Stress Free Wedding Days and Stress Free Wedding Planning - some hints

 


I was recently asked to give a keynote speech to the inaugural Bridal Brunch.  I thought that he most important thing to talk to couples about, regardless of where they are on their wedding day journey was how to have a stress free day and stress free wedding planning.  If you didn’t get to hear it in person, here’s what I said!

 

Are you just starting your Wedding Planning? No idea how to begin?

Dream the Day…

Wedding planning can be a very stressful time – it’s a huge undertaking that is outside most people’s experience.  Faced with a blank piece of paper headed “Wedding Plans”, many couples realise that they have absolutely no idea how to start, or what they want or need.  To counter this stress, sit down, and write a letter (or email or message) to a friend, telling them all about your wedding as though it happened last week. You will find yourself describing your dream wedding, and it will pull ideas almost from your subconscious about how you want your day to go.  It sounds a bit odd, but believe me, it works!  I asked a bride to do this, and she sent the letter to me.  Not long afterwards her sister posted on Facebook about how she was looking forward to the wedding – and her description of it matched the letter I had been sent!


The most important thing to do during your own wedding planning is to take a break.  Don’t let your dream day become a daily nightmare of planning, spreadsheets and worry.  Take a day off, take a week off. Take a breath.  Go on a date and remember what the whole thing is actually about…

 

Once it’s all planned and you are in the run up to the day, you'll want to be sure you've got it all covered

Touch The Day…

Mentally walk through the day, touch everything, think about how it is sourced, and, crucially, how it got there.  The example that I always use is for a church wedding.  The guests walk into the venue and they pick up an order of service.

·       Have you chosen your music/readings?

·       Have you printed it all out?

·       How do the orders of service arrive at the venue?

·       Where will they be placed?

Its possible that you have a really helpful friend (We call him Dave) who will do all the running around on the day, but by carrying out this exercise you may well realise that Dave is doing so much on the day that Dave may need a lorry – and a time machine.  Worst still, you realise you don’t have a friend called Dave!



 



"It's important to know when to stop being a wedding planner and start being the bride" (Bride Lydia)

Let Go Of The Day…

You've done all the planning, everything is in place, but on the day itself you need to let it go and leave it to your suppliers to run. Don't stress over the details.  I was escorting a bride to the ceremony room, and she passed her florists who were waiting to wish her luck.  She turned to them and asked “are the silver candles are in the Chapel?”  This is not the kind of thing you should ever be thinking about on your day, when you are literally minutes from walking up the aisle.  Even the most organised of brides and Grooms can, and should, let it go on the day.  If you’ve booked the right suppliers, it will be fine – and of course, you can have a personal Wedding Butler to take care of all this for you!

Relax, leave it to me, enjoy your day

 

There’s one part of the day that is generally for the men, and is their stress point

 

Don’t Sweat The Speeches…

I know that making a speech fills a lot of people with dread, but there's really no need to feel that way. Not everybody is comfortable with public speaking, but you shouldn’t let this part of the day cause anxiety.  Speeches don't need to be long - and shouldn't be! A good Master Of Ceremonies helps (call me!), by making sure everybody knows what to do, and when to do it.  Personally, I will check in with each speaker in advance, make sure they are comfortable, confirm the order, make sure they know how to use a microphone properly and that they have a glass of water to hand (water for nerves, champagne for toasts). Overall, just remember what they actually are - a toast. Keep it brief, keep it real and - best men - keep it clean!

 

Hopefully, all of these tips help you to have a stress free wedding day and stress free wedding planning.

Enjoy The Day…

The ultimate tip is to just relax and enjoy your day. Leave everything to the experts who are around you – especially the Wedding Butler!

Finally, I  have a mantra called "Monday problems" - if something isn't right or per spec, worry about it on Monday, not on your special day.

Call me to have a chat about how I can make your wedding day perfect and stress free

 


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