almost all of my past blog posts. But, your wedding budget should be one of the first (if not the first) conversations that you have after you get engaged and decide it’s time to start planning your wedding! When it comes to planning your big day, there is nothing more important than choosing a budget, sticking to it, and staying on top of it. It’s really easy to stray away from your budget when the little things add up really fast.
One of the perks of hiring a wedding planner, like myself, is their budget management services that they often include in their wedding planning packages. Having worked in the industry they keep your budget realistic. They’re more aware of how much things will cost and how much they should be budgeted for. (Trust them – it’s not their first rodeo!)
Ordering Your Dress Too Late
As a bride, there’s something you may not know until you go dress shopping. Wedding dresses can take 4 months to be ordered, shipped, and ready to pick up and take home. If you’re having alterations done on top of that, they can take at least a month to get done depending on where you go. That doesn’t leave you much wiggle room if you decide to put off dress shopping until the last possible minute!
At the same time, I’m a firm believer that the wedding dress is not something to rush on. (I mean, unless you’re one of those brides who finds their dress in the first shopping trip – lucky girl!). Naturally it takes time to find a fit and style that makes you ugly cry and beg your parents to buy it for you. (I’m pretty sure that’s how it went for me at least when I finally found ‘the dress’!) Every past-bride will tell you that wedding dress shopping is an experience in itself. Don’t rush one of the most exciting engagement experiences!
Inviting Too Many People
This one is really easy to do if you’re not careful and super organized when it comes to your guest list. You feel guilty and feel like you have to invite certain people. Soon, it starts spiraling out of control. You’re giving out invites like Oprah giving out prizes.
“You get an invite! You get an invite! Everyone gets an invite!”
I always tell brides managing their own guest list to make an Excel workbook. Within that workbook have a sheet for the bride’s side of the guest list, a sheet for the groom’s part of the guest list, as well as an additional “Who We’d Like to Invite” sheet. The last additional sheet is a list of the people that you’d like to invite once you find that you still have space after inviting all the necessary people from each side of your families. What helped me was to note whether you expect the guest to attend or not while creating your list. This is an easy way to keep track of your numbers before you start getting back RSVPs.
Underpaying Postage
If you’re young and have not had a lot of experience mailing things or even going to the post office,(because maybe that’s just something mom has always done for you – I’ve been there, totally not judging!) you may not know that there are different stamps required for envelopes depending on their weight. If you did know this and are totally laughing at me right now, you should also know that your wedding invitations will weigh more than you think they will!
There would be nothing more heartbreaking in this world than having those 200 invitations you paid to get addressed with breathtakingly beautiful calligraphy (and paid for those first stamps!) sent back to you with an ugly under-paid postage stamp. I think that would definitely be one of the moments wine, tears, and a lot of Beyonce would have to get me through.
Once your wedding invitations have been stuffed to their entirety and are ready to go, I would suggest bringing at least one to the post office to be weighed. (I mean, you have to go get the stamps anyways!) This way you can be confident while sending out your invitations that you have the postage required to get your beautiful envelopes to their new homes.
Not Looking Up Marriage License Requirements
This was a surprising one for me. It was also almost one of the biggest mistakes Rob and I made when I was planning our wedding! It’s a long story, but let’s just say moms are always right and move on.
If you’re reading this, make sure to note that the requirements to obtain a marriage license vary state to state. For example, they often have different timelines associated with them. For example: In Texas, once you apply for your marriage license, you must wait at least 3 days to use it but also must use it within 90 days of receiving it. In Georgia, you could get married the same day if you really wanted to. (If you’re looking for a quick elope, move to Georgia!) With that being said it’s extremely important to look up your county’s specific requirements early. Then, mark your calendar for your hubby and you to make that trek down to the courthouse office!
Trying to ‘Do It All’
Brides are getting busier and busier between their careers, going to school, and everything else life has to bring. I tell every bride-to-be the same thing. No matter how much you think you can do it all… you probably can’t. If you do, you’re bound to be stressed out and forget to enjoy the engagement journey that you are on. (You already know I’m not known to be one to sugar coat things, dear!)
I was one of those brides. When I first got engaged, I was convinced that I was able to do it all. If I could tell bride-to-be me anything it would be this. It’s okay to have help. I figured it out soon enough though. I was able to share some of my simpler tasks with my family and friends who were dying to help anyways. In the end I had the help I needed to do little things I didn’t have time for, and I got to enjoy wine and quality time with those who wanted to experience the journey with me. If you find yourself a busy bride that might not have the help you need in making your dream wedding day a reality, I would seriously suggest getting in contact with a wedding planner!
Forgetting What’s Really Important
This is the biggest and most awful mistake that could be made when planning your wedding. Too many times brides get caught up in all of the wedding planning. They forget what this season of their life is truly about: marrying the one whom your whole heart, soul, and being loves! When you’re getting stressed over small details, remember that this all wouldn’t be happening without that special person. Your engagement is a happy journey for you to take together. Don’t let it be spoiled by things that don’t truly matter in the end!
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