How to make your wedding day less stressful

Wedding days are infamous for being absolutely chaotic, especially from the “behind the scenes” perspective. While the chatter and banter that goes on is quite fun and endearing — and is part of the reason why weddings are remembered and stories are shared at the end of the day — nobody wants to end up in a bridezilla situation. So keeping all those fun and memorable moments aside for you to treasure, here are some ways you can make sure that you save the date, without making a total mess out of everything and stressing out on this super important day. Make sure that you can look back on your wedding day fondly (instead of cringing with embarrassment for inviting your jealous ex over to the party unexpectedly!).

Pre-order your dress, suit, bridesmaids’ gowns (you know the deal!).

Pre-ordering your outfits will not only save you the extra stress of forgetting anything important, it will also save you some good cash, too. We recommend pre-ordering your dress at least six months before your wedding day, to leave some nice wiggle room for unexpected alterations. Additionally, it’ll also save you some money, since you won’t have to pay any rush fee and additional alteration fees, as well.

Speaking of the jealous exes, make sure that you have the guest list ready at least two months prior to the wedding.

You don’t want unexpected, unwanted (and nasty!) people showing up on the wedding day. Sit down with your partner and make the guest list, making sure to pare it down (depending on whether you want a smaller or larger scale wedding). Also, make sure that you aren’t offending someone important by not inviting them. Keep the guest list handy-dandy at all times.

Have a designated driver or transportation organizer.

Transportation is one of those underrated aspects of a wedding ceremony that gets overlooked for going terribly haywire hours before a wedding. This is especially true when your wedding destination is a little far away from where you’ve checked in for the week. And if you’re relying on cab drivers, the amount of confusion that is created is unthinkable, as some people get dropped off too late, or to entirely different locations altogether. Make sure that you have some trusty designated drivers for the day, or someone taking charge of the transportation to make sure that everything goes super smooth. Also, make sure that if you do have a designated driver, they don’t parktake too much in the festivities. You don’t want an accident ruining the special day!

If you’re a scatterbrain, hiring a wedding planner will save you your sanity (and some cash, sometimes!).

It’s undeniable: the stress that comes from weddings gets to the most organized of us. If everything that’s going on around is stressing the heck out of you, it might be time to hire a wedding planner. Professional wedding planners? Well, calling them life-savers would be an understatement. These behind-the-scenes masterminds will fix all the mess that you’ve created, and sail your wedding ship through the rough franken-wedding storm. Despite coming on the pricier end of the spectrum, there’s nothing better than a great wedding planner if you can afford their services.

Choose outdoor venues wisely, and always have a backup plan!

Outdoor venues, despite being absolutely breathtaking, come with their own set of drawbacks, and the weather is the biggest one of ‘em. Raining on the wedding day, and your outdoor venue is all ruined? That’s one of the most common wedding-day disasters, and the unpredictability of the weather seems to always slip out of everyone’s minds while wedding planning. Make sure to either have a backup plan, or avoid the outdoor scene altogether.