Wedding Stress Solutions
How to Reduce and Relieve Wedding Stress
Planning a wedding is an extremely exciting time in your life. But all that planning comes with stress. How you manage your stress could be the difference between a happy bride and a Bridezilla.
Doodle Fly Photography is here to help. We have complied a list of the top 10 most stressful things while planning your wedding a solutions to fix them all.
Together these key people will become your Bridal SQUAD!
Vendor Selection: Your Creative Team:
Wedding Manager: Your Firegirl!: One of the Key people in your Bridal Squad is a person that is close to you that you can rely on as your Wedding Manager. Traditionally this person is your Maid Of Honor but can also be your Wedding Planner / Wedding Coordinator. Your Wedding Manager is the person you will lean on when you just do not have it in you any more. This can be before your wedding day or On your wedding day. This person will also be your Fire-Girl (as in, putting the fires out!). If there is a last minute mix up with your wedding cake, your Manager should be able to handle this issue without stressing you out. The key is to designate someone that will be with you every step of the way during the planning stage so they are up to speed when and if any issues arise.
Asking your Maid Of Honor to be your Wedding manager should take a serious talk. you have to let them know the stress, pressures and responsibility that this will take. This should not be done thru a text, but rather a long realistic conversation over dinner.
Guest Collaborator: We suggest that you choose a Guest collaborator to help with putting names and faces together for your wedding. This will be important for your wedding photographer, but your D.J., Maitre D and others may need to speak with particular people attending your wedding. You may have lists together and carefully plotted seating charts, but that doesn’t help if we do not know what your guests looks like. The last thing you want on your wedding day is to be pointing out family members for your venue.
A Guest Collaborator can be anyone that can put the names with faces. It can be one person that knows both sides, or it can be one guest collaborator for each side.
Finding Vendors: Choosing vendors is tricky and stressful, but it does not have to be. You may find vendors thru preferred vendor list from your wedding venue, sites like wedding wire or thumbtack, friends and family members.
We suggest if you find a great contact with your venue or photographer, as them for referrals.
We at Doodle Fly Photography have worked with the best (and worst) wedding vendors in Florida. We know who we work well with, who our couples rave about and better yet who is compatible for your type of wedding. Even better, a lot of our preferred vendors offer discounts specifically to our brides for referring them. Win / Win /Win. Vendor gets a new client, Client get a great vendor and a discount and w get happy clients and great network relationships.
Venue Selection
Most brides have a idea of where they would like to have their wedding before he even asks the question. You have been planning it over in your mind and already have a vision of your big day. Unfortunately, sometimes your dream wedding is not affordable.
We suggest still making an appointment with your venue. Ask about any discount. You may be surprised how affordable a Friday or Sunday wedding is rather than a Saturday wedding. Also, ask for any open dates in the next 6 months. If you plan correctly, you may be able to score a HUGE discount for that Saturday wedding if your venue had a cancellation or an open Saturday wedding that is coming up in the next few months. It will be a rush, but certainly worth looking into.
Spend a few Sunday afternoons looking at local venues. Another idea is to think outside the box. Many Cities across the US will offer permits for weddings in unconventional places such as local parks, streets downtown, on a river or even near a bridge. Can’t hurt to ask.
Planning a Church Wedding is becoming difficult: Years ago it was unheard of to have a wedding ceremony anywhere other than a church… unless it was an elopement. In Modern Day, more wedding occur in the same location as the reception than in churches.
If you are set to have your ceremony in your church, make an appointment and let the church know how important it is for you. Although there will be rules, and red tape… if you are honest about how you feel, perhaps the church will show compassion and help make the process a little easier.
Sometimes you just may have to cut your losses. There are many officiants both religious and secular that offer absolutely BEAUTIFUL Services wherever your venue is located.
2 of our favorite Officiants here in SW Florida are Dr. Jim and Dr. Dan. They both offer amazing wedding ceremonies that will not soon be forgotten.
Budget: There are so many options for weddings that picking and choosing between the luxuries can be challenging. the first step is to set a realistic budget. many coupes are not aware how much even a simple wedding will total. Set a realistic Budget. Next step is to make a list of what is a “MUST HAVE” and what would break your wallet if you get it more than break your heart without. You may not be able to get the 50 white doves, horse and carriage or gold leaf embroidered cake, but making a list will help you realize what is important and what is not.
Vendor Prices:Know what the national and state average for each vendor costs. Weddings here in SW Florida have an range of $20,000 -$50,000. We suggest using an Online Calculator like www.CostOfWedding.com
Having these prices in mind will act a a guideline. As a general Rule, you should spend 10% of your total cost on your wedding photographer. Here in SW Florida, Wedding photography can vary between $900-$50,000 with an average price of $3,000 for most 5 hour weddings, 7 hour weddings have an Average of $4,500. This is the cost of the photographers time, equipment, and digital files. This does not include prints, canvas, or albums.
Understand that you get what you pay for. When it comes to Wedding photography, that is the one element that should not be overlooked. When the wedding is over, the cake is eaten, dress is packed and the guests go home… all you will have left are your memories and photographs. Hiring an inexperienced photographer is not a great idea.
Look to get the most Bang for your Buck. Look for Specials, and bonus items from your vendors.
