I can't help but think that people must assume that wedding planners have the most gorgeous weddings themselves; and whilst that is true for some, it isn't a given. Truth be told, I got married 3.5 years before I launched my wedding planning business. At the time I was a primary school teacher who dreamt of a super relaxed, rustic day filled with great food and fab music. My day was exactly how we had imagined it, my husband and I had literally the best day ever (apart from our evening food failing to turn up!!!) However, since I've been heavily involved in the wedding industry, there are certain things that I would definitely change about my wedding, so here goes...
If I was to do my day all over again, I would :
Add more colour into the tablescape! I cringe at my white linen table cloths and white napkins that I had at my wedding. I would've loved to have had rustic wooden tables (still round as I do like to be able to talk to people) with splashes of colour added by using beautiful napkins. There are so many gorgeous colours of napkins and table linens that you can choose from now - and it is such a great way to add some colour and a bit of your personality into the day. Even if you opt for a subtle blush colour - it doesn't have to be white or a primary colour!
Pay to have professional stationery created. I'm a bit old school as I love paper - give me a book over a kindle any day - and I keep important stationery (yes, I have boxes in my cupboards!). So why I chose to create all of our stationery ourselves baffles me?! There are so many exquisite invitation suites out there and stationery designs that really could have elevated my wedding design. Perhaps the cynic in me knew that I'm literally the only person under the age of 80 who holds on to precious stationery - so I didn't want to waste money on something people would bin!?
Have a highlight video. I knew the importance of getting your wedding videoed, even back then. However, I asked my videographer to do a documentary style of filming. growing up, I used to love watching my parents' wedding video (despite them being divorced!) because it was an 80s documentary, where you could hear people talk. We will always have my grandparents' voices on that video. You really feel like you're there. But in reality, I should've had this AND a highlights video that I would actually watch again (and could post on my socials - obviously!). Highlights videos are a lovely little snippet into your big day - and allow your videographer to show off their creativity.
Use more flowers. I have NO idea why - but when I got married I wanted as few flowers as possible. My husband was trying to persuade me to have more - but I was adamant that I wanted hops and fairylights, with the exception of buttonholes, bouquets and one hanging flower display. I regret this massively! As much as I love the hops and fairylights look - I could have included flowers more at the church, on the tables - anywhere really! I think my fear of flowers at the time came from me not liking delicate floral prints and thinking that the flowers would just be really bold colours - not the gorgeous shades that are actually available.
Make sure that the ushers sat people properly in the church. I'm going to be honest, I don't like any pictures of the church from my wedding as the seats look empty. Everyone sat as far back as they could, so any photos of us walking up/down the aisle look bare, as if there was no one there. If I could do it again I would make sure that the ushers were properly briefed to fill up the seats at the front - and nearest the aisle. That way it actually looks like you had people attending when you look back at your photos!
Just as a bonus - 5 things I'd choose over and over again:
Our outfits - I still LOVE my dress, I felt so special in it and at my most gorgeous. My husband looked so smart in his tweed waistcoat and jacket - it suited our personalities down to a tee. My bridesmaids wore ASOS and New Look - but I loved the fact that they weren't in a typical bridesmaid look.
The food - we had a hog roast - and it was delicious! I love food, so it's hard to choose what to eat, but it fitted with the wedding feel and is still one of my favourite things to eat! We had ordered a kebab van for the evening food, but it broke down on the way - so pizzas were quickly purchased! I am still yet to have a photo of me in my wedding dress eating a doner kebab!!
The venues - I loved the fact that we got married in the church where I was christened, and where our daughter (and in fact my husband) went on to be christened/baptised 2.5 years later. The barn that we chose was gorgeous and had the most beautiful outside space for the drinks reception - an added bonus was that it was heated for our October date!
The colour scheme - I still love how the copper, sage and ivory all went together to create our main wedding palette. We did add in some very pale purples with our flowers and the bridesmaids skirts - which added to the rustic, English vibe.
Our band - They were amazing! They had everyone up on the dance floor and even learnt our first dance especially for us. They did a folk set (it was a barn wedding after all!) and two electric sets. I'd choose The Skip Jacks over and over again!
As I said at the start of this blog - our day was perfect for us at the time, these are just reflections that I've made since being immersed in the wedding industry. When it comes to planning YOUR wedding, you need to make sure that it reflects YOU as a couple and that it's what YOU want.
Check out my services page to see how I can help make your dream wedding a reality.
Evie, The Country Blush x