Bridal Club Magazine
How to Avoid Wedding Disasters
You're in the midst of planning your wedding so take a moment to
sit back and envision the day to come. What you imagine is a day
full of romance, one that is absolutely perfect and not a thing out
of place. Everything, from the flowers in your bouquet to the
cloudless sky, is exactly as you want it to be.
Welcome to reality. Have you ever heard of Murphy's Law? You know
the one that goes, "whatever can go wrong will?" Considering all
the numerous details of the day, and add in the many people
involved (vendors, staff, wedding party, friends, family), the
potential for something not quite right definitely exists.
Wedding "disasters" come in many forms - from problems that are
"fixable" such as the wrong flower in your bouquet, lipstick on
your wedding gown, or the dj playing the wrong song for the first
dance, to the necessity of major re-vamping of the day itself
because of rain storms, blizzards and power outages, or the sudden
illness of a member of the wedding party or a parent. No, deciding
now to elope is probably NOT the best solution. However, there are
some things that you can do to keep the stress levels down, and
help avoid a traumatic meltdown should something not go as
planned.
Adhere to the Boy Scout's Motto - Be Prepared.
Some disasters can be remedied with some troubleshooting as they
occur - hems come undone, the florist forgets to leave the
boutonnieres, the glass cake topper is broken, one of the readers
forgets her copy of the reading. Just make sure the right tools are
available, and designate someone else to be in charge of fixing
such things, (a trusted friend or relative, or a professional
wedding consultant). You're the bride. You don't need to be
worrying about anything on your wedding day.
They say an ounce of prevention equals a pound of
cure. Other disasters can be prevented with careful
planning. First of all, book your locations before booking any
service vendor. This avoids the possibility of a vendor not being
available in case of a date change due to availability of
locations. After booking locations, find out all rules and
regulations they require. You don't want to have been planning
something for months only to be told on your wedding day "No. We
don't allow that." Also, and I can't stress this enough, get
EVERYTHING in writing - the title and artist of the song for the
special dances, specific types and colors of flowers for each
arrangement, your specific menu choices including serving times for
each course, etc. That way you know that everyone is thinking the
same thing and if there is a discrepancy you've got a powerful tool
to back you up.
Of course, during the planning stage, there will be changes, so
when notifying vendors about a change do so in more than one
fashion. For example, after your phone call to your baker about
wanting a stacked cake with alternating chocolate and white layers
and roses out of butter cream icing instead of the tiered all white
cake with silk flowers, write a short letter or e-mail restating
your request. Yes, you're working with professionals who most
likely can do their job wonderfully with one arm tied behind his or
her back, but we are human beings and notes can be misplaced,
handwriting not legible, answering machine garbles your message,
and so on. Also, a little reminder never hurts, so the week of the
wedding, make sure someone confirms with all of your vendors as to
who, what, where, when, etc.
Take all possibilities into account, especially
when planning an outdoor ceremony and/or reception. "What if" it
rains. Is there a building on the premises that we have access to?
Can we put up a tent? Keep in mind the month and season when you'll
get married. What is the weather usually like that time of year?
Planning an outdoor ceremony for August? Remember, tents will
shield your guest from the hot sun too. Have bottled water
available. Is the parking area adequate to hold the number of
vehicles you have in mind? Is the parking surface sufficient? Are
there enough bathrooms? What about access to electricity? Do you
need to spray for bugs?
Have a "Plan B" in case Mother Nature nixes your
plans for an outdoor event. Have a back up location available.
Address and directions for the secondary location should be
included in your invitation, as well as contact information for
someone for your guests to call with any questions. This person
should be the one who will make "the call" to put your "Plan B" in
action. This decision should be made with enough time left to
contact all of the vendors as to the site change. If thought of
beforehand, proper arrangements can be made ahead of time rather
than getting to your wedding day and either having to scramble to
pull something together or not have it at all.
Have "quick fix" tools on hand. Have a wedding
day emergency kit available. You'll want to include a basic sewing
kit, tape, glue, aspirin, band-aids, spot cleaner (in case of
spilled wine or wayward lipstick), nail file and make up for
touch-ups
Have realistic expectations for your wedding day.
Be aware of what can potentially happen. Keep things in
perspective. And have a sense of humor. Some things are inevitable.
A wedding cake at an outdoor reception will attract bugs. Others
things may be upsetting at the time, but in reality not the end of
the world - the periwinkle ribbon that you wanted in your bouquet
looks too lavender, the vegetable medley is served instead of the
green bean almondine. You're still getting married to the love of
your life, so when you look back on this in one, five, or ten years
will it really be that bad?
Extreme cases. Sadly, there are some disasters
that cannot be foreseen, such as the sudden blizzard or rain storm
that literally washes away all possibility of "planned perfection."
Instead, in these types of extreme cases, the only thing to do is
to go with the flow. Depending on how extreme the weather is,
airports may be closed, and counties may be on a "Level 3 - Drive
Only in an Emergency," alert, and many of your guests won't be able
to make it. Power may be out, so electricity is non-existent.
Without electric, your caterer and musicians/dj won't be able to
provide their services. It won't be the wedding of your dreams, nor
the one you've just spent many months planning, but when you wake
up tomorrow, you'll be just as married to the love of your life.
And when all is said and done, isn't that what it's all about?
Article Source: Free Wedding
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