Questions for post-wedding brides...

YoursEtcRachel · April 2013

I'm a month into the planning process for our September 7th wedding of this year, and I want to try and gain as much wisdom from others as I can!

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

Ella and Pedro · April 2013

I am not married yet, but for what it's worth I have heard many brides (and grooms) say that they found ultimately that the following were not necessary and a waste of money:

Guest books
Guest book pens (i.e. frilly feather pens)
Mrs. and Mr. or His and Her robes or tee shirts or sweatshirts to wear before or afterwards
Garterbelts, Toss garters (I'm not doing this. At. All.)
Toss bouquet (also not doing the toss the bouquet thing)
Really over the top lighting i.e. go-bos (the shapes or monograms in light people use often on the dance floor)
A ton of flowers or decor for the rehearsal (we're probably not doing any)
Bridesmaid gifts that won't be used because they aren't really for the maid, but really more about the wedding (i.e. monogrammed or dated mugs or purses)
Really fancy card boxes (but you should get one that locks and one that is big enough for larger dimension cards)

I hope this helps? Have fun! Good luck! Congrats!

Summer2011Bride · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? Probably walking down the aisle and seeing H for the first time. Also a close second is when we escape from the reception for a second, stood out in the hallway just us two and looked in on all our family and friends having an awesome time.

2. What do you wish you had done differently? If I were to do a complete do-over, I would make it much more mellow, low-key, and intimate. But I absolutely loved our wedding for what it was and was glad we could have everyone there with us.

3. What is something you regret spending money on? Our videographer-I AM glad we had one, but ours sucked and I would've splurged more for someone else. Also, toasting flutes and personalized cake servers (though we have busted out our toasting flutes at home to drink wine lol).

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? Besides the aforementioned videographer, nothing. I think we prioritized pretty well.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Best: Know that things will probably go wrong and just go with the flow
Take time to eat! Take time to take it all in during the wedding.

I can't think of any bad advice I got. Or maybe I just blocked it all out!

MoonlightSilver · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

All of the ceremony, really. That was the really important, emotional part for me. My husband put together the ceremony from a bunch of different samples and with my input, so it was really meaningful for us. I started doing a little happy dance towards the end.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

I wish I had kept a closer eye on the caterer. They were not so good, and had a bunch of little problems that would have been nice to avoid the day of the wedding. Also, I wish we had a longer reception. Ours ended at 10:30 and it was waaaaaay too early.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

The guestbook, because one of my guests gave us a platter as a gift that everyone signed instead. Other than that, I did really good budget wise so I have no real regrets.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Originally, our budget for photography was small and we had to get a smaller sized package. Half way through I realized I would regret this and upgraded so I could have the rights to all our pictures. I'm so glad I did this.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

I have a bunch of advice on my married bio, so you can check that out. The best advice I think is: realize that no one will care as much about your wedding as you do; after it's over, all the little things you think matter probably wont, and you do not need monogrammed napkins or aisle runners or anything like that. Lastly; always, always, always go for the best photographer you can afford. Your photos will last, you don't want to regret them.

Peledreamsofrain · April 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_questions-for-post-wedding-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:12Discussion:931d04fe-adfc-4a70-b7f2-1fde56ada7c9Post:13266025-5309-4f86-9301-206d17475208">Questions for post-wedding brides...</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm a month into the planning process for our September 7th wedding of this year, and I want to try and gain as much wisdom from others as I can! 1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? 2. What do you wish you had done differently? 3. What is something you regret spending money on? 4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? 5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Posted by YoursEtcRachel[/QUOTE]

<div>Congrats on being a month out!</div><div>
</div><div>1.) The most special moment for my H was feeding me cake. The most special moment for me was our wine ceremony (it was very meaningful to us, and fun!)</div><div>
</div><div>2.) Nothing for me. I pulled myself over the rack planning every detail and the end result was spectacular. For my H, he is embarrassed to this day that he forgot to thank his parents during his speech :P.</div><div>
</div><div>3.) We were very careful with our money, and don't regret any expense. Especially not on food and drinks!</div><div>
</div><div>4.) There are things that I wish I had had more money to spend on the wedding (real flowers instead of silk), but nothing that made or broke the event for us.</div><div>
</div><div>5.) Best advice, by far, is the stuff I got here. In fact, the very first post I did was pouting about the guest list, and trying to exclude someone I didn't like. I was promptly set straight by the ladies here.</div><div>
</div><div>The worst advice was that I should have a magician at my RD. Because people need to be entertained apparently.</div>

