Happy New Year and WELCOME to 2017!! Congrats to all those who got engaged over the holidays. We receive submissions from brides and from wedding industry professionals everyday. Part of our submission guidelines is for the bride/bride to be to share advise for their fellow Coordinated Brides. Experience is the best teacher so I’ve compiled some of the best advice that I came across while curating the blog. These are real Coordinated Brides so you can click on their name to view each brides’ blog post.
1. Lean on Each Other
“One of my biggest advice to engaged couples is literally to be a couple! In everything that they do they should do it together. I took the risk and asked my fiancé who is a guy’s guy if he would like to take part in the planning and I was pleasantly surprised! There are many obstacles we as the bride face when planning, such as balancing our hopes for a dream wedding, considering the budget and respecting the parents involved. Wedding planning will definitely test your relationship and having a fiancé that is involved will in turn make him more supportive of decisions that you make therefore having a less complicated planning process.” – The Coordinated Bride Ester || VWP Video & Photo.
2. Grooms Can Plan Too
“As you all know, or will experience, wedding planning takes a lot out of you. It is very time consuming, even if you have a wedding planner. So as you are planning the wedding, you have to also think about the honeymoon, which I strongly encourage all newlyweds to go on. You need the honeymoon to relax from the wedding planning process, and you need that time to bond with your husband. It’s truly a special time. We decided to go 2 months after the wedding which helped us tremendously. We were able to unwind after the wedding, and it gave us something to really look forward to now that the wedding was over. I asked Bae to plan the honeymoon. Actually, I asked him to make it a complete surprise. Bae chose the location, how long we would be there, where we would stay, what we do, and how we would get there. He did all of that without telling me anything. I didn’t know where we were going until a few days before we were scheduled to leave. My only job was to make sure I was packed. This gave Bae a chance to be in charge without me interfering. He literally had free-range to do whatever he wanted. I enjoyed every minute of it. And because I allowed him to do his thing, he ended up taking me to The Seychelles!!!!!! So ladies, please consider letting your husband plan the honeymoon. I promise he will not let you down. Even if you think your husband can’t do it, trust me, he can. It’s 2016, and the internet is extremely powerful so he can research all the places in the world. And if he is super clueless, he will probably ask your friends or his friends. But, give him this responsibly because I highly doubt he will let you down. You will be his wife, and I know he will want to impress you.” – The Coordinated Bride Deandrea || Tayo’s Creations
3. Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff
“My advice to all the soon-to-be brides out there, don’t sweat the small stuff! Things won’t go as planned but stay positive and things will work itself out. James and I learned his wedding band wouldn’t be able to be made 8 days before our wedding ceremony. Can you imagine that? A pretty reputable jewelry store telling you “I’m sorry but it’s impossible to make this ring” (even though you purchased it MONTHS in advance) and leaving you ring less, 8 days before your wedding? You would not believe how crazy we went thinking he would be without a ring but we figured out a backup plan and kept it moving. Those are the things that life is going to throw at you, and you’ll have to just try your best to not get hung up on it. You’re going to have to try your best to not focus on the negative and figure out how to think of the positives. It’s also important to ALWAYS ASK FOR HELP! People are going to give you the “let me know if you need help” line, but seriously, LET THEM HELP! I would not have gotten half the things I got done, if it wasn’t for the help of my friends and family! Don’t think you’re burdening them, because if they genuinely care about you, they wont think twice about the work. And most of all, remember the wedding is a ONE-DAY event (well two in my case) so have conversations with your fiancé that don’t involve wedding talk. I think I would have gone crazy if all James and I spoke about was the wedding. We made sure to have our date nights, we made sure to have fun, to do things non-wedding related. Some weekends we’d set aside time to do wedding errands but other weekends we’d spend drinking Long Island Ice Tea’s at Applebee’s for happy hour lol. It’s so important to have that balance, because if you’re in wedding mode 99% of the time, what will you talk about when you’re married? When the wedding is over, what will your conversations be about?” – The Coordinated Bride Bindi.
