It’s no secret that traditional weddings can be VERY busy, high stress events. There are SO many pieces that need to be put together and after spending a year or more of your life dreaming of and planning for this event, it can sometimes be hard to relax on your wedding day. If eloping to avoid all the chaos isn’t your thing, here are my top five tips to make sure you’re not stressed to the max and can actually enjoy your wedding day and focus on what really matters — the people you love!

Let Go of Perfectionism.

After pouring SO much time and effort into your event, it can sometimes be hard to switch your brain from planning-mode to bride-mode, that’s why this tip is SO IMPORTANT. In the words of the Great Elsa of Arendelle…LET IT GO! Running behind? Let it go. Forgot your flowers? Let it go. Raining during your outdoor ceremony? Let it go. Let this be your mantra on your wedding day and instead focus on the abundance of love that’s present on your wedding day.

Assign a Coordinator

This pairs nicely with tip 1. Even if you can’t hire a planner or a day-of coordinator, ask a friend that you trust! This person can help coordinate setup, run the boutonnieres to the groom prep location when you accidentally leave them at home, make decisions when the ceremony suddenly has to be moved indoors, etc. There will always be last-minute snafus and decisions on the wedding day, but when you have a coordinator, you aren’t stressed about making all these relatively minor decisions when you should be enjoying your day.

One Location or Transportation

You know how the old wedding saying goes… One Location or Transportation! Jk, I just made it up. But maybe it should be a saying because this is one common issue that creates extra headache on a wedding day!

If possible, plan for prep, ceremony, and reception to all happen at the same location! If that’s not practical, hire a transportation company! Transportation cuts down on trying to figure out who is riding in which vehicle, whether the vehicle is clean (dog fur on the wedding dress is a no-go!), whose car you left the veil in, etc.

Keeping tipsy groomsmen on track can feel a lot like herding cats and following this tip will give you more quality time with your wedding party and less frustration! Transportation further cuts down on making extra decisions, and ensures EVERYONE is in the right place at the right time.

Nail Your Timeline

A good timeline is KEY to your wedding day. Start with ceremony time and work backwards from there. Make sure you plan in some buffer time to allow you a little wiggle room. Chat with your vendors about how long key events last throughout the day.

Don’t want to build your own timeline? Hire an expert! Many experienced photographers will gladly build out timelines, or my friend Madeline at Greater Joy Events offers timeline consultations, even if you’re not hiring her for your wedding! This is a VERY affordable way to make sure your timeline is perfect! Madeline and I recently had an Instagram Live chatting timeline tips here!

Create Space for Connection

It’s easy for all the hustle and stress of a wedding day to cause you to lose sight of the reason you’re getting married, which is why I recommend building in space to intentionally create connection. This is the most-overlooked part of a wedding day.

Creating connection-space may be inviting Grandma to pray over you right before you walk down the aisle. This may be reading letters with your partner. Or you may have other ideas! Creating space to connect with your loved ones will bring the stress level down and the gratitude level up! You can find more on how to create space for connection here.