staar987 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
Getting married. Nothing else was as important to me so it was very special.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
I only wish that we had dropped to florist we used because I didn't personally like the guy by the time our wedding rolled around. He was a liar. Other than that, there is nothing I would have done differently.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
Nothing at all. We had a budget and I made sure that we stuck to it. I worked really hard to find great deals. Everything that we spent money on was something that was important for us to have.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
Not a thing. Our photography budget initially was super low, but once we started researching we found out that what we were looking for cost a bit more. So we changed our budget around to get a photographer we wanted.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Best: If you have it in your mind to enjoy the day no matter what, you will.
I don't think I was given any bad advice.

gabriel0915 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
-The moment I say H standing there waiting for me to walk to him. Then it was just little moments through the night where it was just him and I. You'd be suprised how little time you spend together that day!

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
-Really nothing. We actually talk about how there is nothing we would have changed.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
-We didn't spend an insane amount and I'm super conservative about money when it came to the wedding. Our pictures were crazy expensive but we LOVE them so I would happily spend money on that again.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
-I wish that I had more money to spend on my dress. But I was definitely that bride that didn't care about my dress because I knew that I didn't have enough for the dress that I really wanted. I got a dress that I thought H would love and he definitely did. He still makes comments on it every so often so I was hapy.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
-No one really gave me any but I have some.

--Don't take it too seriously. It's fun, not serious. Relax, and don't freak out. Your girls don't HAVE to do anything and don't really have responsibilites. Marriage is the main thing. Don't sweat the small stuff. Once you see him standing there, it doesn't matter and its all perfect.

AddieCake · April 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_questions-for-post-wedding-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:12Discussion:931d04fe-adfc-4a70-b7f2-1fde56ada7c9Post:13266025-5309-4f86-9301-206d17475208">Questions for post-wedding brides...</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm a month into the planning process for our September 7th wedding of this year, and I want to try and gain as much wisdom from others as I can! 1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? 2. What do you wish you had done differently? 3. What is something you regret spending money on? 4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? 5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Posted by YoursEtcRachel[/QUOTE]
1. When I got to the end of the aisle and my husband (fiance) said, "You're gorgeous." <div>
</div><div>2. The only thing I would have done differently was to have less yellow in the cake and cupcakes and to have made sure I got a new cake topper (the one I had was too big) or remembered to ask the florist to put some flowers on it or something b/c it looked really plain. </div><div>
</div><div>3. I regret spending money on shoes I didn't wear and will never wear again. </div><div>
</div><div>4. Nothing. </div><div>
</div><div>5. The best advice I got was that at the end of the day, no matter what went wrong, I would be married to the love of my life. I didn't get any bad advice b/c I planned the wedding myself and didn't really discuss it with many people. </div>

KatWAG · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
There were a ton. But our first look was one of my favorites. And of course walking down the aisle with my dad to my husband.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
I wouldnt have gotten married the weekend that NATO was in Chicago. The threat of a terrorist attack was a bit stressful especially consdiering our reception was so close to the protests. But it turned out not to be a problem.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
My rehearsal dinner dress was way too expensive.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
Nothing. Sometimes I wish we had a videographer.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
eat and dance. You paid for it, enjoy it. Practical advice: buy platform flip flops. Once I took my heels off, my dress was dragging on the floor, evn though it was bustled. Platform flip flops will keep your dress at the same hem length

acaponi87 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

The ceremony.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

I wish I would have ordered a smaller dress. Mine really was too big and even with a corset back, pulled as tight as we could it still looked a little big.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

Eh nothing really. I wish we would have ordered less pie I guess because a lot went to waste.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Maybe a photographer.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

I guess just make sure you've got your H on your side. He was pretty active in planning which I appreciated but it was soooo important to be on the same side when drama started coming up (like with parents and family and stuff). It makes such a difference when he can tell his meddling mother to back off, etc.

