You’re engaged! Hooray! You’ve had your discussion about budget and in order to afford all the things, you’ve decided to take the wedding planning into your own hands. Is a DIY wedding actually cheaper? Can I really make my own DIY wedding fun, memorable and unique? Is planning a wedding really that hard? How can I have the best DIY wedding ever? Well, there’s a reason there are so many memes about how stressful wedding planning can be. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event so if you don’t plan for it properly, things can go awry.
Luckily, I am here to make sure you avoid this so you can look back on your wedding and revel in how incredibly awesome it was – just like you and your partner – not obsess about how you forgot to put out your special custom napkins that perfectly matched your venue (true story).
This post is the second half of the 2-part series DIY Wedding Mistakes to Avoid. And now, on with the post!
1. NOT DEVOTING ENOUGH TIME TO THE SCRIPT
Many couples planning their DIY wedding “wing it” when it comes to the script. However, your wedding is an event. Give it the respect it deserves when it comes to putting together your schedule and the script. Have an order for the ceremony and time how long each segment will take. READ IT OUT LOUD. You do not want to have your vendors plan on a forty-five minute ceremony only for it to take fifteen minutes. Your guests will show up while they’re still putting the final touches on everything. It’s awkward. Conversely, you don’t want to be late. Food needs to be served at proper temperatures and no one likes flat champagne.
2. OVERCOMMITTING YOURSELVES
There is a lot happening on your wedding day, which means there are many opportunities to get behind schedule. Unless you are a professional wedding or event planner, you WILL fall behind schedule. No one wants to obsessively check their watch on the day of your wedding. They want to enjoy it, too! (Well, except for me. I LIVE for being on time!) To avoid this, add buffer time to your day, at least 10-15 minutes for each segment, and don’t over commit yourself. The last thing you want to do is to rush through photos to stay on schedule or to skip something because you ran out of time. Or, better yet, ask me to do it for you!
3. PLANNING A MARATHON EVENT
A common DIY wedding planning mistake wedding couples make is wanting to incorporate ALL the traditions and cute photo ops they see at other weddings. They forget to edit themselves and accidentally plan a long event that turns from something fun to something tiring and arduous. The last thing you want is for your guests – you and your spouse included – to feel like you’re stuck at a party with no end or dinner(!!) in sight. Eek! Make sure segments flow properly from one thing to the next and make a firm deadline 1 month out where you can't add or change anything any more.
4. GETTING PINTEREST HAPPY
It’s easy to get caught up in planning and designing your wedding. There are so many sources of inspiration and you want it all! In the words of Ice Cube, ‘check yourself before you wreck yourself.’ In other words, know what kind of theme or aesthetic or feelings you want to evoke on that day and stick to it.
If something isn’t in line with your original vision, Pin it for another event and move on. Trust me, I love a good Pinterest project, but the last thing you want is 5 failed Pinterest projects that didn’t turn out the way you envisioned. Avoid this mistake and focus on a few manageable projects. Do them *really well* so you don’t spread yourself too thin.
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5. NOT HAVING A CONTINGENCY PLAN
A major DIY wedding planning mistake is not having a backup plan. If your special day involves any outdoor components, make sure you have contingency plans in case of inclement weather. For warm weather, have fans and sunscreen and plenty of water on hand for you and your guests, plus tents or shelter if there’s any chance it might rain or if the heat soars into the 90’s. If vendors are driving through any kind of grassy field, have the phone number of a good towing company in case the field becomes saturated by rain before, during, or after the event during load-out. For colder months, provide blankets and cheap hand warmers. Your backup plan doesn’t have to be excessive or extravagant or cost a lot of money. A little forethought about how to solve any weather issues will save you stress the week before the ceremony when the forecast is less than ideal. You will already have a plan!
CONCLUSION
There is nothing wrong with planning a wedding on your own. But bookmark this post, pin it on Pinterest, and share it with others planning their own weddings to save them from wishing they had just eloped. To make sure you don’t miss future posts so you can plan your wedding like an expert, click the subscribe button below!
And to find out how I can help you from going crazy planning for your big day, reach out! You'll be so glad you did and get so much more beauty rest for all those pretty pictures!
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PS – Don't forget to pin this post so you can come back to it!
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