Advice for future brides

AlmostMrsStrong · November 2012

I loved the thread that the Nov 2011 brides left for us. We should gather advice to post for the November 2013 brides!

/>Get plenty of sleep! No one likes a cranky bride
/>Your guests will not care if your linens don't match your bridesmaids dress, and you'll barely een notice
/>Take a moment to greet your guests and thank them for coming
/>The day goes by quickly! Have a drink or two, but you want to be sober enough to enjoy every moment. Before you know it, it will be time to leave!
/>EAT! Sit down with your groom, even if it's just for ten minutes, and enjoy the food that you decided on.
/>Don't sweat the small stuff. Things will go wrong, and you'll look good if you're able to laugh them off and keep the day going.
/>Vendors are used to bridezillas, but that doesn't mean they like working with them. Be nice to your vendors, and they'll treat you like gold.

What say you, ladies?

Miss_2010 · November 2012

Well until I get married some planning advice would be

don't sweat the small stuff, ie: favours, seating plans, color schemes - its not worth the aggravation, nobody will notice nor remember the next day

be very organized with keeping your receipts, a list of guests and who responded/who didn't, and get full details from vendors (be very clear)

give yourself enough time to get RSVPs back before your wedding - knot timelines are just that - guidelines, not the 10 commandments! Certainly have your invites ready to go in advance!

larger bridal parties = more money spent, more coordination, more opinions, etc. Keep it to who you really want by your side, no obligation invites, and do not ask too early...

any do it yourself stuff, do it months before so you have less to worry about the month of your wedding. The last things you should be toying with should be your seating plan and possibly church programs.

listen to opinions, entertain them politely. You may roll your eyes at some, but remember, people have been through this before you so they may have really great ideas, some maybe not so great

let your parents and FI's family be involved, try not to get frustrated, its a family event

spend money on what means most to you. We wanetd great wedding bands and great pictures. Nobody will notice the fancy cake server you spent $100 on...go to Michael's with your 40% off coupon and get one for $20 instead

MrsBrodeurtoB · November 2012

We were married this weekend and it was amazing! From our experience, some advice would be:

everything takes longer than you think so plan more than enough time to get ready, do pictures, etc.
plan pictures very carefully-we did not get some that we really wanted because we ran out of time.
as other brides have said, don't sweat the small stuff. Our corsages were half dead at the ceremony, our cake topper was not what I asked for, my spray tan needed some touch ups the day before the wedding....but I never let anything bother me, those things really don't matter on the da of your wedding
take a few days after the wedding to reminisce about your day! We had a brunch the next am and talked all about the wedding. We also were able to look at pictures people posted from our day.
savor every moment, it goes by so fast! Look at your centerpieces, your tablecloths, your guest book, etc...all the little things you planned for so long, you want to take some time to see them come together!

AlmostMrsStrong · November 2012

Edible/usable favors are your friend! Your guests will appreciate it, and you are likely to have a bunch left over anyway. Who really needs 20 personalized keychains or photo holders hanging around?

Miss_2010 · November 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_november-2012-weddings_advice-for-future-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding Club BoardsForum:46c2f53c-680c-4532-aa96-4cca92890b59Discussion:fddfe217-25c8-460e-93ab-d551c5785ec0Post:505be3f6-2512-4ef0-9226-43eff07f5103">Re: Advice for future brides</a>:
[QUOTE]Edible/usable favors are your friend! Your guests will appreciate it, and you are likely to have a bunch left over anyway. Who really needs 20 personalized keychains or photo holders hanging around?
Posted by AlmostMrsStrong[/QUOTE]

THIS! Agreed! We did personlized chocolate bar wrappers and bought the chocolate bar to match the size of the wrapper. Take off the old wrapper, apply new, stick with double sided tape, done. I have also been to weddings where they had personalized cookies that the cake baker had made. Again, great for late night munchies!

Great for late night drunken munchies versus a candle :)

Oh! Also save money...nobody also wants an etched champagne flute. When was the last time you received one of those and used it after? Use the flutes/glasses the venue supplies for your wine for the head table. It'll save yourself a lot of cash!

lls31 · November 2012

This is a good idea, but if it's not a sticky, it will easily get lost.

Anyway, here's my 2 cents!

- When creating your guest list, be sure to invite the significant others of guests who have them. (How would you feel if you were invited to a wedding without your FI?)

- A specific wedding theme isn't a requirement and your colors don’t have to match the season.

- Your bridal party should be comprised of your nearest and dearest friends or family members. The only thing you should expect of them is to show up on time on your wedding day, wearing what was agreed upon.

- BMs are not personal assistants and should not be treated as such. If you want help with DIY projects, enlist the help of your FI. (It is, after all, his wedding too.)

- Attendant gifts are exactly that - gifts. What you buy as a gift should not be something that's required for your wedding, like the dress or hairstyling or jewelry. (Put yourself in their shoes. As a BM who is shelling out money for a wedding and the events leading up to the wedding, would you want to receive a necklace that you'll probably never wear again? Would you actually use a wine glass with "Bridesmaid" engraved or painted on it?)

- If you expect your BMs to wear certain shoes or certain jewelry and you expect them to have their hair and makeup done, then it is your responsibility to pay for these things.

- Bridal showers and bachelorette parties are optional events. No one is required to throw them for you. And you should never throw a party for yourself.

- Consider your FI when selecting the song for your first dance.

- Consider your mother or father when selecting the song for the mother/son dance or father/daughter dance.

- Never ask for cash. It's rude. A honeymoon registry is asking for cash. A gift card is asking for cash. Just don't do it.

- Etiquette was developed for a reason. The ladies over on the E board may seem a bit harsh, but they’re right 99% of the time. Following their advice is a good idea.

- Lists are good. You can never have too many lists. I made a 1 year To Do list, a 6 month To Do list, then 3 month, 1 month, 3 week, 2 week, 1 week. These lists kept me very organized.

- When creating your Day Of Timeline, allow extra time for everything. Plan on running late. It’s better to have some time to kill than to be rushing around or missing out on photos you really wanted.

- Do a first look. I was so against doing one at first, but I am so glad we did. It was the only time we had alone all day (aside from the photogs snapping pictures). I was so overwhelmed by all the guests and flashes when I walked down the aisle, I don't even remember the look on H's face. I DO, however, remember the look on his face from our first look.

- Your wedding is one day. Always remember that. Your marriage is what's important.

Advice for future brides

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