[Deleted User] · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? Seeing my husband as I walked down the isle

2. What do you wish you had done differently? Spent a little more time relaxing the week of the wedding but then again, we did have a damage to our home 2 days before our wedding thanks to hurricane Sandy so that didn't help

3. What is something you regret spending money on? Programs, hardly anyone took them

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? Planning ahead better for some indoor photo locations in advance to arrange for permission & fees. Photos still turned out good, just would have maybe had a slightly cooler venue thought

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process? Best - just nod your head & say thank you for that idea/information, I appreciate it & will keep in mind while planning. Worst - don't worry at least 30% of this list won't rsvp yes, guess again try only 5% of invited guests declined.

cwaggoner07 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

The three times it was just H and I. You really don't get to spend that much time alone! Those three times were the first look, eating our meal together in the back before being announced into the reception, and our private last dance.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

Brought flat shoes to change into. And spent more time researching lipstick to reapply through the day.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

Nothing really. We cut out a lot of stuff we didn't want. I maybe wouldn't have spent so much money on a canvas of my bridal picture. I would have instead bought a nice frame I could reuse and just gotten a print of my bridal.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Even though we had a day-of coordinator, I would have loved ot have her for the entire last month. I was able to find vendors that I liked but the last minute details stressed me out the last month.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

I didn't get too much bad advice. The best advice was during the ceremony after you turn around and before you walk back down the aisle to just pause and look around at everyone who was there, and all the filled seats. Some people left after the ceremony (by their choosing), so that was the fullest the day would be.

jparris14 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
Our first dance was very special...we both were very shy and kept trying to turn the other we didn't have to face the crowd.
2. What do you wish you had done differently?
Maybe stressed about everything a bit less...at the end of the day, everything went wonderfully but it went sooooo fast!! I felt like all the worry was for nothing because the marriage is the most important part.
3. What is something you regret spending money on?
Out of town bags!!
4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
Videographer! I was so hyped about our harpist during our ceremony but during my walk down the aisle, I had so much adrenaline running and I was so focused on my husband that I remember nothing about the walk down.
5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Make your wedding what YOU want it to be and not what other people feel it should be. At the end of the day, it'll be you and your husband...you want to make sure it's your special day.
p.s. I hired a "day of" planner for my wedding and it was really the best investment I ever made! Totally worth the money!!

Kristin789 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

Having our moms sign the marriage cert as the witnesses. Complete surprise, and they were really tickled by it.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

I wish I hadn't counted on my friend doing the videography - it was a hassle from the start, then he said he didn't have a camera, then he got one but when he loaded the raw video onto his hard drive, I couldn't get with him right away to do editing which he couldn't do by himself and then the computer crashed. Total stress and waste of time. And while I asked my friend Debbie to come early to help set up and stay after to help us pack up - she dumped out right after the cake cutting. Wish I had someone who had stayed to help put stuff in the trunk, etc.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

Nothing.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Videography (see above).

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

Best advice: go ahead and get your cake from the grocery store's bakery because it's known for its cakes that are better than the local bakeries and only 2/3 of the price. Can't think of any bad advice.

CowgirlK39 · April 2013

1) Special moment: so many, but I think the biggest two were when I stood in front of H for the first time and he had tears brimming in his eyes, and when the owner of the farm we got married on got out a heifer for pics. Coolest wedding pic ever! 2) What would I have done differently: not let my MIL cause so many problems. I definitely would NOT have allowed her to buy the cake because it was terrible. 3) What we shouldn't have spend money on: if I had to pick, I would say my veil. It didn't sit right for pics and was never really visible. Not worth $200. 4) What should we have spent more on: the cake and MAYBE photog. As I said before, MIL offered to pay for the cake and when we said okay, she went right ahead and booked some local people. It came out the wrong color and tasted like playdoh. Our photog was a friend of ours and the pics are nice but there are a lot of errors. Bad spacing of people, things that should have been our of the frame but didn't get moved, etc. But we didn't have a ton of money so we just made do with what we got. 5) Advice: the best was "make it special to you, and do what is meaningful to both of you." The worst was my mother telling me to kick people of of the WP. We had a number of WP issues, some that have affected our friendships with people. We didn't kick people out, and I am glad we didn't but I wish we could have avoided the issues all together.

mattycam · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

The ceremony: walking down the aisle and the anticipation of it all

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

Chosen the entrance songs at the reception instead of leaving it up to the DJ

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

A video booth (it is like a photo booth instead it records messages). Not many people knew what it was or bothered to record a message.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Nothing...I think we spent more than enough

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

The best advise I got was to take it all in and have fun with it because after the wedding, it's all over!

ladytori · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

Marrying the love of my life.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

I really wanted to get first look pictures, but he didn't. I still regret not getting first look pictures, but he has no regrets.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

Nothing. We were very economical in our decisions.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

Nothing. We were very economical in our decisions.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Best Advice - Have fun planning your wedding. It is your first and last time.

