It’s your wedding day! All of your planning is done. You’ve vowed to love and cherish each other until the end of time. And finally, you step into your venue in awe of the details that have finally come together. It’s time to take a deep breath and celebrate! The stress, overthinking, and overwhelm is out of the way! Your wedding day has turned out just as it was supposed to. 

If you or anyone you know is planning a wedding, you know that it can be stressful. Sometimes it’s not just to the couple, it can be added stress for their parents and best friends as well.  Work, family, and life alone can be a lot to juggle. Then, you throw in planning a wedding and it can truly feel overwhelming at times. The good news is that you aren’t alone and many of our clients feel taken over by the planning process. We’re here to tell you that it IS possible for you to look back on your planning process in a positive light. Those tough decisions and piecing details together in the weeks leading up to your big day will be worth it. Here is some of our best advice to keep the wedding overwhelm from getting the best of you.

Talk to your fiancé about the most important items for your day.

Think non-negotiables! It will help to determine where you should focus first.  This might change or shift some throughout the planning process, but we find that our clients often have specific requests when it comes to the details of their wedding.  Sometimes it’s a live band at the reception, cake flavors, or adding in a special detail at the ceremony, and the list goes on.  Once you’ve discussed what’s really important to you, identify three to four top priorities and focus your energy on those.  Being able to identify these together as a couple allows you to make decisions quicker, with less second-guessing!  

Create tangible action items with deadlines for completion.  

Wedding planning, like most aspects of our lives, tends to be a big series of to-do items. Whether you add it to your Google calendar or you write the list down on paper- it is easy to get lost in the mile long list of things “To-Do For The Wedding”.  Give yourself tangible action items with a deadline.  For example, contact three bakeries for pricing and availability by Tuesday.  Or review the guest list with both families to finalize invitations within two weeks.  I always recommend not having more than 8-10 items at a time.  Minimizing the number of tasks that need your attention helps to keep the feelings of overwhelm from creeping in. Once you get a few things checked off your list, revisit the list and add a couple more items back in.  But don’t forget a reasonable deadline for each item to hold yourself accountable.

Recognize when it’s time to step away from social media.  

This one is HARD!  I absolutely get it.  Couples are being fed advice from all the normal avenues (well intentioned family members, co-workers, best friends, etc) but they are also being inundated with recommendations every time they’re on social media.  Styles, trends, tips, and so much more! This in and of itself can be overwhelming!

One of the biggest areas we talk with clients about is how to navigate all of those recommendations and trends to find the one(s) that fit your story and your wedding.  There are a million amazing trends and ideas, but you do not have to do them a single one if it does not fit your priorities.  

Ask for help!

When we see brides and grooms who are burnt out by wedding planning, it is often a really good sign that they are doing too much on their own and not asking for help.  There are people in your life that would be honored to help you with the planning process or wedding-related tasks! 

For example, as the wedding draws near and not all the RSVPs have come back in (because there will always be a few missing!), ask a trusted family member or friend to reach out personally to the guests that are missing.  This needs to be done, but doesn’t have to be a task that is completed by the couple themselves.  

If asking for help or handing tasks off is hard for you, let your list of priorities help guide you.  Tasks that might have a lower impact on your priorities would be a great place to start! 

Planning your wedding can be a lot of work and there are a lot of things to consider. While every minute of the process might not be enjoyable, the majority of it should be!  This planning is leading you to the day you get to marry your person. That alone should bring a smile to your face!  Petaled Pail Planning is here to help you to talk through logistics, concerns, or to be by your side through the entire process with full service wedding planning service.  Our passion is to take the stress off you and your loved ones for your wedding day to allow you to be present and enjoy.

Check out our planning packages here to see how we might be able to help mitigate some of the wedding overwhelm.