4. Not See The Forest For The Trees
“There is so much I want to say but the best advice that I can give to my fellow Coordinated Brides is to never lose sight about why you are getting married. Everything about the day of is temporary. It is the moments after “I do” that matter the most. Don’t invest 100% of you into your wedding without investing 100% of you are into your marriage.” – The Coordinated Bride – Prisca || AVD Pics
5. Be Realistic
“Pick two or three things that you refuse to compromise on, and don’t. But be creative and think outside the box. Do you really have to have 300 people? For some people the answer is yes and some is no. You’re literally on a high after you get engaged. You want to shout to the world how in love you are, invite everyone to your wedding and ask everyone to be in it. But in the end, make the best decision for you and your husband. No one else. I won a wedding package and got my venue for free and had my wedding on a Friday. Some places offer discounts if you have it on different days of the week. I would also say to choose your bridal party and the people who are involved with your wedding carefully. Sometimes the people you expect nothing from step up the most, and the ones you expect everything from do nothing. But it’s important in these times to remember what is being celebrated and nothing is wrong with reminding other people what it’s all about as well. I planned my wedding for 15 months so I encourage brides, especially those who are paying for their wedding, to save as early as possible. Even if it is just a little a month, in the end it all helps. Plus it’s great practice for the marriage! Lastly, go on a honeymoon!!! I can’t stress this enough. Even if you only go for 2-3 days, go somewhere. Anywhere!! You’ve spent all this time planning this wedding so you and your husband deserve it. And don’t be afraid to ask for an upgrade. Turns out a lot of people actually love newlyweds.” -The Coordinated Bride April || Tosha Francis – The Captured Life
6. Nothing is Perfect
“Enjoy the journey and remember that wedding inspiration is just that, inspiration! I’ve found myself so caught up in creating the perfect wedding sometimes. I can spend hours on Pinterest and different wedding blogs getting ideas. But I had to realize that I couldn’t lose sight on what the day was truly about, and that’s the love Michael and I share for one another; and bringing that into focus. What I’ve learned so far is to just look forward to the process and remember what it’s all about. I think people will remember how much you and your fiancé love one another before they remember which table cloth you used.” – The Coordinated Bride Chanae || Star Image Photography
7. Do Not React to Temporary Feelings
“One thing we both learned is that you learn a lot about people during this process. People who you thought were the most reliable are actually the complete opposite and people who you thought would not be able to fit you into their busy lives are actually there for you at any given hour of the day. Not only is wedding planning fun it can also be a learning experience. You learn about others, you learn more about yourself, and you continue to learn about each other. My fiancé and I did get into a small debate about an insignificant detail of our wedding and we learned how to compromise and speak to each other without becoming a bride or groomzilla. We have been together for five years but we have definitely bonded more during this year process. If I have any advice for all the soon-to-be brides it would be to enjoy this phase of your life. It should be enjoyable and filled with joyful, loving memories. Stress is inevitable but do not overreact to temporary feelings because I promise whatever the issue is will pass. I would advise when it comes to choosing your wedding party, carefully consider the people who stand beside you on one of the momentous days of your life for they should be the same people who will stand beside you in life.” – Coordinated Bride Kimberly || Elaine Mobley Photography
8. Do You Boo!
“My advice would be do what you want to do! Focus on you and him and the love you have for each other and everything will fall into place seamlessly.” – The Coordinated Bride Diseanna || Flavio D Photography
9. Comparison is the Thief of Joy
“There are a few things I would say to a bride when she is planning a wedding. Sit down with your new fiance and really discuss your vision and your budget for your wedding. Don’t compare yourself or your wedding to other brides/friends or magazines. Be authentic and original to you. You don’t have to go all out to have a nice wedding – sometime simple is better (and a lot of times much easier). As you are talking to vendors, don’t feel obligated to make a quick decision. Take a day or so and think about what you need and want to accomplish and if this vendor can execute your vision.
When choosing your bridal party, take your time and think about who you are choosing and why. Then make sure they are willing to stand by you throughout the entire wedding planning process. It’s not just about showing up the day of in a pretty dress. Keep open communication with your fiance’ and parents if they are helping to foot the bill as far as finances go. But most of all try not to stress and enjoy the process. Don’t try to do it all your self. Ask for help. Having a great wedding planner definitely helps. You will never regret having the help.” – The Coordinated Bride Velisha || Sam Jasper Photography
10. Girls Just want to Have Fun
“Have fun while planning and don’t get stressed. The most important part is two becoming one. It’s always best to be well prepared, but no matter how much you plan, there will always be something that will go wrong out of your control.” – The Coordinated Bride Lakeisha – Dwight Ladd Photography
Happy Wedding Planning!