Worst Advice -
      Guest: "You shouldn't be in the same house the night before."
      Me: "We have been living together for a few years."
      Guest: "But, it's tradition."
      Me: "We pay our mortgage and bills and own the house. We are fully capable of making our own decisions. And, we will be in the same house the night before."

QueerFemme · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
Seeing my partner at the end of the aisle.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
Maybe started the ceremony a little bit later. The sun was up until almost the end of my reception. We started the ceremony at 3pm. Reception from 3:15-9:00pm. It was barely getting dark around 8:45. I probably would have pushed the ceremony to 4:30 and had the reception from 4:45-10pm.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
I don't really regret spending money on anything. We were very frugal and when we spent money, it was on purpose.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
My dress. I'm still having dress regret 6 months later. I know a lot of people say "that is SO much money for a dress you are only going to wear 1 day!!" but, that's sort of the point. You only (presumably) get to wear a big fancy wedding dress once. I wish I wouldn't have limited my budget so much and splurged more on my dress.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
I have a couple, actually:

It's YOUR day, Do whatever you want! (Luckily, I knew better than to take this advice)

oh that's dumb. You don't need chairs for everyone for the ceremony. It's going to be over in 10 minutes! (I also knew better than to take this advice)

lauraandjosh040613 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?

We had a foot washing during our wedding ceremony. It was to represent humility and service to each other and submission to Christ and starting our marriage with clean hearts. I loved that part. I also loved our first look. We were in a wood-woven sculpture and it was amazing.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?

Because the day went so smoothly, I wish we had gotten someone to videotape the ceremony. Or that I had asked my bridesmaids to get there just a little earlier so we would have been done with hair/makeup sooner.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?

Honestly? Nothing, really. We used everything we bought and spent wisely when we purchased.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?

I really can't think of anything.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

The wedding day makes it all worth it. I was SO STRESSED up till the day of the wedding, but the wedding day was amazing. My husband has been great, too, thanking me for the gift I gave him of a beautiful wedding.

I'm sure yours will go wonderfully as well!

orangehills · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
First look.. it was before either of us were stressed out from hosting the wedding, and the first time we saw each other looking all spiffy!

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
Maybe invited our aunts/uncles.. we did only immediate family and a few close friends

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
All the little things so early in the process! we ended up changing things and so a lot of money was wasted on too many invites, or table numbers, or jewelery I didn't like...

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
photography

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?

Try not to sweat the small things. I did, and it dampen the day a tidbit. Things will go wrong, but don't worry about it because you are probably the only one who realizes it!

YoursEtcRachel · April 2013

WOAH! Ladies, I am blown away!! Thank you for all of your advice and input...my goodness, it's super helpful! I love that most of you said that the most important part of the day was seeing your H for the first time and actually being married. That is definitely the point!!

ZeroOrchestra · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? Other than being married, since that's obvious....there were some little moments a really enjoyed. Waiting with my dad while the processional was happening. We had a long walk around the outside if the house and up the aisle and he told me "don't walk too fast, this is your moment". One of my BM's speech, it was so raw and honest and touching in a good way!, I couldn't hold back the tears. 2. What do you wish you had done differently? Our son's nap was cut short and he was pretty cranky the whole time, but other than that we were extremely pleased with the day. 3. What is something you regret spending money on? Nothing. We didn't buy a card box or toasting flutes but they magically appeared thanks to our DOC. I will say that as much as I see people say on here not to get a guest book, I love ours. Maybe the key is getting something you really like. We have a photography book if the city we were married in and everyone just picked the best pictures to write next to. It's on display in our home. 4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? I think we spry enough! 5. What's the best and worst! advice you got during the planning process? DOC told us we didn't need assigned tables or seating for everyone, that they didn't do that in that area. But I knew better and all our guests were from OOT so I knew better.

