Your wedding day will be one of the most important events of your lifetime. Naturally, you want it to go perfectly! Taking a proactive approach to wedding planning can help you avoid extremely stressful situations. While every wedding is unique, the most common wedding day disasters are applicable to most ceremonies. Luckily, many of these mishaps can be avoided with a little preparation and planning.
StepsMethod 1Method 1 of 3:Managing the Venue and Vendors
1Have a backup plan for inclement weather. Outdoor weddings can be beautiful, but there’s always the risk of bad weather disrupting the ceremony. One common solution is to put up a large tented covering, or have one on hand just in case.X You could also have large golf umbrellas on hand for guests in rainy weather or, if you know a cold front is coming, buy some heavy fleece blankets to pass out to guests.XAsk your venue if they have a backup generator on site. If a storm knocks the power out, there should be a plan in place to restore it immediately.XEven indoor weddings can be affected by bad weather if parking isn’t located near the venue’s entrance. Have several large umbrellas on hand and task two people in the wedding party with possible valet duties.
2Select reliable vendors. Ask friends and family for vendor recommendations rather than blindly seeking out unknown companies on your own. Whenever you can’t get a recommendation for a needed vendor, research each company you are considering carefully before making a final decision. Look over their website and get a solid idea of what the company provides. Check their social media pages and search online for customer reviews, as well.XChoosing local vendors is a good idea for several reasons – you can go talk to them in person before you hire them and, in the event they forgot something at their facility, making a quick run back won’t take them very long.
3Get signed contracts and receipts from the venue and vendors. Make sure a contract is drawn up and signed for each vendor you book. The contract should specify exactly who is providing the service and what that service is. Try to add a clause to contracts that allows you to terminate services before the wedding if the vendor proves unreliable. Keep receipts for down payments and any other expenses.X
4Ask vendors to show up 45 minutes before you actually need them. If a vendor arrives late, it could throw off your entire wedding schedule, especially when it comes to crucial entities like the officiant, the caterer or the DJ/musicians. Figure out when vendors need to begin setting up and then ask them to arrive 30 to 45 minutes before that time. That will allow plenty of time for set up and give you a small cushion of time to deal with any last minute issues.XMake sure the DJ or live band tests the sound system before the reception begins.X
5Make sure you don’t run out of food. Speak with your caterer to prepare for the amount of food needed for the reception. The most important information to relay to your cater is the number of guests you’re expecting and the length of the event. The number and size of food item selections also factors in. When making a final decision, always round up to avoid the embarrassing situation of running out of food.Include options for guests with special dietary needs, like vegetarian or gluten-free food.
6Consider buying wedding insurance. There are insurance companies, such as WedSafe, that specialize in wedding insurance policies. These policies are fairly affordable and will reimburse your expenses in the event a vendor or venue breaks a contract or no-shows. For about $300 you can purchase a policy that will insure a $35,000 wedding.XMethod 2Method 2 of 3:Avoiding Ceremony Mishaps
1Try on your wedding attire two weeks before the ceremony. If you’ve been planning your wedding for months, chances are all of the attire (bridal gown, tuxes, wedding party attire) was chosen well in advance. A few months ago, those garments may have fit everyone perfectly. However, everyone should try on their wedding attire a couple of weeks before the ceremony takes place to confirm a good fit. This will allow for any last-minute tailoring to take place, if necessary.X
2Create an emergency kit. Bring emergency items like a mini-sewing kit, double-sided tape and safety pins with you to prevent wardrobe mishaps. Some other essential items to consider including in your kit are tweezers, breath mints, aspirin, stain remover, dental floss, hair spray and band-aids.X
3Choose sturdy flowers. On the day of the ceremony, bouquets and arrangements will be moved around and jostled quite a bit. This could cause flower petals to wilt before the ceremony even begins. To avoid this, select blooms that hold up against heat and touch.Some sturdy options are garden roses, cymbidium orchids, dahlias, peonies, mini calla lilies, and chocolate sunflowers.XKeep the bouquets nestled in vases of water until right before the ceremony to keep the blooms in peak condition.
4Practice your vows ahead of time. Whether you’re writing your own vows or going with something more traditional, practicing ahead of time will help you feel more confident. Write out your vows and practice them out loud many times. If it helps, practice in front of a mirror. You could also use a voice recording app on your phone to record yourself, play it back, and tweak your delivery to perfection.XDon’t wait until the last minute to write your own vows! Plan them out well ahead of time so that you have plenty of time to practice them.Consider providing a copy of your vows to the officiant. If you find yourself too emotional to speak or your mind goes blank, the officiant can quietly prompt you.
5Hold a wedding rehearsal of some kind. Many couples these days prefer to skip the expense of an elaborate rehearsal the night before the wedding. At the very least, you should have some sort of informal run-through of the ceremony with the entire wedding party present. Ideally you should rehearse most of the ceremony, but if that isn’t possible, even a basic run-through of the most important parts of the ceremony can be invaluable.XMake sure no one in the wedding party is allergic to the flowers used for bouquets and boutonnières.X
6Bring a master copy of vows, readings and toasts to the ceremony. Task the maid of honor or best man to carry a master copy of these important elements to the ceremony. If someone needs to reference a document at the last minute, it can be done quickly and easily.To avoid having extra stuff for them to carry, you could even scan these documents into a cell phone to be digitally referenced.
7Put someone in charge of the certificate and rings. Some of the more obvious things, like the marriage certificate and wedding rings, are often forgotten in the flurry of activity leading up to the ceremony. Put someone in charge of these to ensure all goes smoothly.X
8Have a plan for children and unexpected guests. Decide upfront whether you want children in attendance at your wedding. Make sure your guests know your decision by including a line on your save-the-dates and/or your wedding website: “The reception is adults-only.” Be very clear about plus-ones on your invitations, but be prepared with extra chairs and extra food just in case.XIf children do show up, you can discreetly ask the family to move to the back of the venue (especially if the children get fussy).Method 3Method 3 of 3:Planning Ahead
1Start as early as possible. Even if you’re planning a long engagement, the sooner you start planning the wedding, the less stressful the process will be. Immediately after the engagement you should set an approximate budget and estimate the number of guests you plan to invite. These items are crucial when it comes to booking a venue, which is the first major wedding decision that needs to be made, and one of the most costly.X
2Choose a venue 12 to 14 months out. Finding the perfect venue takes time and research. When you finally do find the venue you want, it could be booked as far as a year in advance. Before you set the date for your wedding, find the venue of your dreams. Once you’ve nailed down the venue and booked it, you then have a time frame to work within for the rest of the planning.X
3Make a budget and stick to it. Get a clear idea of how much money you have to work with. Create a list of expenses and set to work getting price quotes and researching your options.X You may want to consider opening up a bank account where wedding monies can be deposited. This will help you keep track of how much you’re spending more easily.
