5 THINGS I WISH I KNEW BEFORE MY WEDDING
The hubs and I (Elizabeth) tied the knot in 2016. I was desk-bound during the planning process and got sucked into the Pinterest rabbit hole more often than I’d like to admit. 14 months after Wade popped the question we said, “I do” and it was the most perfect day, but trust me, there were plenty of learning lessons along the way. These five things I wish I knew before my wedding day are easily avoidable and some of them won’t dip into the $$$ at all!
1. Hiring a wedding coordinator is 1000000% worth it
This may surprise you since I used to be a wedding coordinator, but this was before I joined the wedding industry. I was, however, planning events in the nonprofit sector and was all “I am woman hear me roar” when wedding planning. I knew I could do it- and, truly, I did a dang good job with a minute-by-minute timeline, an itemized decor spreadsheet and going over budget by a mere $400. What I didn’t realize was how much work was put on my parents/family members until the night-of. We booked a venue that didn’t provide linens (don’t worry, we provide linens at Hawthorne House- it is a major life saver) so we had to tear down absolutely everything at the end of the night. For an experienced wedding coordinator this would have been a breeze, but for my parents who lived out of state and really didn’t know what was going on until the week of the wedding it wasn’t exactly peachy-keen. Did we survive and does everyone agree to this day it was a great day? Yes! Do I wish I would have set aside the $1,200-2,000 from the beginning to hire an awesome coordinator to support my family through the last month of planning? Absolutely.
2. DIYing decor can end up being the same cost as purchasing decor
I had the ULTIMATE Pinterest fail. I tried to make my own wedding welcome sign instead of forking out the whole $15 to buy a pre-designed one from Etsy, then print it for another $10-20. I found a picture frame from a thrift store, spray painted the “vintage” artwork and bought stickers that looked like calligraphy. The stickers didn’t end up sticking very well, so I bought modge podge to smother over the whole thing. Thank you, dear sweet husband, who complimented it on the wedding day. Even more thanks to my amazing sister who hid the dang thing before guests arrived.
3. Pre-write a thank you speech
The one detail I forgot to think about was a speech. The MOH knew she had to speak and the Best Man was fully prepared, but I totally blanked on the fact that Wade and I probably should thank our parents and friends who supported us through years of dating and helped host the party of our lives! Our DJ called us up to the microphone and, Wade being a bit of an introvert, handed that sucker straight to me. I took it and quickly said a few mumbles of thank yous for traveling and helping us celebrate. Looking back, I wish I would have prepared a heart felt thank you to both of our parents for all of their support throughout the years and during wedding planning. I wish we would have thanked our wedding party for helping us celebrate all weekend and our guests for making us feel so special by traveling from near and far. Sooo if any of you are reading this- THANK YOU SO MUCH! :)
4. Plan for things to do for the man/men in your life
We think a lot about moms. Do they want to get their hair and makeup done with us, when will they help us put on our gowns, should they pin the boutonnieres on the guys, etc. We often fail to think about tasks for the Dads! After our wedding I asked my Dad if there was one thing he would change about the wedding day and immediately he answered with “something to keep me busy so I wasn’t constantly thinking about how my youngest was getting married today”. I’M NOT CRYING YOU’RE CRYING. Now let’s wipe our faces and be sure to set some things aside for the men in our lives.
5. Take a candid photo or two on your phone
I’m NOT saying I wish I would have carried my phone around with me and check all the texts and tags coming in. I AM saying it would have been fun to take a photo with the hubs right after we walked down the aisle as we were radiating with bliss. It would have been neat to have a picture with my sister as she signed the marriage license. I would have liked having a few photos to scroll through as we were waiting to board the plane on the way to our Honeymoon. Just a few would have been nice, then I happily would have put that baby away and danced my heart out with the new hubs.
I hope these five tips help you flawlessly plan and enjoy every step of the process!
Happy planning from Hawthorne House!