The weeks before a wedding are full of excitement, but let’s be honest, they can also be daunting. At this point in the wedding planning process, the stress is on making sure that you have everything perfectly coordinated, and that your dream wedding will become a reality. While this time may be stress-inducing, it is important to rely on your wedding vendors to bring your wedding vision to life! Whether you are looking for ways to unwind, or are on the hunt for any last-minute wedding details you’d like to incorporate, our talented Cheers MT wedding vendors have tips and advice to ensure that your big day is a huge hit!
Stay Grateful, Problem Solve, and Delegate Tasks!
I just met with a 2023-bride-to-be this week and she was already stressed (13 months out) and a little glum upon arrival at my office. THE SESSION WAS A BLAST! She left with a total shift in perspective. She had stories in her head about the wedding and what a wedding on a budget would look like. Her story was not necessarily true (at all) but it completely hijacked her and bummed her out. We feel stressed (ok, who am I kidding? we become hot messes!) when we have crappy stories in our heads. We are always having inaudible conversations with ourselves at a subconscious level and those stories often aren’t true (but we buy them hook, line, and sinker). We are telling ourselves a scary story about the future. That story hijacks our emotions and stress hormones. When that happens, we are less able to be creative and efficient, and problem-solving dwindles. We tend to catastrophize things and get lathered up.
Sit with yourself or a great friend (or coach, wink wink) who is a dependable cheerleader, encourager, and problem solver. Start by talking about things you are grateful for when you are stressed. While it sounds counter-intuitive, it can be incredibly helpful (trust me)! The most important thing is at the end of the day, you will marry your best friend – whatever happens, that will be a success! Breathe. I know that sounds real ‘Oprah’, but taking some deep breaths before you problem-solve will lower blood pressure, and give your brain some much-needed oxygen – all good things! By getting yourself to a place of gratitude, you take yourself out of fight or flight, and when you are out of stress-storm-brain, you can be more creative in planning, and problem-solving. If your jitters are due to a scary story (ex. it will rain and wreck my hair), then you can tackle the story, take it to the mat and dispel it or plan for a realistic ‘what if?’, i.e. a weather-proof doo, or even buy a fun, blingy umbrella. If on the other hand, it’s wedding logistics and there is still so much to do, make a list and reverse engineer it. Timeline? How can you delegate day-of tasks? Get it out of your head and onto paper. It is energizing to check off a list. Statistics show that list-makers on average accomplish 80% of their list vs. non-list-makers who tend only to accomplish 20%.
You got this!
– Christine Couch, Mustard Seed Coaching & Mediation – Marriage & Relationship Coach
Photography: Renáta-Adrienn
Make your Ceremony your Own!
As a celebrant who helps couples mark one of the biggest rites of passage in their life, I care a lot about a ceremony being a good reflection of who that couple is together. My main messaging to them is: “Don’t get roped into someone else’s wedding dreams. Buck tradition and create your own. Anchor with ritual and live happily after.” I give them a little homework assignment as we near their ceremony writing time and one of the prompts is to consider:
Readings & Rituals. Adding one or two readings to your ceremony is a lovely way to break up any traditional components, infuse your own personalities and intentions, and give an opportunity to a loved one to participate in a meaningful way. Many folks also include a ring exchange (a clear example of a ritual) and often include a family member or a friend as coordinator for a ring warming or ring blessing prior to the exchange. This is an additional ritual to invite the gathered guests to put their wishes for a couple into the rings – they can be displayed (and chaperoned) at the entry or passed through the assembly during a chosen reading. There are loads of wedding rituals that you can explore: unity candles, broom jumping, handfasting, and more! There’s no reason you need to incorporate any at all but it’s good to know your options and they can be a fun way to encourage involvement and engagement with your guests. A wedding officiant that offers custom ceremonies should be happy to help you craft them into a significance unique to the two of you – anchoring your ceremony in a memorable and meaningful way- setting the course for your lives together.
– Audrey Hyvonen, Bespoke Ceremonies Montana – Celebrant & Inclusive Wedding Officiant
Photography: Samantha Gades
Nail Down the Details Early and Trust Professionals!
When it comes to hosting a one-of-a-kind wedding, it’s all about the details. From unique floral design to tableware, or even sweet favors to ensure that your guests know how grateful you are for them, it’s truly the little things that are most impactful. When coordinating the stress-free wedding of your dreams, it’s important to nail down your details early, and to trust the professionals to make your vision come true!
By organizing the details early, you can eliminate much of the stress of the wedding day. In the world of Montana weddings, there are a wide array of extremely talented vendors who are passionate about making the dream wedding you’ve always envisioned come to life. While it is certainly less expensive to coordinate the entire wedding by yourself, many couples don’t realize how much work truly goes into planning the perfect wedding day. From florists to event planners/coordinators, and gift shops (we know a pretty great one 😉), wedding professionals are committed to making your big day truly personalized to you.
At Montana Gift Corral, we are devoted to making your wedding day unique with custom wedding gifts, bridal party gifts, and wedding favors. While it seems straightforward, there is actually a lot that goes into choosing the perfect favors and gifts that fit your needs. How many wedding favors will you need? Will the wedding favors need to fit into the luggage of people traveling home? Do you want them customized or personalized? Do you want favors that connect to the location for sentimental value? These are all awesome questions to ask yourself when coordinating your wedding gifts and favors with MT wedding professionals.
– Montana Gift Corral, MT Wedding Gifts & Favors
Photography: Zach Altman, Montana Gift Corral
Hire a Wedding Videographer that captures Authentic Emotion!
As a videographer, my goal is to capture authentic emotion and weave it into a film that not only tells the story of the wedding day but also tells the story of you. For me to tell your story with depth, capturing spoken audio of you and your loved ones is crucial.
My advice: when crafting the day-of timeline, work with your videographer to create opportunities for authentic emotion to shine through – especially moments that involve speaking.
Compare two wedding films:
- Film #1: You see the Groom crying as his Bride walks down the aisle. Pretty music is playing. That’s it.
- Film #2: You see the Groom crying as his Bride walks down the aisle. The film cuts to a scene earlier in the day where the Groom is reading a letter he wrote to his Bride. You hear the Groom narrate, with a shaky voice, why he fell in love with this woman. He explains how he’s waited his whole life for this moment, and the film cuts back to the Groom’s emotion-filled eyes during the Ceremony.
Film #2 has so much more power and depth. It’s no comparison!
A couple of options that are hugely beneficial for video:
- First Look
- First Touch
- Letter Exchange
- Personal Vows
- Mini Interview
- This happens during the “getting ready time” and is one of my favorites! Example: Bride and Bridesmaids sit down with the videographer. Videographer asks the Bride to explain to the Bridesmaids, “Why him?”
The takeaway: capturing spoken audio, with authentic emotion behind it, is key for a striking wedding film. Plan it in!
– Dave Remmen, Dave Remmen Films – Montana Wedding Videography
Videography: Dave Remmen Films