wildchild57 · April 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_questions-for-post-wedding-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:12Discussion:931d04fe-adfc-4a70-b7f2-1fde56ada7c9Post:13266025-5309-4f86-9301-206d17475208">Questions for post-wedding brides...</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm a month into the planning process for our September 7th wedding of this year, and I want to try and gain as much wisdom from others as I can! 1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? 2. What do you wish you had done differently? 3. What is something you regret spending money on? 4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? 5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Posted by YoursEtcRachel[/QUOTE]

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
A: Seeing my husband standing at the altar waiting for me, and our friends and family gathered to see us
2. What do you wish you had done differently?
A: At times, Eloped but family is so important that we did not want to
3. What is something you regret spending money on?
A: We chose not to do a guestbook, we did the signing frame as well as a photo album for people to sign that we could put reception pictures in later
4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
A: Food
5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
A: Worst: you can't do that it won't look right. If you want it, go for it, it is your wedding
Best: It is your wedding, don't do things to make other people happy if you aren't going to be happy. Don't forget to plan something for in between you ceremony and your reception, it can be very boring waiting. Invite the people that you want to be there, not just because they "have" to be, do what makes you happy.
Do engagement photos to get comfortable with your phototgrapher, and make a list of who you want photos with on your wedding day, that way no one gets forgotten. I have 1 photo with me and my parents as some other guests made a big disruption and messed everything up

dani1361 · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? First look, we wanted it to be just us for first look, neither one of us wanted those sweaty palms as im walking down the aisle. It was super special, and made for some AMAZING pictures!

2. What do you wish you had done differently? I wish we would of got the venue for an extra hour. We did our ceremony and reception at the same location, so by the time the reception started we only had about 4 hours left. We did pictures before hand, that way we wouldnt have the awkward wait time in between cremony and reception

3. What is something you regret spending money on? A robe to get ready in. It was pretty much worn fr 10 minutes just for a few pictures. But, it made for some cute pictures of my and my girls!

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? I think I would have more food choices. We made our menu and it looked like a lot, but when it came down to it, the selection didnt turn out like i thought it would, if that makes and sense. lol

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process? Best advice I got was from my sister. She got married in 2009 and my mom made almost all the decisions. It was "Its your wedding, do what YOU want" I told my family from the begining, im going to do exactly what i want and ill pan everything. It was a tough fight with my mom but she let go of the reins!

I got exactly what i wanted and my wedding was perfect!
-The worst advice was my grandma told me to think about what others would think... ummm hello?! this is my wedding and excuse my language, but screw what everyone else thinks. I did things exactly how i wanted and no one was except my husband and I were on my mind when i planned eachthing.

TeddiD34 · April 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_questions-for-post-wedding-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:12Discussion:931d04fe-adfc-4a70-b7f2-1fde56ada7c9Post:1af024cb-2010-4f46-a224-f5e9cf40c9a5">Re: Questions for post-wedding brides...</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Questions for post-wedding brides... : Congrats on being a month out! 1.) The most special moment for my H was feeding me cake. The most special moment for me was our <strong>wine ceremony</strong> (it was very meaningful to us, and fun!) 2.) Nothing for me. I pulled myself over the rack planning every detail and the end result was spectacular. For my H, he is embarrassed to this day that he forgot to thank his parents during his speech :P. 3.) We were very careful with our money, and don't regret any expense. Especially not on food and drinks! 4.) There are things that I wish I had had more money to spend on the wedding (real flowers instead of silk), but nothing that made or broke the event for us. 5.) Best advice, by far, is the stuff I got here. In fact, the very first post I did was pouting about the guest list, and trying to exclude someone I didn't like. I was promptly set straight by the ladies here. The worst advice was that I should have a magician at my RD. Because people need to be entertained apparently.

