1. Keep it Personal: Throw the rules out the window!  Now a days, anything goes.  You can be as traditional or non-traditional as you want to be!  Remember, this day is about you and your fiancé.  Bridesmaids don’t have to all be women.  Flowers girls don’t just have to be under the age of 5 – I once saw Grandmothers as the flower girls and it was the most perfect thing I had ever seen!  You don’t have to play jazz during cocktail hour – do you and your fiancé’ like house music?  Have your DJ play it.  Are donuts your thing?  Cut a donut instead of a cake!  Whatever you do, make it about the two of you.

2. Plan your timeline:  When planning a timeline for your big day, do it conservatively.  Allow yourself time for travel, or if incase the hair or make up professionals run a little over.  But most importantly, pad a little time into your timeline to help you relax.  This day is going to go by so fast and you need to make sure you have time to take it all in!  I am always here to help my couples create a efficient timeline that allows proper time for photos and maximum time for fun.

3. Ask for help: Do you have centerpieces you are assembling yourself or a last minute detail that that needs to be taken care of?  Ask a family member or friend to help!  Or heck, hire a coordinator – there are some pretty fantastic people in the area!  People will be wanting to help!  This is your day to fully enjoy – you don’t need to be setting up the place card table.

4.  Have your guests put down their electronics: An “Unplugged Wedding” is when a couple asks their guests to leave their electronic devices in the car during the wedding.  I have never been one to discuss unplugged weddings with my couples, mainly because it’s their day and their guests, but I’ve noticed an increasing number of guests fumbling with their phones, cameras and even iPads during wedding ceremonies.  I know those phones can be addictive – I mean, my own Brother got married in April and even I went to go take a shot during the ceremony!    Was I going to print that photo off of my phone?!  No.  What what I going to do with it?  Nothing.  I’d wait until my Brother got his photos back from his photographer and get one of those.  Not only are electronic devices distracting in your photos, but they’re almost distracting the guests from what is really going on.  If an Unplugged Wedding sounds appealing to you, all you need to do is put a little note in your wedding invitations or even in the ceremony program. Note: In an attempt to not offend any wedding guests, the below photo is of a friend of mine who approved my use of this photo.

5. Enjoy every minute:  Don’t stress.  Things might happen.  It might rain.  A bridal shop may accidentally have ordered one of the bridesmaid dresses in a different shade than your requested.  The place card table might get set up differently than you had envisioned (an example from my own wedding day).  These are all things out of your control.  But ultimately, at the end of the day, you get to marry your best friend.  And how great is that?!  15 years from now, you will love those little hiccups, because they were all pieces of your day that made it yours.