5 Mistakes Brides Make & How To Avoid Them
When my parents got married, things were a lot more simple.
They showed up at the church, got married, and had dinner in the church basement.
They didn’t have food trucks, or projector slide shows, or late night taco bars at weddings in 1983. They didn’t have a DJ or a band - get this, they played the radio!
Nowadays, weddings are much bigger events and, for most of us, it’s the biggest event we’ve planned in our lives so far. There are way more decisions to make in 2019 than weddings 20 or 30 years ago. It’s easy to make mistakes because there are just so many things to plan and sometimes things just get overlooked.
Now in my experience, I’ve never DJed a wedding that got “totally ruined”. I’ve come close with some rain once, but most of the mistakes I see are couples missing some small details that they never thought of. Here’s five mistakes I see couple make as they plan out their big day:
Mistake # 1 - Sitting Grandma Too Close To The Speakers
Unless you are working with a very tight space, try not to sit anyone right underneath the speakers. If someone has to sit there, make it a table of younger folks. They will be more likely to be out of their seats once dancing starts and the volume goes up and should be more comfortable with the volume levels during dinner time. I’ve also seem the parent’s of the bride and groom volunteer for that table to make their guests the most comfortable. Take consideration of not only who people will be sitting with but also where they will be sitting in the room in relation to the the music source.
Mistake #2 - Not Getting Ready Sooner
The number one cause of wedding ceremonies starting late is because someone wasn’t dressed and ready to go when they needed to be. If you don’t start right on time, that’s okay, it just eats into the time you have reserved for the rest of the party. Jessica from Cincy Beauty Parlor says her days “start as early as 8 or 9 am for hair and makeup” and that “depending on the size of your bridal party, hair and makeup could take 4-5 hours.” Plan plenty of time to get ready and make sure the guys have a plan as well. They might think they can just throw on their suits and be ready but it takes a little more work than that for them to look their best too. I’ve always loved the idea of groomsmen all going to the barbershop together to get trimmed up as an activity. Get the boys together early in the day and they’ll all make it on time. Plan yourselves extra time to get ready and everything will be okay.
Mistake #3 - Not Saying Hi To Everyone
My parents had a receiving line at their wedding and thanked everyone as they went down the stairs in the church for dinner. These days, most couples are opting to skip this tradition. You guests all came to see you! Make some time after you finish dinner to walk around the tables to give hugs, say thank you, and take selfies with your guests. Make sure to keep moving - your guests may start to get restless if they finish eating and don’t have anything to do.
Mistake #4 - Not Enough Dancing
Depending on the size of your guest list, I recommend planning the dance party part of the night to last at least 2 hours but not go more than 3. Anything less than that your guests might be left wondering what happened and anything more and they will start to get too tired. The best parties end on a high note!
Mistake #5 - Taking On Too Much Responsibility
While it might seem like a good idea to personalize the day and save money by baking 200 cupcakes with your future mother in law the day before your wedding, it isn’t worth the stress. Leave the big jobs like food, photos, and music to the pros and let them take care of it. Make your wedding reception as stress free as possible by not taking on big jobs yourself and not having to worry if other guests are going to be able to come through on their promises to help you out.
If you’d like more wedding planning tips check out my Wedding Planning Guide.