Our first tip is to take into consideration any extra time-consuming details that may occur at the beginning of the day while you are getting ready. Do you have a gift to open? Are you exchanging letters with your soon to be spouse? Are there any special moments that you want to have with a loved one? Does your dress or tux take an hour to get into? Scheduling time for each of these things will keep you on track and from falling behind.
Allow for more time than you think you will need.
Even the most organised couple with the most well thought out timeline can find themselves a little behind schedule on the big day. Somethings things don’t go exactly as planned. people can get caught in traffic, a dress can malfunction and… as a rule of thumb, everything will take a little bit longer than you expect.
Adding an extra 15 minutes to your getting ready time, travel times and portrait time will help keep things running smoothly. If you don’t need it there’s absolutely nothing lost. Sit back and enjoy yourself!
Hiring a wedding planner to help plan your day and make sure that everything runs smoothly on the day of is a great idea
Family Portraits
If not well organised this could be the biggest time-suck of the day! To avoid that, make sure to provide your photographer with a detailed list of the groups you want portraits of. Having a good usher can help to get people to the right place at the right time, as well as asking them not to leave that spot until the photographers are finished, could save you your sanity.
It’s also helpful to have a family member (or even one from each side) on hand to find missing family members. Your photography team don’t know who people are so they are not the best ones to track down people for family and group photos!
Transportation
Booking a party bus or limousine if you have to travel on a wedding day keeps your whole party together without having to worry about anyone getting lost, broken down etc. Also, make sure that you communicate ahead of time with your driver exactly where they will be taking you, addresses and all!
Skip the receiving line
Unless you have your heart set on shaking the hands of 200 plus guests, feel free to can this super time-consuming tradition.
Your cocktail hour is the perfect time to mingle with your guest and doesn’t take up any extra time!