Be warned! You may laugh out loud to some of the wedding advice that I've come across or heard over the years and once I give you the facts behind these as to why they aren't such great ideas, you'll be tickled!
So let's start with an absolute cracker shall we!
"Laughing is contagious and you may catch it!"
Don't have a Seating Plan
Advice: Don't have a seating plan and go for open seating as it will
save you time on having to write one as well as working out
family dramas that might be in your family.
Errr... NO! Just picture this, your guests will walk into your beautiful wedding breakfast room and, creatures of habit that we all are, will immediately look for a seating plan realising that they can't find one. This will confuse and send a tiny bit of fear into your guests as they'll be thinking 'do we just sit anywhere?', 'what do we do?', 'where are the bride and groom sitting?'. They'll then try and sit on the tables but, (this is where the fun starts) a couple might have sat right in the middle not leaving enough seats for another 'party' which forces them to separate and leaves single seats... ugh! it just causes chaos! This also takes so much time to get everyone seated and time is precious on your wedding day!
Then... it causes issues with your caterer. Some guests may have allergies or dietary preferences and your caterer will not know where those specific people have sat, heaven forbid a vegan gets served roast beef! This will then take more time for the waiting staff to go round and ask everyone if they have dietary requirements, which then could lead to guests asking to change their meal choice which again is just chaos!
So please, don't listen to that advice! Seating plans do take time but they make the whole seating process and wedding breakfast service seamless and stress free.
Have Your Phones During the Ceremony
Advice: Having your phones during the ceremony so your guests
can get more photos for you.
This one, I'm sorry, I could not stop laughing at.
Just no, you have paid a professional photographer to take these photos of your ceremony for you. They are extremely experienced on how to get the perfect ceremony shots, you do not want every Tom, Dick & Harry taking photos on their phone, sticking their arms in the air or even standing up as they will then give the photographer a crap shot by being in the background of your beautiful ceremony photos.
This is the moment you want everyone focusing on you so don't encourage phones, let the photographer do their job and get those money shots!
Have a Marquee Wedding Because It's Cheaper
Advice: Why don't you have a marquee in your
back garden because it's cheaper.
This makes me chuckle as it's not true, marquee weddings are not always cheaper. You have to pay for the marquee for starters and different designs vary in price, you'll then need to pay for the flooring, the generators, the lighting, the catering tent, the toilets... need I go on. Whereby at a venue all that is already there for you so take that into consideration when thinking about a marquee wedding.
I will be talking more about marquee weddings soon, so watch this space!
Bring Your Own Booze Wedding
Advice: Have a bring your own booze wedding as it will save you
money on having to have a bar.
I mean, seriously... I have visions of a 21st birthday house party where kids bring their own booze in plastic bags and then hide it in corners of the room so others don't steal it!
How would this work at a wedding? Would you have a table where all of it goes, but then what if someone else starts drinking that guests Gin or that guests Jack Daniels then it runs out? You can't have people hiding their booze around the venue! Also where do you store glassware? Just have a bar, it makes everything a lot easier and if you want to limit the offering or have a cash or open bar then you can!
Combine Your Destination Wedding with The Stag & Hen Do's
Advice: If you're having a destination wedding over a weekend
why not have the stag and hen do's out there on the Friday
and the wedding on the Saturday to save money.
Umm... NO!!! Unless you want the bride and groom turning up on their wedding day looking an absolute state and feeling like complete s**t, which is most likely going to happen then no, do not combine them just to save money and for convenience.
Just remember how you've felt the next morning after a stag or hen do or even a night out, do you want to feel like that on the most important day of your life! I know I wouldn't!
Have Background Music On During the Speeches
Advice: Have background music playing quietly during the speeches to help with nerves and so there's no awkward silences.
No, don't do that, let the focus be on the speech and nothing else. If people are nervous they're more likely to talk quietly (but should always have a microphone) so hearing them could be difficult. Having background music will also be distracting for them and for you so just don't!
I once, went to a wedding where the musicians played throughout the entire ceremony and as a guest I couldn't hear any of the couples beautifully handwritten vows! Such a shame!
Do Your Own Wedding Flowers
Advice: You're really good with flowers,
are you going to do your own wedding flowers?
This makes me chuckle, if someone says that, please say no.
How do you picture your wedding morning? Having a relaxed breakfast, getting ready with your bridesmaids, having your hair and makeup done feeling pampered and enjoying a glass of bubbly or, do you want to be stressed and sweaty installing all the flowers that you've made and making sure the tables are set properly then running out of time to get ready? No I didn't think so, leave that for your florist who knows exactly what they're doing.
If you want to make the bridal parties bouquets and button holes then that could be doable as they can be done the day before but I really don't think you'd want all that stress the morning of your big day.
So I hope you can see why these pieces of advice have tickled me and made me laugh, I hope they have made you laugh too! Perhaps try and stay clear of these pieces of advice and come up with other ideas instead.
Don't forget to check out my digital freebies to help with your wedding planning or if you need any advice then don't be afraid to contact me to book in a power hour!
Happy Planning!
Lauren xx
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Photos by: Sophie Duckworth Photography
