Getting Ready For Wedding Day

The night before the wedding day is an exciting time. There is normally a rehearsal followed by a rehearsal dinner. You are surrounded by friends and families who may have come from far away places. The celebration is just getting started!

Today I have a few tips for the bride and groom to be on the night before the wedding:

(1) Try to get ready your wedding day clothing and accessories

Running around in the morning of your wedding day trying to find an undergarment that is supposed to go underneath the dress will not be fun. Forgetting where your tie or cufflink is just add unnecessary stress.

Ladies, you might also want to set aside a button down shirt to wear for getting ready so that it can be easily removed after your hair styling session without messing up your hair.

(2) Plan the meal(s) for wedding day for you and/or your bridal party

Depending on the time you are getting ready for the wedding, you probably need to plan for a breakfast and /or lunch for you and/or your bridal party (if they are getting ready with you).

A traditional Chinese breakfast of long life noodles with eggs is typical for Chinese weddings

I am showing the wedding day breakfast that my Mother insisted on serving because it was a Chinese tradition in the photo above (Photo taken by Christopher Helm Photography ) but you can serve whatever food you fancy (as long as it is something familiar - so you don't get any "surprises" later on!).

You can designate someone to buy the food in advance or you can have a restaurant/caterer deliver the food to your house or your get ready location (wherever that might be). Just remember not to be hungry before the ceremony starts. I had actually witnessed the fainting of a bridesmaid during the ceremony when I attended a wedding. It was not a pretty sight.

(3) Try to get some sleep

It maybe difficult but getting enough rest on the night before your wedding will give you energy for your own wedding day.

(4) Try a rehearsal and rehearsal dinner on Thursday night (for Saturday weddings)

Maybe this tip does not qualify as "getting ready the night before the wedding" but I really like having rehearsal and rehearsal dinner on Thursday night for a Saturday wedding. It is actually my preferred rehearsal night whenever schedule allows due to the reasons below:

Reason 1: You can party longer on Thursday night since the wedding is not the next day. Even if you have a hangover, you can still use Friday to recover from it.
Reason 2: Rehearsal dinner can be cheaper on a weeknight vs. Friday evening (weekend)
Reason 3: You will then have the night before the wedding to relax (since there is no rehearsal and no rehearsal dinner)

(5) Limit tasks that need to be accomplished on the day before the wedding
 
Last minute errands and running around the day before the wedding is tiring. Try to limit yourself to one or two things that have to be done that day and finish other tasks before then.

I normally only give one task to my brides on the day before the wedding: go get the manicure and pedicure!
 

My Rainy Day Wedding Tips

With the amount of rain that Georgia was receiving recently, I thought I will share my rainy day wedding tips.

(1) Have a rain plan

If you don’t want to be all stressed out 10 days before your wedding about a forecast for rain, it is important that you actually think about rain in the beginning of your planning process.

Photo Credit: LibbyPhoto - Taken on a rainy day wedding at The Chapel at Simpsonwood

If there is one element of your wedding that you cannot plan for, it is the weather. Therefore, if you must have an outdoor ceremony and/or reception, please book a place that has an indoor location or allow you to set up a tent in case the weather does not cooperate with you.

Finally, if you are planning to take wedding photos outdoor, please have an alternative indoor photo location ready in case of rain.

(2) Be flexible

On the most recent rainy day wedding that I worked on, we forgo some of the things on the schedule in order to take outdoor photos before it started to pour.

I actually called the vendors the morning of the wedding to see if it was possible to change part of the wedding day schedule in order to accommodate getting outdoor photos done before the rain was scheduled to come down at 2:15pm (according to weather forecast).

Working with an amazing group of vendors meant that they were willing to accommodate and do whatever it took to get it done for the bride and groom. We ended up starting the photo session earlier in order to beat the rain.

(3) Get some pretty umbrellas and rain boots

Colorful umbrellas and rain boots do not cost a lot of money but they show up very nicely in rainy day wedding photos. If the rain is not heavy, you can easily do some outdoor photos in the rain with these accessories and actually have amazing wedding photos to show.

The extra umbrellas can also be very useful for your guests in case they need some help getting in/out of the cars while it is raining.

Photo Credit: LibbyPhoto

(4) Inform your makeup/hair artist that you want to go outdoor in the rain for photos

Your hair and makeup may need to be done differently in order for it to hold up in the rainy weather better. Discuss this with the makeup/hair artist to see what are your options. If your budget allows, pay for them to stay and touch up the makeup/hair after you had gone outdoor in the rain for photos.

In conclusion, good planning means you are not afraid of rain on your wedding day. In fact, you can go ahead and tell others that “It is lucky to have rain on your wedding day!”.