Whether it’s sorting through your guest list with a fine-toothed comb or finally getting around to that budgeting spreadsheet, there are still a number of things do at home that will help you plan and prepare for your wedding.
14 Things to do at Home to Prepare for Your Wedding Day
As England and much of the UK is plunged into yet another lockdown, more brides-to-be may be feeling particularly anxious about how the Covid-19 crisis will affect their wedding day. As with the previous lockdowns, weddings are once again off the cards and there’s still an air of uncertainty over events scheduled this spring and early summer. But there are still plenty of things to do from home to help plan for your wedding.
If you’ve had to cancel your wedding or are considering postponing your big day, you may be feeling at a loss as to how to go about making the necessary arrangements. Additionally, with bridal suppliers and venues closing and you no longer able to attend your bookings, some aspects of your planning may also be taking a hit. But with all this extra time at home, there are a number of wedding prep tasks you can get to work on right now.
We’ve curated a handy list of at-home wedding prep to keep you busy during lockdown 3.0.
Browse Wedding Dresses Online
We’ve seen more and more brides-to-be turn to online retailers when it comes to buying their weddings dresses or bridesmaid dresses in recent years. Now, without the option of attending boutiques or fittings during isolation, you can still browse and shop a selection of stunning bridal dresses online.
Home Workouts
It goes without saying that you’ll want to look and feel your best on your big day. This is why many brides take on personal trainers and new fitness regimes in oder to feel fit and healthy in the months leading up to the big day. Unfortunately, while we’re all permitted to head out for one form of exercise per day under the lockdown guidelines, a jog around the block might not cut it for some fitness fanatic brides-to-be.
A number of our favourite boutique gyms and fitness influencers have gone digital and are streaming online workouts you can follow at home.
Get a Head Start on Your Budgeting
Yes, it may be one of those tasks you’ve been putting off, but with all this extra time at home, what better opportunity to get your head down and sort out that wedding budget once and for all. Whether you’re a super organised multi-tab spreadsheet kind of gal or prefer an old school, tattered notebook approach, it’s time to get
We’ve got all the tips you need to help you budget for your wedding effectively, as well as handy downloadable checklists for your at-home wedding prep.
Create a Pinterest Board
With some reports claiming our average screen time is up 50% due to self-isolation, why not but all that browsing and scrolling to good use. Pinterest has long been a favourite platform among brides-to-be as it allows you to create inspiration boards for your big day and save images of decoration, fashion and finishing touches. We’ve got a handful of dedicated boards and pins which you can save and re-pin over on our Wedding Ideas Pinterest.
Guest List Admin
You may have got a little carried away with guest list and, thanks to that new budget spreadsheet, realised you need to cut down on numbers. Or the lockdown has put things into perspective when it comes to who you want to share the day with. Either way, with some peace and quiet, and less chance of the in-laws jumping in with the names of half their tennis club, now is a great time to fine tune you wedding guest list.
It’s also an opportunity to think about the complicated web of social connections, family relationships and fragile egos that is your seating plan.
Practice DIY Wedding Stationery
DIY wedding invitations are great way of adding a personal touch to your wedding and they can also help you cut down on costs. If you’re feeling crafty or need an outlet for your creative energy while you’re stuck for things to do at home, why not brush up on some calligraphy skills. Then you can give making your own wedding invitations, Save-the-Dates or even your on-the-day stationery a go.
Send out Save-the-Dates
Whether you’ve had to change the date and need to update your guests or you’re finally getting around to setting a wedding date, now’s the perfect time to get one vital piece of wedding admin out of the way: sending out the Save-the-Dates. Once this is done, your wedding date is locked down and the real planning can start.
Create an Order of the Day
With some of the fun stuff on hold for the time being, now is as good of a time as any to crack on with planning some of the practicalities and logistics of your wedding day. Think about the timings of your wedding day, how you’ll be getting from the ceremony to the reception if you’re changing locations, where your guests will stay etc…
You can draw up some draft plans or start to dish out responsibilities to your bridal party well in advance.
Virtual Wedding Planning With Your Bridesmaids
Although you may feel particularly alone at the minute, we’re all in this situation together – and your bridesmaids are just the at the other end of the phone. While you can’t all get together for wedding planning over a few (lots of) drinks, there are tones of video calling apps available to help create a virtual party.
Arrange a time when you and all your bridesmaids are free and schedule in a group video chat. You can fill them in on all the headway you’re making on your wedding planning and they can share any ideas they want to let slip about your hen party. Plus you can all still enjoy a few drinks over FaceTime, it is the ‘new normal’ after all.
Go Digital With a Wedding Website
More and more couples are embracing the shift towards a digital-first approach to wedding planning and making their own wedding websites. These can act as a one-stop shop for all things to do with your big day. Whether you want to update guests on any changes, start a wedding blog or direct people to your gift list registry, a unique website for your wedding is great option to host this all in one place. You could use this time to really make your website stand out from the others and regularly update it with content and images.
Try out Some DIY Wedding Hairstyles
We’re big advocates of the try before you buy mantra, so why not take this time to work out what kind of wedding hairstyle you’d like for your big day. With thousands of tutorial videos at your disposal online you can spend some time trying out different looks and really get to know what does and definitely doesn’t work for your look. This way, when it comes to your big day, whether you’re booking a stylist or going DIY, you’ll know exactly what you want.
Experiment With Your Wedding Makeup
This can also apply to your wedding makeup. Many brides have an idea of the makeup look they want to go for, and then soon discover it’s not how they imagined when they test it out. Sometimes, this can lead to a bit of a panic at the trial or, worst case scenario, on the big day. Now you’ve got the opportunity to test out some looks, gather inspiration and really work out what kind of makeup looks you want to try out.
Create Your Ideal Wedding Playlist
Now’s a great opportunity for you and your partner to think about all the songs you’ll want to include in your wedding. Whether it’s the processional music, suggestions for a live band or a playlist to pass on to your DJ, jump on Spotify and go through some of your favourite tracks. It’s also a great way to spend an evening in isolation with your partner and you may dig out some golden oldies and forgotten bangers.
Practice Your First Dance
This might be one of our favourite things to do at home. Who doesn’t love a good ol’ boogie when they’re home alone?
Once you’ve got the wedding playlist sorted, why not take the time to brush up on your dancing skills with your partner. With all these extra hours at home, there’s no better time to pick up a new skill, and just think how impressed your guests will be when you show off those new-found dance moves.
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