We at Doodle Fly Photography have a current special that includes a Free 2nd Photographer, Free Payment Plan and Free Engagement Session ** Ask For Details.
Invitations: Etiquette calls for the invitation to list the parents that are paying for the wedding as the Hosts. But that doesn’t mean that parents that are not helping out should not have their names appear on the invitation. If the Groom’s Side (or Bride’s side) is not helping financially, but still want to be listed, you may add them in the following way: “James Smith, Son of John and Jane Smith”.
“We at Doodle Fly Photography also offer custom Invitations at affordable prices. We often work with couples for traditional and non-traditional wording. We suggest listing names of parents if it really means a lot to them, even if they can not help financially.”
Groom & Groomsmen Attire:
Couples worry about what the guys will wear and what it will look like on them. Other Tuxedo Rental Stores offer only catalog shopping or a computer “build a tux” option. But, at The TUXXMAN we provide a “Groom’s Fashion Preview” where the couple can schedule an appointment with one of our professional wedding stylists and the groom can actually try on different styles of tuxedos and suits with different colored accessories to see 3D what they both like. We dress him as a groom and as a groomsmen and it takes all the guessing and worry out of this part of the wedding planning. Our couples LOVE this! Of course we do also offer catalog shopping for browsing prior to their visit. www.mytuxedocatalog.com
What if it RAINS?
Rain: Rain on your wedding day is said to bring you a lifetime of good luck (Worked for me:) But the last thing any bride wishes for is a rainy wedding day. Here in SW Florida we are lucky to have a 6 month rain period followed by 6 month dry season. This makes for beautiful warm sunny weddings from October – March. If you do not have the opportunity to plan for these dates, or still worried about the occasional October storm, best bet is to prepare in advance instead of scrambling a week away from your wedding day.
One of the biggest factors that the rain would interfere with is the wedding photos.
Solutions: One solution would be to rent wedding tents. Although you may not have that garden, forest or beach wedding you have been planning… Beautiful white tents can be made to look very romantic and elegant.
A smaller scale solution for portrait time would be to buy clear umbrellas. Your wedding photographer can embrace the rain and take romantic photos using the elements surrounding you. You can even opt for matching Rain Boots.
If you are a daring wild spirit and your wedding photographer agrees, JUST GO FOR IT! Photos captured in the rain are some of the most beautiful unconventional of all wedding images. Make sure you bring a 2nd outfit to change into… or better yet, a thrift shop dress to get drenched in.
If you are worried about your outdoor ceremony being rained out, Wwdding Planners at Platinum Florida Wedding Co suggests to have a Back up indoor location as a Plan B.
“We typically work with our couples to plan for a back-up location just to be safe. As you know our weather is unpredictable so we really like to plan ahead for the worst but hope for the best.”
Stress: Relatives coming to town
Solution: Hire a cleaning Service. Remember that whole section on delegating the work you do not have time for? Well, cleaning your home before guests come is number 1 on this list. Better Yet, Put the cleaning service as part of your Bridal Registry!
Always Sparkle LLC here in SW Florida is a licensed, reputable, reliable and wonderful service that is extremely affordable! We at Doodle Fly Photography offer Always Sparkle Cleaning Service to ALL of our Brides and they could not be happier! PLUS, Doodle Fly Photography clients 10% off their Bill!
Stress: Bridal Shower Registry: Some Brides find the registering for gifts to be a fun activity. However, some couples find it very frustrating. If you already live together, you may feel guilty over registering household gifts.
Solution: Choose Personal and Practical Gifts. Here at Doodle Fly Photography, we encourage our brides to choose Albums, Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Custom USB Flash, and even sessions such as Styled Wedding Shoots as wedding gifts. Family, Friends and Guests would so much rather give you a Personal Gift such as wedding album or canvas that you would cherish forever rather than a set of Dishes or lemon peeler.
Another idea is to register for a Clean House, or Full body Massage to ease your stress.
Stress: Batchelorette Party Anxiety: If Night Clubs are not for you, but you really do not want to spend the evening in a bar or a knitting circle, you can still choose a fun, sexy activity that is safe for everyone. Bridal Boudoir Party! Boudoir Session is sexy photo shoot. Boudoir sessions can be as conservative or risque as you like.
Best of all, Doodle Fly Photography Clients get A GREAT Deal with a 60 Minute Massage for only $40! Call Intuitive Massage today 239-677-5249
Doodle Fly Photography is a Florida Wedding Photography firm covering Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Sanibel, Captiva, Naples, Estero, Bonita Springs, Port Charlotte, Sarasota, St. Pete’s Beach, St. Petersburg, Tampa, Clearwater, Fort Lauderdale, Marco Island, Miami, Keys, Key West, Boca Raton, Coco Beach and more locations around South West and South Florida. Doodle Fly Phtoography Specializes in Wedding Photography, Engagement Sessions, Boudoir, Bridal Boudoir, Portraits and more. Doodle Fly Phtoography offers affordable wedding packages including Payment Options and installment plans for most wedding packages. Call or email for more information.
Doodle Fly Photography & Events:
Phone: 239-677-1428
Email: DoodleFlyPhotogrpahy@Gmail.com
Website: http://www.DoodleFlyPhotos.com