Okay brides… planning for a wedding is one thing, but making sure you are prepared for the wedding day itself is a whole different story. Not only do you have to worry about making sure decorations are getting set up where they need to go, but you have to get your hair done, get your makeup did, pose for pictures, laugh with friends, and on and on.
Hopefully you’ll know just how all of this is going to get taken care of BEFORE the day arrives so that you aren’t running around with curlers in your hair trying to figure out where the paper lanterns are going in the reception area.
No matter where you’re at in the planning process, whether it be months away from your special day or a mere few hours, let’s look at some of the wedding day prep that you should be thinking about:
Wedding Day Prep: Designating Tasks
Odds are that you are going to have ZERO time to prepare any decorations or direct vendors to the right locations. With that being said, it’s extremely important that you have a wedding planner, a family member, or a friend at the venue to make sure things are getting in their proper place.
I didn’t have the funds to hire a wedding planner (besides, it was entertaining to have me and my now hubby do it anyway), so I had my mom get to the venue early so that she could start setting things up. My amazing groom also helped with the decorations by hanging up things outside and moving tables around so there was enough room for a dance floor (very important detail).
Some of you may have a venue that takes care of everything. If that’s you, great! Just make sure you get the contact information of a head staff member who will be there that day to make sure everything is getting taken care of. If you have a sudden change of heart on something or you realize you forgot a minor detail, you’ll want to have a point-of-contact so you don’t have to go searching the halls (and risk seeing your groom before the ceremony – *gasp*) to find someone.
Every bride’s wedding day prep and setup is going to look a bit different, but here are some basic tips to take away and remember:
- Have a designated person to direct vendors (florist, caterer, DJ, etc.)
- Appoint a family member or friend to check on things for you
- Make a list of things that need to get done that day
- Draw a diagram of how you want tables and chairs to be set up
Hair and Makeup
Communicating with your hair stylist and makeup artist before your big day is super important for wedding day prep. Why? Because you’ll want to know how long they will need for each person. Once you find that out, you’ll be able to decide on a time for them to arrive so that you are rushing through squirts of hairspray in order to get downstairs for pictures!
For my wedding, I had three bridesmaids and myself all getting hair and makeup. I knew that pictures were starting at 4, so all of the girls needed to be ready by then. After consulting with my hair stylist, she recommended one hour for each bridesmaid and an hour and 15 minutes for me. Knowing this, I scheduled her to come to the venue at 11:30. My makeup artist didn’t need as much time, so we scheduled for her to come at 12:30.
To make sure there was no crossover, I created a schedule so that the makeup artist and hair stylist were both working on beautifying someone the entire time.
By the way, here is what the back of my hair ended up looking like (wedding hair accessories
Most Importantly – Enjoy the Day!
I think a lot of bride’s stress A LOT right before the big day and especially on the morning of the wedding because they want everything to be perfect. If you start to feel the anxiety kicking in, just remind yourself that you are going through this not for the looks or the glamour… you’re there to marry your best friend!
With that in mind, enjoy your special day and have fun with it! Laugh with your bridesmaids, hug your family, and cherish this sweet memory.
I haven’t gotten the pictures back of me and my beau yet, but I do have some fun ones with my brother 🙂
