Let’s get something straight, we’re not doomsday preppers over here – we don’t believe in fear mongering – but we do believe in is education and learning from other people’s mistakes – and let’s be honest, who doesn’t love hearing about the times it goes awry? As long as nobody gets hurt, of course!
So, when we started realising that there were a few red flags floating around in the world of wedding planning, flags that could pre warn you about a potential impending disaster, we thought it only fair to share those with you! Reason being, we don’t want anything to ruin anyone’s big day – and if you encounter any of the following red flags in your wedding planning journey – you’ll know that you need to do something, stat!
Here are 5 big red flags that these real couples didn’t see coming that could have ruined their big day!
Red flag #1: your wedding venue stops corresponding with you
This was the reality for several Sydney couples who had their engagement parties and nuptials booked in at the iconic Kirribilli Hotel this year. The couples in question got a nasty surprise when they saw an instagram post claiming that the venue was closing it’s doors, without so much as a word from management. In fact, the venue was still taking payments, regardless of the fact that it wouldn’t be hosting the booked celebrations. Ouch.
‘This past week has been every bride’s worst nightmare,’ Rachel said. ‘No official communication was provided by the club and my wedding has been thrown into complete chaos.’
Red flag #2: you catch your mother-in-law trying on your wedding dress
A woman in the US knew that something was awry when her soon to be mother-in-law began asking to try on her brand new wedding dress. Despite ruling out the request, the bride was appalled to return home one day to find her fiance standing in front of their bedroom door, bodyguard-style, and refused to let her inside. When she eventually made her way in, she was horrified to find her mother-in-law standing there in the $5,500 wedding dress she’d just bought.
“I opened the door and was shocked to see his mum standing there wearing my dress. I instantly pulled out my phone and took a photo of her in it.”
It was that photo that began an argument for the ages, with the bride’s fiance and his mother begging her to delete the photo, and the bride demanding the dress be replaced – or she would send the photo to everyone.
Needless to say, counselling is in this family’s future regardless of whether or not they make it down the aisle…
Red flag #3: you try something left of centre with your food menu and your guests seriously hate it
A story on Reddit of a recently married couple’s wedding day has had hundreds of people up in arms as they put their two cents in about a recent catering-related issue.
Guests of the event took to Reddit to share their disappointment after being directed to dress in formal wear for the event and were asked to choose between chicken and fish for dinner in the RSVP.
So after the ceremony, when it came time to eat, they were shocked that instead of their fancy chicken meal there was simply a self-serve instant ramen noodle bar.
‘Just instant ramen, cubed ham, some little vegetables here and there, and kids sized chip bags. To top it off, it was also BYOB (Bring Your Own Booze),’ the couple reported.
And two from my personal vault as a celebrant…
Red flag #4: you see the wedding day is going to be hot, and don’t prepare accordingly
There have been at least 2-3 weddings in my time as a celebrant where I’ve seen ceremony set-ups positioned in the direct sunshine. There was even one occasion where a wedding guest literally passed out from the heat, as she struggled to find reprieve from the sun.
If you can’t ensure your ceremony set-up will be in the shade, it’s an excellent idea to have parasols and water handy at the ceremony – so that people can find some relief when the sun is at its brightest!
Red flag #5: have a back-up plan, and don’t forget the minor details
There’s one wedding I will never forget! The bride was adamant she was having a cliffedge wedding (don’t worry, no-one fell) despite the fact that it had been raining in the days leading up to and rain was also predicted for the day of the wedding. Low and behold, it was rain and strong winds for the entire 5 minutes that we were able to stay and the groomsmen’s shirts were soaked through. My PA system? Sayonara!
When I eventually had to call it after 5 minutes, the bridal party shot off in a car, while the rest of the guests were forced to huddle under two small partitions as we waited half an hour for the bus that was ordered to collect us showed up. The couple hadn’t thought to move up the timing of collection!
The bride had to go and have her hair re-done before we all congregated at the reception venue to finish the ceremony. Luckily, it all worked out in the end – but if you have a back-up plan, you’ll find that generally you’ll experience less bumps!
