There’s so much pressure on couples to have the perfect wedding day but even if everything goes to plan, chances are you will look back and still wish you had done a few things differently.
From allocating your precious budget to details your guests probably didn’t notice or skipping the veil you later wish you had worn, we’re sharing our best pieces of wedding advice to reduce your risk of having any niggling wedding regrets.
Having been in the wedding industry for more years than we care to admit, we’re across all of the most common wedding regrets couples share after their big day, and have listed them below to help ensure you don’t look back on your big day and think “if only I’d… (insert wedding regret here)”.
Determine Your Priorities
Our top piece of wedding advice is to sit down with your partner at the beginning of the planning process to determine the key priorities for your big day. By ensuring you allocate sufficient budget to these priority areas - whether that’s a couture dress or suit that’s made to fit your body to a tee, or hiring the wedding photographer of your dreams - you’re setting yourself up for success when you lock in the most important elements from the get-go. Identifying your priorities early on will help you to remain focused on what’s important, avoid budget stress down the track and ensure your big day reflects your values and vibe.
Budget Missteps
As much as we all wish we had an infinite budget to play with when planning a wedding, sadly that’s not the case for most of us! A common regret we hear from recently married couples is that they wish they hadn’t spent so much of their wedding fund on pretty but peripheral details, like physical invitations or monogrammed wedding favours that many of their guests forgot to take home with them at the end of the night. If you nail the venue, atmosphere and catering, your guests probably won’t even remember those little touches!
Many of our former bridal alterations clients tell us they wish they had allocated the budget they spent on custom stationery and personalised guest favours to something more memorable and impactful, like hiring live musicians to get the dance floor pumping or a content creator to capture the feel of the day.
Not Wearing A Veil
Unless you plan to dress up as an undead bride on Halloween, the one and only opportunity you’ll have to wear a veil is on your wedding day, so don’t let it slip through your fingers!
We love veils so much because they add a touch of pure magic to wedding photos and videos - catching the light beautifully and creating movement while bringing a soft and romantic feel to any bridal ensemble.
Don’t just take our word for it; accomplished florist Rebecca Const from Fox and Rabbit agrees: “I chose not to wear a veil because my dress had a large shoulder ruffle on one side and I felt it might clash. I do wish I’d found a way to make it work. It’s one of the few occasions in life you get to wear something so romantic and symbolic and I missed my one chance. I think I’ll have to go all out at my funeral and wear one in my casket just to get that moment!”
From a show stopping two tier mantilla veil, to a sweet mini circle veil, Ilka’s hand crafted veil collection offers options to elevate any and every bridal gown. For a personalised touch, chat with us about customising your veil with embroidery, bows, pearls or any other design detail your heart desires!
Skipping Alterations
Ilka's own Erin Taylor on her wedding day. Photo by Natasja Kremers.
“I didn’t hem my dress - I left it long; I thought it looked really pretty but it was the dumbest idea! It was such a pain all day. I had to hold it everywhere and I was tripping over it. I took my shoes off later in the day and it was even more of a nightmare. If I could have my time again I would have added a bustle.”
Erin Taylor, Co-Director Ilka
What’s the point in finding and purchasing your dream wedding dress if it’s not going to fit you like a dream on your wedding day? Whether it’s perfecting the length of the hem (so that you don’t take a tumble while walking down the aisle or during your first dance), taking in or letting out the bodice, adding sleeves and a bustle, or lengthening the straps so that the bodice sits at the perfect height for your torso, bridal alterations make a world of difference when it comes to the look and feel of your wedding dress.
As Hobnob manager Jaz recently said to us, “I always say your dress will come in and be like say 80% perfect and then that's when you guys (Ilka) come in and you do the finishing touches so that it fits like a glove.”
For standard alterations (like adjusting hem length or taking your gown in or out) we recommend booking your first alterations appointment 8 to 10 weeks prior to your wedding. For more elaborate alterations (like redesigning the neckline or changing the silhouette of your gown), please book your first appointment 10-12 weeks out from your wedding. Secure your bridal alterations appointment at Ilka by clicking here.
Not Breaking In Your Shoes
A nugget of wedding advice that we share with all of our bridal alterations clients is to make sure to break in your shoes before your wedding day. To avoid limping around due to blisters or having to go shoeless at your reception, break in your wedding shoes by wearing them around the house as much as you can in the lead up to the big event.
We also recommend having bandaids and other blister supplies in your wedding emergency kit, just in case someone in your bridal party forgets to break in their shoes in the lead up to the celebration. Create your own emergency kit using this handy guide, or purchase a pre-made one from us.
“My wedding day was absolutely perfect except maybe I wish I brought with me more appropriate shoes to wear while doing photos! I should have had my boots with me but I ended up wearing my joggers instead while walking through the highlands, lucky my dress was long enough to cover my feet!”
Greta Wolzak, Photographer
Skipping a Coordinator or Planner
It’s all well and good to be very hands on in the planning of your wedding but on the actual day of the event, you want to be able to sit back, relax and watch all of your hard work unfold without worrying about micro-managing every element. Avoid having to run around like a headless chook on the morning of your nuptials by engaging a wedding coordinator or planner to take charge. From wrangling vendors to sorting out last minute issues that may pop up, a wedding coordinator or planner is worth their weight in gold!
Mega Bridal Party
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again - giant bridal parties are a logistical nightmare. It’s understandable to want to ask everyone you love to be in your bridal party but in this circumstance, bigger isn’t better! Having a mega bridal party means more opinions to navigate, more schedules to juggle and an increased chance of someone getting their knickers in a twist. Keeping your bridal party small and meaningful reduces stress on the couple tying the knot. After all, your bridal party should enhance your day, not overwhelm you!
Wedding Planning Check List:
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Establish priorities from the get go and allocate budget accordingly
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Think about guest experience when deciding what to spend money on
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Invest in bridal alterations so that your dress looks and feels like a dream
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Break in your shoes before the big day
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Have an emergency kit
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Engage a coordinator or planner to be the boss on the wedding day to relieve stress from the couple
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Think twice about having a giant bridal party
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Make decisions based on your values and preferences; don’t be swayed by the opinions of others
No wedding is perfect (and that’s to be expected!) but with smart planning and thoughtful consideration of your priorities from the very beginning of your wedding planning process, you’ll create a celebration of love that’s memorable for all of the right reasons.