Always assume that all suppliers you use are unlikely to do everything that you have asked, that way you won’t be disappointed!  No seriously, I can guarantee that at least one supplier will not do everything that you have asked.  So how do you minimise this happening?

Make sure that you have a clear schedule of what you expect from each supplier.  They will be grateful for it and you will have some comeback if they don’t do what was agreed.  Ideally have someone there that has a copy of what you expect and what needs to be done and by who.  If you hire an on the day coordinator they can help you to plan a schedule of tasks and can go through with you what you expect of each supplier.

After an event many suppliers will be very quick to blame someone else as they will not want to take responsibility for any problems, this can sometimes not be a pleasant experience.  So it’s best to assume that your suppliers may not be as on the ball as you would like and make sure that they have a complete schedule of what you expect.

Many apologies for a lack in blog posts in the past few weeks. To be honest I am pregnant and have been feeling rather sick all of the time, so I have had to let some things slide and just do what I can! But I am beginning to feel vaguely better, week 14 so hopefully this is the pregnancy ‘honeymoon period’ everyone talks about!

There I go planning my pregnancy around the wedding season (due in February), only to feel sick at the height of it! Oh well focus that was the key, all my weddings have gone to plan so far this year (touch wood), just by focusing all my strength and energy on my bookings! They have also all managed to have good weather (pretty surprising considering the weather this year!), so clearly something is working in my favour.

I think the same applies for when you are planning your own wedding though, you need to focus on what is important and concentrate all of your energy on getting the parts of your wedding right that are important to you. You also need to focus on how you want your wedding day to look as a whole and see the bigger picture, visualise it and see what is really important. Try to not get distracted by other people’s opinions and focus on what it is you both want as a couple. It is very easy to lose sight of what is really important and what you visualise for your wedding if everyone else is clouding your vision with their own ideas. Keep the focus on what you both want, visualise it and stick to it!

Happy wedding planning

Nobody and nothing can be perfect, but everyone wants their wedding day to be perfect and for themselves to be perfect on their big day.

So do the two mix?  How do peoples expectations of the day that they have, in some cases been thinking of for their whole life, match up to reality and possibility?

Unfortunately in so many cases people want to change themselves in order to make the two match up:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2175586/Brides-say-I-plastic-surgery-The-women-resorting-worrying-extremes-look-perfect-big-day.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2178236/My-Big-Fat-Bottomed-Wedding-quarter-dieting-brides-say-big-day-RUINED-failed-lose-weight-wedding.html

Your wedding day does not need to be perfect, nor can it be.  Try to relax, and yes try to aim for perfection, but don’t get hung up having to meet your expectations. 

This is a very difficult and particularly unpredictable summer for weather, which has caused a huge headache for many brides getting married.

I had a meeting earlier this week for a wedding later this summer where the reception is due to be in a marquee outside, with a drinks reception outside before the wedding breakfast.  What to do?  Cut out the drinks reception and allow guest to go into the marquee earlier, which would obviously require preparing the caterers first!  Or try to provide some cover outside the marquee?  All you can do is make preparations for both options and hope for sunshine!

The current weather may cause some interesting situations, but all you can do is make the most of it and prepare the best you can.  It’s what we British do best isn’t it?  Picnics in the car or wrapped up on the beach in a blanket because it’s cold and you will enjoy your holiday!  Take this wedding party taking it all in their stride for example http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2175369/Newlyweds-pose-wedding-photos-wellies-refuse-let-flooding-Hotel-Felix-Cambridge-dampen-spirits.html

The current law is gradually following society, gay marriages are legal and weddings can now be held at any time.  But will (and should) the church ever follow suit?

C of E churches seem adamant that they will not offer ceremonies at any time of the day http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2012/6-july/news/uk/wedding-hours-change-will-not-apply-to-c-of-e

But many churches now seem to be sympathetic and willing to perform gay ceremonies, politicians are even backing the right for churches to perform ceremonies if they wish http://www.standard.co.uk/comment/we-should-allow-gay-weddings-in-church-7915437.html

So will both eventually follow in line with changes to the law and in society? And should they? Or should they stay traditional?

