5 Tips To Planning A Wedding Day {So You Can Enjoy It}

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1. Hire professionals you trust and are confident in. Start with this thought…when I look back on a thirty-second clip of my wedding day, how would I describe it? Your answer will tell you what’s most important to you. Once you’ve found the venue and vendors that you think can make that dream a reality, its time to reach out to them. I urge you to notice the details in the way they make you feel and communicate with you. The experience they give you from the start will let you know what you can expect from them through the entire process. Even if you are a super laid back bride and want the same type of personality in your vendors and venue – they should still be organized and professional and make you feel like they’ve got everything under control. I’m a pretty quiet gal and I can be the queen of a 🙂 and a few extra !!’s in my emails but I can plan a wedding day timeline like a ninja and round up groomsmen and grandparents like a (very sweet) boss. 🙂 Another tip is to meet the exact individuals that will be working with you on your day to see if you get those happy feelings because these folks will become your dream team. At the end of it all, don’t be surprised if you’ve formed some friendships!! 🙂

2. If you can, hire a planner. You may not think you can afford one but you would be surprised on how much money they can save you in wisdom and planning. They not only help with your overall vision and design but can steer you in the (right) direction of how to go about accomplishing it without trial and error. If you can’t swing hiring an event designer for the whole day, often times they offer other services like event design, the month of or day of services. {Not sure who to call, no worries – I have several talented planners I can refer!}

3. Delegate and ask for help. This one might be hard for some but if you’ve done a good job with tip #1, hopefully, this is pretty easy. Communicate with your team of vendors your style, budget and goals and then (here comes the hard part) trust them to do what you hired them to do. I’m not saying you shouldn’t be involved or you should be surprised – this day is ALL about YOU!! But nothing makes a vendor happier than a bride who trusts them to do their job. We want what you want. Making your dreams come true and blowing your socks off, is what we love!! Your delight and referrals are what keep our businesses going! No need to go it alone, get your friends and family involved! Have a pizza and movie night with your girlfriends and your fiance’s buddies and spend an hour addressing envelopes or turn bridesmaid dress shopping into a good old fashion sleepover!! Your family and friends would love to make memories with you and don’t feel bad asking for help! Often times if you don’t ask everyone thinks you’ve got everything under control, when really you’re so swamped you don’t have time to think about reaching out!

4. A wedding is more than one day. Don’t forget what this journey is all about – two souls joining their lives and living to love one another. There will be a mountain of wedding day to-dos and decisions big and small to make but with all of the foundation laid correctly – this journey can and will be fun!! Remember to take time away from planning to seek each other and spend time preparing for your life ahead. You will be joining financial forces and co-piloting each other’s dreams and goals so don’t forget to see the light at the end of the planning tunnel. The vows, your love and all the days after – these are the real important things in life. I adore being a photographer and capturing your day and curating your first heirloom is a joy, but more importantly – seeing you happy, in love and equipped to create a successful and amazing life together is ultimately what gives meaning to my photos and inspires me. I want your wedding day to be awesome but I also want you to have an amazing life!

Looking for some awesome books to help prepare for the road ahead? Here are some I think are the bees knees!

5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman
Love and Respect by Emerson Eggerichs
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

5. Enjoy the fruit of your labor. A couple years ago, I had a bride email me to apologize (not that I thought she needed to apologize) because she was uptight on her wedding day and how much she wished she would’ve just relaxed and enjoyed the moment. Hearing her express this regret, broke my heart. You’ve dreamed and you’ve worked your tail off to create your beautiful wedding and now its time for you to relax and enjoy your hard work. Trust in the process and know you’ve made all the right choices. Maybe you have an amazingly sunny day along with a slight breeze and a stunning sunset or you have an out of nowhere thunderstorm two seconds before your ceremony but to sweeten the deal a rainbow emerges – take a deep breath and trust in your professionals. Though you may be wondering what to do for plan b – know that your team has traveled this road plenty of times and can handle whatever is thrown at them. They will work endlessly to ensure no matter what happens – your experience is second to none and the memories that are made are amazing because it was YOUR day, and there will never be another like it.