Posted by Peledreamsofrain[/QUOTE]

Hi Pele,
Could you please give the details of your wine ceremony? We've been thinking about this one for our ceremony.
TIA!

bfsboo · April 2013

In Response to Questions for post-wedding brides...:
1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? The vows. It was like he and I were the only two in the room and it was very emotional. Another moment was when I was getting pics taken with me and my dad and the photographer asked us to touch noses. Every time we tried, we ended up laughing. We were both crying at the end and asked her to think of a different pose.
2. What do you wish you had done differently? It was difficult because we don't live in the same town as our venue is located. We had a lot of rushing around to do when we got into town and had to ask our moms to take care of a few things for us. I would have rather done it ourselves because they didn't do things as we asked but I don't think that was even an option.
3. What is something you regret spending money on? Our champagne flutes. My sister in law bought us gorgeous Swarovski glasses as a gift so we wanted to use those instead.
4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? OUR CATERER. I thought it was a great deal but he a complete nightmare; even though we had a limited budget, I would have happily spent more and gone with a different company.
5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process? Best advice -- the day might not go perfectly (my car broke down on the way to get our hair done..) but it's the end result that matters. Worst -- my mom saying that since my husband had been married once before (in the courthouse), his opinion in the planning process didn't matter as much.... Rude.

[Deleted User] · April 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? Having my Dad walk me down the aisle and seeing my DH for the first time.

2. What do you wish you had done differently? I wish I had written a list of more specific photos I wanted. We got a lot, but I feel it could have been more.

3. What is something you regret spending money on? Nothing really. We were on a budget and feel we did really well staying on track.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? Our wedding photographer. It was a friend of my Dad's and he did a great job, but I just wish we had a few more photos. He did my high school senior photos and I was really happy with them. We also saw a lot of samples of his work and they were great as well.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Best: Relax and realize there may things that go wrong the day of even if you have a coordinator/planner. A wedding is just a day, a marriage is a lifetime. And no one is going to notice small litlte mistakes anyway.
Worst: I don't really think I receieved any bad advice especially here on TK.

mdupon70997 · April 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-recap-withdrawal_questions-for-post-wedding-brides?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:12Discussion:931d04fe-adfc-4a70-b7f2-1fde56ada7c9Post:13266025-5309-4f86-9301-206d17475208">Questions for post-wedding brides...</a>:
[QUOTE]I'm a month into the planning process for our September 7th wedding of this year, and I want to try and gain as much wisdom from others as I can! 1. What was the most special moment of your wedding? 2. What do you wish you had done differently? 3. What is something you regret spending money on? 4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on? 5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
Posted by YoursEtcRachel[/QUOTE]

<div>I think this a great post! I wish I had done the same thing. It's been only one week (exactly) from my wedding day. And I'm still really excited over it.</div><div>
</div><div>1. The most special moments of my day were definitely when my daddy walked me down the aisle (because he cried the whole way) and when my husband and I said our vows.</div><div>
</div><div>2. I wish we had done a first look before the ceremony. Formal pictures with DH and mysef and with our families took up a lot of time at our reception (almost an hour.) We only wanted to spend at the most half an hour on formal pictures, but it took a lot longer. My husband is really traditional though, and absolutely did not want to see me before the ceremony. </div><div>
</div><div>3. I regret spending money on our guest book. We used a Jenga game and wanted our guests to sign or write a little note on the peices. We had about 130 guests present and only about 20 people actually signed it. I don't think people really got it.</div><div>
</div><div>3.5 I am very glad we didn't decide to upgrade our bar package to the premium level. Our venue offered a premium bar package for an additional fee. We decided to stay with the regular bar package (which offered Taaka brand alcohols, one brand of beer on tap, and a strawberry daquiri machine) because our venue owner advised against us upgrading. He said that people tend to stay away from top shelf brands at weddings because they don't want the bride and groom to have to pay extra at the end of the night (which is exactly what I've seen happen at so many weddings.) People seemed generally pretty satisfied with our bar package. So I'm glad we didn't spend the additional $500 to upgrade. I'm also really glad we didn't waste our money on floral centerpeices and ceremony decor. We were lucky because our ceremony was in a courtyard garden, so that was really the ceremony decor. And absolutely no one missed the floral centerpieces (we did have little tea light centerpieces that our venue provided). So glad we didn't waste $1000 on that.</div><div>
</div><div>4. I wish we would have spent more money on gifts for our parents. We didn't get them anything, although we plan to give them each beautiful wedding photo albums from our photographer. I just wish I had thought to actually give them something the day of. </div><div>
</div><div>5. The best advice (from my husband two days before our wedding:) "Something WILL go wrong. Don't get too stressed out about it." The worst advice came from my dad: "I just don't understand why your wedding dress will take several months to come in. Couldn't you have just gotten a dress that they had in the store?" It wasn't really terrible advice, it was just really funny.</div>

mdupon70997 · April 2013

Also I'm really glad I didn't waste money on another bouquet to throw during the bouquet toss. I just used one of my bridesmaids' bouquets. After all it wasn't like they were going to use them again and I paid for them, so why not?

