Tips from the pros

portialoveschris

Hi ladies, I'm getting married soon, and outside of the standard advice like-- 'try to take a moment to take everything in,' 'hire a planner,' and 'number your RSVP cards,' what did you do, or wish you had done, to make the day run smoothly or to minimize your stress?

I feel like there are some obvious things I'm overlooking.

Cheers!

Theresa626

I wish I had worried less about greeting all the guests and relaxed a little so we could take more time with pictures.  I did however take my time to eat without rushing and I'm glad I did.  I also had a fabulous time dancing.  So, I guess... enjoy yourself and try not to sweat the small stuff that happens?  

I had an emergency bag but I didn't use it.  

I did however give my MOH and others all a list with every vendor's number on it which turned out really helpful when I left my cell phone and bag in the limo and my MOH immediately had their number to have them bring it back within five minutes while I was taking pictures.  That was super helpful.  

[Deleted User]

I wish we would have danced more and got more pics of us dancing. We were so busy trying to talk to everyone. Not to mention the fact that half of our guests left right after dinner.

I made a lot of lists that helped me remember all of the last few things I needed to do.

megandjay

I wish we had taken more pictures with our guests, we went to the tables and greeted everyone during dinner, but didn't have our photographer follow us and take pictures. So I don't have pictures of myself with any of my cousins or most of my friends, and I wish I did.

portialoveschris

Thanks ladies!  These are things I wouldn't have considered, especially more pics with guests.  

How does one stop people from leaving after dinner?  That happened at my sister's wedding and I was so upset.

Beachy730

You really can't stop them.  Some people just choose not to stay at weddings after the dinner and first dances.  I've never been to a wedding where at least a few people didn't leave right after dinner.  Depending on the size of your wedding, you won't even notice when people leave though, especially since a lot of people who leave early try to sneak out.  I'm not sure what you could do to prevent that.  We were told by most of our guests that it was the most fun wedding they've ever been to, and we still had people that left after dinner. 

prusgirl

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_tips-pros?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:12Discussion:30de6b82-030b-4ab3-9d0e-20f66b388a47Post:c9c4eaa6-cda8-45aa-a037-6746cd7dec7e">Re: Tips from the pros</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks ladies!  These are things I wouldn't have considered, especially more pics with guests.   How does one stop people from leaving after dinner?  That happened at my sister's wedding and I was so upset.
Posted by portialoveschris[/QUOTE]

<div>Unfortunately, you can't.  My wedding was very small so each person that left, I noticed.  BUT, it dawned on me I ALWAYS leave 1-1 1/2 hours before the end myself so I could not complain.  </div><div>
</div><div>I don't know what kind of planner you are and the details of your wedding but, I had mine completely scripted.  The Event Manager, DJ, Caterer, Florist, Rev., Photographer & Filmographer all had copies so they all knew "9:15 p.m. - cake to be cut"  They were given complete lists of my expectations weeks ahead.  And even with all that there were hiccups, so don't stress.  </div>

wendyinmadrid

So many things went right that I had planned for, but I would have absolutely (1)  made a list of my must have photos ahead of time to give to the photographer.  I thought the photographer would make sure we got all the photos, but it didn't happen.  (2)  been more picky about my makeup-I ended up feeling like I didn't look like I was wearing any, (3)  had more caffeine/rest the day of the wedding-I feel like I look tired in photos and (4)  I would have left extra getting ready time-the hair & makeup took about an hour longer than she had predicted, so that the 30 minutes I was supposed to have to get dressed became 7 frantic minutes and our couples photos ended up being cut short.  I had a great time the whole day and didn't let anything stress me out in the moment, but felt like I was running a lot and I would have liked to have been a bit more excited but calm.  And I while I was extremely happy with the day, I am disappointed in the photos. 

wendyinmadrid

So many things went right that I had planned for, but I would have absolutely (1)  made a list of my must have photos ahead of time to give to the photographer.  I thought the photographer would make sure we got all the photos, but it didn't happen.  (2)  been more picky about my makeup-I ended up feeling like I didn't look like I was wearing any, (3)  had more caffeine/rest the day of the wedding-I feel like I look tired in photos and (4)  I would have left extra getting ready time-the hair & makeup took about an hour longer than she had predicted, so that the 30 minutes I was supposed to have to get dressed became 7 frantic minutes and our couples photos ended up being cut short.  I had a great time the whole day and didn't let anything stress me out in the moment, but felt like I was running a lot and I would have liked to have been a bit more excited but calm.  And I while I was extremely happy with the day, I am disappointed in the photos.