For the Bride: Planning your Wedding – Part 1- Prepping for Your Big Day
You’ve been dreaming of this day since you were a little girl. You found the man of your dreams and now you’re engaged. You are so excited! But once you calm down from the excitement and celebrations you realize . . . you have your wedding to plan.
You’ve had this day planned in your head since you were ten, so it’ll be easy right? Wrong. When it comes down to it, a bride is not the same person that she was when she was ten. Maybe she doesn’t want the hot pink and orange color scheme that she dreamed of having. Or maybe she still likes the burgundy and navy theme that she had upgraded to when she was sixteen but her fiancé doesn’t like it. Now she has to start from scratch, but where does she begin?
There are so many things that go into planning a wedding. This list starts with big things like where you should have your reception and goes all the way down to the tedious decisions of what color napkins you want. Where do you even start? The first and most important thing to do is stop, take a deep breath and don’t stress. You shouldn’t get yourself sick over planning something so amazing. You don’t want to walk down the aisle with bags under your eyes or stress breakouts on your face.
Besides taking care of yourself, there are five major things to focus on when planning a wedding: the venue and date, the bridal party, the dress, the wedding entertainment and the food. Let’s start with the venue. Picking a venue and a date is one of the first things a bride and her groom has to do, and they has to do it fast. No bride wants the venue of her dreams to have a waiting list of three years when she wants to get married within one year.
Once you and your fiancé have chosen the venue and the date, it is time to check the next thing off your list: picking the bridal party. This is when you get to ask your friends and/or family members to stand by your side on your big day. While the bride and groom make the decision of who they want in their bridal party separately, you need to work together on the numbers. Your groom can’t have ten groomsmen when you only have two bridesmaids. If you can’t come up with the same amount of bridesmaids and groomsmen, a good tip is to double up. For example, if your fiancé has ten groomsmen but you can’t imagine coming up with that many bridesmaids just have half. This way each girl can walk in with two guys and it will still look balanced.
Now that you have gathered your girls, it’s time to pick a dress. It is ideal for a bride to start dress shopping as soon as possible. That way if any alterations need to be made there is plenty of time to do so. On dress shopping day, eat a good meal and wear comfy clothes because you may be trying on a lot of different dresses. Do some research beforehand and try to have an idea of what you may like to wear. You don’t have to narrow it down to just one style but maybe go out with three or four styles in mind. You can even bring pictures of want you like so you can show the employees at the dress shop. Between the help of the employees, your bridesmaids and anyone else you bring along with you, you will know when you put that dress on that’s “the one”.
While your fiancé won’t get a say in picking your dress, he should be by your side when it is time to pick food. Talk to him about the type of food you both want. Also talk to him about topics related to the food like: do you want it to be a typical sit-down meal or do you want a buffet? What flavor wedding cake do you want? Would you like your wedding cake to be served as dessert or do you want a separate dessert option? It is okay if you can’t decide right away, but enjoy the experience. You get to taste delicious foods and cakes so have fun with it.
Now it’s time to choose for the music at the reception. Believe it or not, the music will be the most memorable thing for your guests. If the music is great, your big day will be a day that everyone talks about for years and years to come. So take the time to decide whether you want to choose between one of our top Philadelphia wedding bands, a DJ, or maybe even both. If you are considering a live band, you should take the time to attend a wedding band showcase.
No matter what, just remember this is your wedding day and it is meant to be a special time for you and your new husband. You both deserve to enjoy the process as well as the day itself. No matter how overwhelming it might feel at times, try not to stress yourself out. It will all come together in the end. Make the planning process a positive one that you can smile about for the rest of your life.
Kurt Titchenell
Guided by his experience as the bandleader of Philadelphia’s top band, Jellyroll, and President of BVTLive!, Kurt Titchenell has kept dance floors packed and created unforgettable memories for thousands of events nationwide! Widely acclaimed as an entertainment expert, Kurt and BVTLive! have earned the most prestigious accolades in the industry. Most notably were two Jellyroll performances at The White House. Kurt's dedication to the success of every event is evident through his passion for creating the ultimate party experience. As President of BVTLive!, Kurt is committed to making your event a success.