ash273uk · May 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
Walking down the aisle, for several reasons. It was special to have my dad walking me down. We also stopped when we got to the row where my mom was sitting and I gave her a kiss (it was a surprise for her...something little but special nonetheless). And the very best part of walking downt he aisle was seeing my hubby/him seeing me for the first time.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
I wish we had walked around and talked to each table of guests at the reception. We wanted to do all of the major stuff (dances, cake cutting, etc) right after dinner so we'd have more time to socialize with our guests at our reception, but by the time all of that was over, the guests weren't at their tables and were up mingling, so it was impossible to make sure we got to everyone.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
I took off my veil and wore a hair piece for the reception. The hair piece was very pretty, but I spent WAY too much money on it.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
I can't really think of anything I wish I would've spent more money on, except maybe our photographers. I chose our photographers because they were very affordable. My mom really wanted me to use this amazing photographer in our area but I felt like he was way too expensive. Now seeing some of his work, I wish we would've splurged and gone with him after all. I'm not unhappy with our pictures, but I know I would've been blown away by his. Oh well!

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
When I was shopping for my dress, I got wrapped up in the cost of the dress. I am a bargain shopper by nature, and almost never buy clothing unless it's on sale, so when I found out the price on some of the wedding dresses I was trying on, it would cloud my judgement because I couldn't fathom spending that much on a dress....especially one I was only going to wear for one day! My mom (who was paying for everything) reminded me that my wedding dress would be in EVERY single picture and video of me from that day and that I would be looking at those pictures for the rest of my life. She said that if there was one thing I absolutely should splurge on, it would be my dress. Once she told me that, I realized she was right. I'm not saying go overboard and spend an arm and a leg on your dress, but that advice was helpful for me.

I didn't really neccessarily get any bad advice. At least none that I listened to (or remember)!

ChiGirl2013 · May 2013

1. What was the most special moment of your wedding?
We had a horse & carriage to take us on a ride after the ceremony. It was relaxing, just hearing the clip-clop on the street, and to see everyone come up to us and wave or yell "congratulations" or even take our picture. I felt like royalty, and it was amazing to have that time alone right after the ceremony with my new husband.

2. What do you wish you had done differently?
I wish I had given our photographer a more detailed list of the photos I wanted taken, and assigned someone to stay on top of her to make sure they were all done. We didn't get a shot of the wedding party all together and I was so busy that it slipped my mind until after the reception was over.

3. What is something you regret spending money on?
Our wedding coordinator. He was AWFUL!!!! Despite having rave reviews and an A+ rating with the BBB, he rubbed me the wrong way from day 1 and I wish I had listened to my gut and found someone else. We paid several thousand dollars for a bad attitude, dead flowers, and services that he never provided. We may end up having to take him to court because he's refusing to refund the money for the services he didn't provide that were in our contract.

4. What is something you wish you would have spent more money on?
The wedding cake. I wanted a well-known local baker but didn't want to pay her minimum of $500 when we were only having 20-25 guests. We ended up with a dry cake a design that looked like it was done by a first-day culinary student.

5. What's the best (and worst!) advice you got during the planning process?
I didn't get any advice. But MY advice would be to get EVERY LAST DETAIL spelled out in EVERY contract you sign, even if that means your contract will be 20 pages long. Also, try to do a lot of your business via email and save them all - that way, you have a paper trail should something go wrong or should one of your vendors "forget" something they promised you. You can't prove something that was said verbally, but if it's on paper, you can. Also, go over every last detail a few days in advance. This will give your vendors some time to scramble if they have forgotten about something. Lastly, remember.... it's just ONE DAY. It's a party. I was SO stressed out that I had migraines for weeks before the wedding that literally left me curled up in a ball in bed in tears. In the end, it all turned out fine because I realized that EVERY wedding has something that goes wrong and as long as we were married at the end of the day, that's all that counts.

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