Wedding Day Advice | Wedding Planning

Here are our top 9 tips to consider when planning your wedding, what to avoid and what to remember to ensure that everything runs perfectly on the day.

1. Mirror Mirror on the wall
   Always avoid having any beauty facials, spray tans or spa treatments too close to the wedding date. Always use service providers that you know and always stick to treatments that you have had before to avoid the possibility of an allergic reaction to the products used.
2. If the slipper fits
   Weddings are a time for celebrating; don’t let a bad choice in wedding shoes cripple your chances of dancing the night away with your one true love. Flat shoes are always the most practical option, but not always the prettiest one. If you can’t go without your designer heels, then make sure you have a comfortable pair of flats waiting in the sidelines should the need arise.
   
3. Grumpy, sleepy, dopey and the rest of the seven
   Don’t go out the night before your wedding, stay in, relax, put your feet up and get an early night, you will look and feel like a million bucks in the morning. Probably one of the biggest mistakes both for the bride and groom is having the bachelor/hens party the night before the wedding, this is a big no no.  Have a little word with the Best Man and Maid of Honour and choose a suitable day and time that everybody will be comfortable with.
4. Belle of the ball
   Getting drunk at your wedding is not only considered to be in bad taste, but it could also ruin your chances of a hot and steamy wedding night with your prince charming. Hubby holding your hair back while you spend the night huddled over a toilet seat is not how you want to remember your wedding night.
   
5. Don’t become Cruella De Vil
   We have all heard of the term Bridezilla and probably know someone who completely transformed into one, during the wedding planning process. Getting too caught up with the little things or being on an endless quest for absolute wedding perfection is soul destroying not only to you but your bridal party as well. Have realistic expectations, no one will notice if the wedding invites are a slightly different shade of teal to the ribbon worn by the bridesmaids.
6. Come Rain or Shine
   Rain on your wedding day may be considered lucky, but getting caught outside in a rainstorm, is just bad planning. Always have a back-up plan when having an outdoor garden wedding, you cannot control the elements on the day, so don’t let months of planning go down the drain (quite literally).
7. Every rose has it thorn
   Not only are out-of-season flowers expensive and difficult to source, but they might not fair too well in a season which they are not suited for. Orchids are sensitive to cold, Tulips are vulnerable to heat, Lilly of the Valley is sensitive to heat, handling and dehydration. Always take into account the season in which you plan to get married and choose flowers picked at their natural peak of that season. In-season indigenous flowers are by far the best choice for bridal flowers.
   
8. Feast or Famine
   Wedding catering is a tricky business, you don’t want want to over-cater and spend more of the wedding budget than you need, just to have wasted left-over’s, but you certainly do not want to under-cater either, forcing  your guests to leave prematurely for the drive-through at MacD’s. Consider the time of day your wedding is to take place, how long the festivities are to last and cater accordingly, for example cocktail snacks are not going to cut it if your wedding ceremony started before lunch and continued till late into the evening.
9. The Poison Apple
   Be considerate when choosing your menu; try to avoid foods that could be considered risky or so specialised that guests are afraid to try it. You might also want to consider avoiding foods that are renowned for triggering allergic reactions. Avoid foods that could spoil easily if not sourced properly, as this could send everybody running to the toilet with food poisoning.
   Photo’s courtesy of Green Wedding Shoes