How to be Stress-Free on your Wedding Day

Before even getting engaged I had experience with brides who got insanely stressed out over their approaching wedding. Several friends throughout the years have expressed how relieved they were once the wedding process and wedding day was finally over with. This made me feel so sad. I had grown up looking forward to my wedding day since before I can even remember. The last thing I wanted was to be anticipating the end and to be glad it was over with! I wanted to truly enjoy every second and be sad once it was over. Once getting engaged, my main goal was to make sure I enjoyed every second. This can be a challenge for any bride getting married with all the decisions there are to be made, stress and frustration can easily set in. However, I did it and so can you! Below I list out how you can be stress free on your wedding day just like I was.

HIRE A PLANNER OR COORDINATOR

When I say coordinator I DO NOT mean someone for just the wedding day. You should hire someone to be with you and walk with you through the entire wedding planning process. When I first got engaged I knew I wanted to hire a planner but in reality I didn’t think I truly needed one. But as time went on I realized how much I truly did need her. I was so incredibly thankful that I had chosen to hire a planner early on. The planner will take so much stress off of you its just not even worth the consideration. It is a need just like your wedding dress is a need.

PLAN EVERYTHING

A huge part of making sure you remain stress free throughout the process and on your wedding day, is planning for every scenario. Have a plan for EVERY LITTLE THING. Leave no stone unturned. Make sure you think of everything. This is where a planner comes in very handy. If you are dead set against hiring a planner, then your mom, sisters, or bridesmaids can really help with this. Just talking through the day and the plan for everything with people will help you see if there is anything you haven’t thought of that might be really important! You are just one person and you might leave something important out. You don’t want the guys to have crooked boutiniers because you forgot to assign someone you trust the job of putting them on. You also don’t want your bridal party to be leaving the venue an hour before the ceremony because you forgot to think of lunch plans. Planning through everything can help avoid any un-needed stress on the day of your wedding.

REMEMBER IT IS YOUR DAY

Go into the decision-making process with your future spouse. NOT your parents or his parents or your sisters.. NO. It is you and your spouse against the world. It is your day. Not theirs. Involving too many people in decisions can make the process long and hard. It can make it more frustrating than you may ever realize. Involve them when you want to but if you can make a decision between just the two of you- I encourage it. Even if your family is contributing to the wedding, that doesn’t make it their wedding. You should always be loving and kind with how you handle disagreements with anyone but just keep in mind that ultimately it is your day and should be your decisions.

DON’T BE A PEOPLE PLEASER

This goes along with remembering it is your day. You can’t please everyone. The most important thing is you make yourself and your fiancee happy. At the end of the day you are the two who have spent the most time and energy on your wedding and you are the two who will be celebrating it’s anniversary every year for the rest of your lives. When it comes down to what kind of plates to use, whether you need tablecloths, or real vs. fake candles… don’t try to please everyone who thinks they know best. You will go crazy.

DO A FIRST LOOK

I was extremely nervous to do a first look. I was nervous about not doing what was tradition and the possibility of inviting bad luck into our marriage. However, doing a first look was hands down the best decision we could have made. Being able to see my soon-to-be husband before the wedding let out a lot of the nerves and gave us a chance to marvel in the hugeness of the day together before being put on stage. We got to laugh and just enjoy each other’s company on our wedding day together instead of being stuck in separate rooms the entire day. We were also able to get ALL of our pictures done before the wedding aside from family pictures which was great because we caught the best lighting and we didn’t have to waste time after the ceremony! I didn’t realize before our wedding day how ready I would be to get to the reception. If we had had to wait any longer for pictures after the ceremony, I probably would have just said forget it. So, I was extremely thankful to have already done all the pictures before! And I know that some people think they won’t be able to have “the moment” when walking down the aisle but that IS NOT TRUE. Yes, you have already seen each other but the emotion and the drama of the moment is not decreased. We still had that ‘in awe’ moment and my husband still teared up.

MAKE THE DECISION

Ultimately the biggest factor in making the day completely stress-free was my decision. I decided I was going to enjoy the entire time leading up to the wedding, and most importantly, I would enjoy the wedding day. I made the conscious decision to enjoy it fully and NOT to stress out. I told myself over and over that I was going to love every moment of our day and I did! Did small things come up? Of course, but we had planned out everything the best we possibly could to handle any issues that did arise and anything beyond that… well, I knew that at the end of the day I was going to be married to my best friend and I knew that was the thing that mattered the most so I didn’t let anything else bother me. I was truly more relaxed that I even expected on my wedding day and I can honestly look back and truly say I enjoyed the wedding- planning process as well!

VENDOR CREDITS

Florals: 7th Street Flower Market
Ceremony Venue: Travis Avenue Baptist Church
Reception Venue: Mopac Event Center
Dress: Ava’s Bridal
Bridesmaids: Azazie
Groomsmen: Men’s Wearhouse
Photographer: Nicole Lea Photography
Planner: The Frugal Event Planner