After the fantastic news that weddings now can take place at any time http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18662920

Many couples will now be able to be less restricted on what they choose for their wedding.  I have had a number of couples who love light, lanterns, candles and fireworks.  So they want a candlelight wedding, but also want a summer wedding.  The two just don’t work in this country….until now!

It’s fantastic that people can finally get married when they want, but it’s not without its problems!  For example, if you plan on lighting the aisle with candles, make sure you don’t set light to your wedding dress!  Also make sure you choose a photographer who has experience shooting in dark or low light conditions.  It is much more difficult and takes a skilled photographer to get great photographs in low light conditions, make sure that you see examples of their work in these conditions.  It also relies on finding a venue to hold your wedding when you want to!

Hopefully next laws will be relaxed on open air weddings (although in the current weather conditions that could be risky!).

With the cost of the average wedding being equivalent to the cost of a deposit for a house many couples are choosing to set up in a home rather than get married (or at least postpone a wedding for a few years). After all what good is a wedding if you are still living with parents or homeless?

But a wedding doesn’t have to cost that much.  Set a budget to what you can afford and stick to it!  That doesn’t mean that you can’t have what you want, just carefully plan what you want and what is most important to you.  Without knowing what is most important and least important how will you now know where you are willing to compromise? 

Make sure that you then draw up a budget for each area of your wedding (be realistic and look at how much things cost first!).  For the items that are slightly higher priced, try negotiating with suppliers.  If you know your budget for that item, then you know how much you need to negotiate.  If you are uncomfortable negotiating and don’t know where to start with a budget, consider hiring a wedding planner, who may be able to offer you a rate for just budgeting and negotiation.

Try looking at my earlier blog post on how to save money on your wedding for more hints and tips.

So many Brides are too nice!  I know this is a contradiction to the usual Bridezilla impression, but you really do need to put yourself for at least one day in your life.  You don’t need to become a Bridezilla, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t come first. 

For example if you are sharing a bathroom with 10 bridesmaids, make sure that you can get in when you want to!  Even if you have to do a rota, just make sure you can do everything you want to, when you need to do it.  After all you are more important than all of your friends on this day (even if you are usually the quiet one!).

I see so many Brides too nervous and excited to eat on their wedding day (personally I was eating takeaway pizza while having my hair done, but I am told by my hairdresser I am the exception to the rule!).

Although you may not feel like it, you must make sure that you look after yourself and eat properly on your wedding day.  If you are hungry (even if you don’t feel hungry) you will not be able to concentrate and enjoy your day.  You may also have much less patience if anything goes wrong.

You also need to make sure you aren’t tired.  I would therefore recommend that you do not go on your hen night in the week before the wedding.  I would also recommend that you try not to be at the venue too late the day before doing any finishing touches.   If possible try to get an early night, as you may wake up early the next morning (or may need to, to get ready in time).  It’s a bit like Christmas x10 at least!  It might be difficult to sleep, as you may be excited or thinking about the day ahead too much, but try to rest nevertheless.  Even if you don’t sleep this rest will be beneficial to your wellbeing.

Your wedding day can be tiring and stressful at the best of times, so you must give yourself the best chance possible of dealing with any eventualities.

Today is my Wedding Anniversary, shhhh Hubby is still sleeping!  I wasn’t going to write a blog post today for obvious reasons, but then I have been thinking of our wedding and the past two years, quite a lot over the past couple of days.  Yesterday someone said to me how perfect our wedding was, to which I laughed.  I did my best to make it the perfect day, but that just isn’t possible!  There are too many things that can go wrong, too many other people involved who treat it as any other day. 

The biggest thing that I would love to go back and change though, would be to enjoy the day more.  Before my wedding quite a few people said to us, just make sure you enjoy your day as it will go by very quickly.  Despite knowing this information, it still went by so quickly and felt like no time at all.  So one of my biggest tips for your wedding day…..make sure you make the most of every second.