Stress Free Wedding Ceremony

Many wedding magazines, planners, and bridal shows provide a multitude of great ideas and resources to help make your day special. They focus on everything from hairdos and headpieces to transportation and can be a couple's best friend as they plan their special day.

Carolyn Burke with Chris + Michelle

But what really makes your day special is the ceremony. A wonderful ceremony will make for a wonderful celebration. A terrible ceremony may cast a shadow over the remainder of your day. So being prepared and taking care of the small details, before your ceremony begins, can reward you with fun and pleasure for the remainder of your momentous day. Carolyn Burke - Wedding Liaison specializes in ceremony planning.

Below are a few suggestions; lessons I have learned to help you have a stress free ceremony.

Arrive to the ceremony location early; 1 to 1 ½ hours early if you plan on taking pre-ceremony photographs. If possible it is a good idea for you to dress in the bridal room.

If that is not possible it is still wise to arrive at least 15-30 minutes early even if you wait in the limousine. This will provide you with some 'personal time' to prepare for the most important part of your day. In most weddings, the ceremony usually begins a few minutes late. This is acceptable and often unavoidable as it usually takes a few minutes to coordinate the 'start up'. Beginning your ceremony reasonably close to the invitation start up time is a small way in expressing gratitude for your guest's presence and will assure a stress free ceremony.

Some believe that it is 'fashionable' for the bride or groom to be late. The truth of the matter is that it creates a lot of stress on the bride, the wedding party, the guests, and others involved in your day. The ceremony may not go according to plan and many of the scheduled events following the ceremony are often rushed.

Most of the guests do arrive early and on time.  However, the second potential cause of stress is when your ceremony is delayed because guests arrive late! For some strange reason this 'phenomena' is almost sure to happen. People either are notoriously late or may be late for legitimate reasons. Occasionally 'late arrivals' may even enter during the 'processional' with the bridal party.  Carolyn Burke - Wedding Liaison  knows how to handle this situation. I direct late arrivals to step aside or not be seated until the appropriate time.

It is prudent for the Officiant and the Wedding Liaison to be in charge of the 'start up' of the ceremony. This keeps the bridal party from coming down the aisle without the officiant and groom in their places. Or walking down the aisle with the wrong music playing or being cued. Young Children love to take part in your ceremony, but have a contingency plan in place to prevent potential incident. Have their parent sit in the aisle seat towards the front so they can sit during the ceremony, if need be.

Finally! Most of the ceremonies I direct run smoothly from beginning to end. Realize that sometimes it is the 'unexpected' that adds life and laughter into a great ceremony. It is great when things go as planned. However, there can be an 'awkward' moment. Some of these moments were due to unforeseen circumstances. They could not have been prevented. Many were not even noticed. Leave the stress to the wedding professionals - that's what you hired them for!   Happy Wedding Planning!

Resource: © FrugalBride.com