I’ve worked as a wedding photographer for over 10 years now and in that time I have experienced a few near misses on a wedding day. I reached out to some of my friends in the industry to get together a selection of 10 top tips to help avoid a wedding day disaster.
Alison Eldridge from Townhouse Bridal has the 1st piece of advice about wedding dresses.
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“Know what you can and can’t do in your dress! Most dresses are quite structured and don’t have any stretch in them. This means something as simple as bending over to put your shoes on can lead to hooks and eyes/buttons coming off! Make the most of mums & maids being there to help.”
With another top tip about dresses, Angie Murray from Virtual Angie Wedding VA suggests:
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“Avoid greasy/spicy food the evening before and the morning of – you don’t want any unwelcome tummy upsets! “
We asked Kelly Hawes – Wedding Celebrant about a tip for the wedding ceremony and she advised the following:
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“Only ask confident people to do readings for you. I’ve had to deal with a few very nervous speakers, and not only do their nerves ruin the day for them, but it’s also a little uncomfortable as a guest to listen to them”
We’ve had a wonderfully hot summer and we have noticed a few wedding cakes looking worse for wear at a few weddings over the summer. Julia Walters from Fairytale Wedding Photographers advises:
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“Make sure you hire a professional cake maker who will construct you a cake that can survive a very hot summers day!!! Had a few leaning ones during the very hot weddings!
Shelly Shulman from The Labelle Cake Company adds:
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“Unless she is a pro, don’t let your mum make your wedding cake, it is a recipe for disaster. If there are any issues with the cake, it will put unnecessary stress on you and that is the last thing you want on your wedding day!”
We had a few suppliers that commented about top tips to help avoid a wedding day disaster that included not getting friends to help out with services for your wedding. Sian Bowron from Amethyst Weddings write to me:
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“I second the friends and family point. A few years ago, I was employed by the parents of a couple, to set up and pack down the venue. The Bride and groom had just assumed that the family would do it. They did come and help but I only just finished setting up by ceremony time with an assistant they’d have never finished in time without the help of our team.”
Becca Poutney from Engage Weddings, a local blogger and wedding industry expert came up with a controversial piece of advice surrounding whether to have a free bar or not…
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“Don’t have a free bar – subsidise it and make every drink £1 – it will stop people buying drinks they don’t drink and will make them think twice before ordering another one!”
The wedding day can be very stressful. Nicola Marshal from Bespoke Bridal Hair by Nicola suggests:
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“Check, check and triple check dates with your suppliers! I have had a bride without proper flowers before as there was a mix-up and the florist thought that their wedding was the following day !”
Now we’re talking music/entertainment, and I think I must agree 100% with what Dan Nicholson from JN Sounds has advised:
- “I would say if you want a good party then don’t go down the DIY iPod disco route! Whilst this cheaper option might sound tempting, a bit of research into good DJs or bands will be worthwhile. Professional entertainers will be able to read the crowd and provide an M.C. service too, which will make for a much more structured evening reception and a better party atmosphere.”
The Most Important Top Tips to help avoid a wedding day disaster…
And finally, we have to feel sorry for Grace Keeley from Keeley Wedding Films who sounds like she had a nightmare on her wedding day when she advises:
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“Don’t think it’s all going to go perfectly to plan! Have some people in mind you can call on if/when something goes wrong! You know like when your band drops out 4 days before, or a dog poops on your veil 2 days before… Having a couple of people in the back of your mind, who you know will come and help you put out any fires at the drop of a hat is a good idea! And at the end of the day keep the main thing – the main thing! Even if we hadn’t managed to get a replacement band (we did!) and the dog poop hadn’t washed out of my veil (it did!) I’d still have been marrying my best friend – that’s what ultimately counts!”
There you have it! The Lee Rushby Photography, 10 Top Tips to help avoid a wedding day disaster. Can you think of any tips that you would want to add? Have you had any crazy wedding day experiences that have given you some nuggest of information to share with our community? If so, please comment below.
