Wedding planning can feel like an absolute whirlwind. From pre-wedding preparations to the big day itself, it’s easy to feel the strain of organising such a milestone event.
The good news? Sometimes all you need is a few genius hacks to help streamline the process! From automating your RSVPs and breaking in your heels to keeping your hair and makeup on point, keep reading for 12 wedding hacks we think every bride needs to know.
Wedding Hacks: Before the day
Ask Your Guests for Song Requests
An empty dance floor is a bride’s worst nightmare! To encourage your guests to let their hair down, ask them to send through a song request via your wedding website before the big day. You’ll then have a list of crowd-pleasing tracks to pass on to your DJ for guaranteed good times throughout the night!
Create a Wedding Website
Speaking of wedding websites, creating one for your big day is a pretty genius hack in and of itself. Wedding websites allow you to communicate with all of your guests easily, automate your RSVPs, streamline your wedding planning tasks and reduce the environmental impact of your wedding using paperless invitations, too.
Break in Your Shoes
Spending such a long amount of time in a brand new pair of shoes can be seriously painful without the right prep. If you’ve purchased new heels for your wedding, take some time to break them in before the big day. Wear them around the house, stretch them out with socks or get the hairdryer involved to ensure your feet are snug and comfortable. Bonus tip: rub some sandpaper on the base of your heels to prevent slippage, too.
Clean your Rings
Your rings will be photographed literally hundreds of times throughout the day, so why not get them looking their best! Arrange for your rings (and any other bridal jewellery) to be cleaned and polished a few days before your celebration, giving you maximum sparkle for those close-ups.
Keep Your Final Week Task-Free
Try to keep the week leading up to your wedding completely task-free so that you can actually enjoy it, instead of running around feeling flustered! Create a wedding planning timeline that allows you to spend those final days catching up with loved ones who may be travelling, and getting prepped and pampered for the big day without any stress.
Wedding Hacks: On the day
Prepare an Emergency Wedding Kit
An emergency wedding kit will be your best friend on the big day! Prepare a small bag with any emergency essentials like lipstick, safety pins, deodorant, perfume, double sided tape, bandaids, bobby pins, setting spray, a separate pair of shoes for dancing and even “wine wipes” to keep your teeth from getting stained. Then, keep it stashed somewhere at the venue for easy access when you need to touch up!
Eat a Nourishing Breakfast
With so much happening on the morning of your wedding, tucking into breakfast might not be a top priority. Make sure you have some nourishing food on-hand that requires minimal preparation or clean-up: think muesli bars, fruit or toast. Your wedding day is going to be long and exhausting, so try to snack on something nourishing before popping the champagne!
Hand over Your Phone
Trust us, the last thing you want to be dealing with on your wedding day is last-minute phone calls from your venue, suppliers or guests. Surrender your phone to your chief bridesmaid or another trusted loved one to field any texts or calls throughout the morning while you get glammed up.
Drink Peppermint Tea
Coffee might give you a burst of energy on the morning of your wedding, but it can also leave you feeling anxious and jittery! Opt for a cup of peppermint tea, instead. Not only will it help to keep you calm, but peppermint is also known to reduce bloating and soothe upset (or nervous!) stomachs.
Wedding Hacks: After the Day
Share Photos Easily
A cloud-based system like Dropbox or Google Drive is the easiest way to share wedding photos with guests after the big day. No need for an old-school USB or time-consuming Facebook albums – simply choose a selection of your favourite snaps and use a shareable link to give your guests instant access.
Check in with Suppliers
Touching base with each of your wedding suppliers to say a heartfelt thanks is not only polite (and often very appreciated!), but can also lead to some good karma. You never know, they might have a referral system in place for any engaged friends you can send their way.
Sell Your Wedding Decor
Once that newlywed glow starts to wear off a little, the dent in your wallet will begin to feel real! Think about some ways you might be able to make some money back by selling any purchases like centrepieces, vases or hand-made decor via Etsy or eBay. If you’re not sentimental about it, you can even list your wedding dress on a pre-loved gown site for another bride to enjoy.
So there you have it, 12 genius wedding hacks to keep in mind for your own big day. Here at WedSites, we’re all about saving time and stress throughout the wedding planning journey. Learn more about our intuitive digital wedding planning platform and wedding website builder right here to get started.