Aha! You can’t wait for this whole pandemic to come to an end so you could have the wedding of your dreams. Fantastic as it is, you don’t want to mess things up. It’s your big day after all. Here is a list of our Top Don’ts and Do’s you should know beforehand. Avoid all don’ts and never forget the do’s. Here you go…

Don’ts

Don’t be a Jack of all trade:

You’re familiar with the ‘jack of all trade master of none’ maxim. Yeah, you don’t want to be stuck with doing the whole work from worrying over vendors delivering, sourcing the invites, baking your wedding cake, searching tirelessly for event venue, doing all market runs and making every detail correspond. It is okay if you have one thing you know you could do perfectly and take care of it. Maybe baking. But it will be bad to carry everything on your head. Learn delegation. The beautiful thing about wedding prep is that everyone wants to help out. So assign different tasks and have a me time for you and your fiance.

Don’t be bossy with your bridesmaids:

Most brides due to increased hormones of tension turn their bridesmaids into maids. You don’t want to do this. Your maids of honor are your friends, bff’s, family members, colleagues, close buddies, etc. You don’twant to scare them off from you with your shouts and orders. You ain’t paying them after all. They are there to support you in your most beautiful day of your life. Appreciate them always, ask politely and resist every urge of being bossy.

Don’t use your wedding as a fund raising event:

This is it! I see it as very tacky attending most Nigerian weddings to see we are being tasked for everything. People came to rejoice with you and not leave the reception with empty pockets. We believe that before thinking about your wedding you must have had a budget. Stick to it, cut off unnecessary expenses that will require you tasking your attendees. Or even mandating your friends to buy your super expensive ‘asoebi’ materials. Your wedding is not a fund raiser event. Avoid making your guests pay for every thing from cutting the cake, bailing out couple, etc.

Don’t plan a difficult destination wedding:

As bad as we want to have our exotic faraway wedding Ah, the lure of the exotic faraway wedding—you can just picture it. Can’t you? Exchanging vows on top of a volcano in Hawaii… or how about in a ski gondola or on a majestic slope in the Austrian Alps? Hmmm, nice idea, but will Grandma be up to the trip? Will your college pals drain their bank accounts to get there? No, and no. Destination weddings can be terrific, but as with any wedding, it’s not only about you, it’s also about your guests. While some friends and families welcome—and can afford—an Alpine adventure, others will end up resenting the cost and hassle or simply decline the invitation. Make it easy for everyone by choosing a well-traveled destination, planning well in advance and providing information. Unless you want a small wedding for you and hubby with very few guests, then voila!

Don’t let your parents impose on your invite list:

Very typical of African parents to invite everyone in different associations they belong. They look forward to their children’s wedding to invite all their acquaintances forgetting it’s not their wedding again. If you have a small budget, you can give your parents a limited number of invites, this way curtailing every extra cost. Or if your budget is fit for all then let your parents unwind. It’s all part of the glamour. Whatever works fine for you.

Don’t make your reception and wedding venues far apart each other. Always select reception venue within same location.

Do’s

Do give yourself a pre wedding special treat:

The stress of organizing one’s wedding is enough to drive you far from sanity. Book an expensive spa, paint your nails, choose a me day for you and fiancé. Relax, let your event planner handle all the stress

Do work with a wedding planner:

It feels SO good to have someone to trust about your wedding preparation, someone you could call and feel confident about decisions, to bounce ideas off of. Wedding Planners are very valuable. The peak of the stress is the day and week of the event but leading up to that time, you are calmer because all boxes has been ticked off. All you could think of is to wear your beautiful gown, smiling and be present at your wedding. All the boxes have been ticked by your event planner.

Do spare out enough cash outside your budget for last minute miscellaneous:

One major lesson we learnt from planning a couple of events is that there is always last minute expenses that come unexpected. To avoid getting in this situation, we suggest you always sketch out 20-30% of your initial budget. Funny as it sounds, it is also part of your budget.

Do be upfront with all of your vendors about what you do and don’t want at your wedding:

For example, provide a “don’t play” list to your DJ or band and a “must take” list for your photographer so everything is exactly as you envisioned it.

Do eat on your wedding day:

It’s easy to forget or be too excited. But you don’t want to get run down. We always suggest you make provision with the caterer or have it delivered before prepping for you big day. You can both excuse yourselves during the reception to eat.

Do relax and marry the man of your dreams:

Finally, it’s your big day, the day you have long waited. Smile as much as you can, appreciate the day, appreciate all those smiling faces wishing you the best. You don’t want to be angry or stressed out. Think about your makeover. Just be a queen for it’s your once in a lifetime wedding. Enjoy!

Do tell your photographer to get shots of marital kiss, this time capturing the people as well

If you are a picture lover who wants various angles to an event, then you shouldn’t skip this part. Most often if not all the time, people get the kissing shot with the priest as the background. Try doing it the other way round to see the faces of your parents, friends, well wishers in that short exciting moment