Let’s be honest, we all want our wedding day to be ‘perfect’, and it’s by no means unreasonable. You’ve probably been dreaming of it for years, and you’re (hopefully) only intending on doing it once, so naturally you want it to be perfect, right? But does perfect really exist or to achieve our dream wedding should we learn to prioritise instead?

Photo by Rosie Photography

1) List Your ‘Must-Haves’

For every couple there are some elements of your wedding day that just have to be there. Perhaps it’s your guest numbers; couldn’t imagine your wedding day without 80 of your friends and family? If so then it’s going to be important to ensure you look for a venue that can cater for this number. Are you adamant that you want a sea view? That’s fine (it would make a gorgeous photo backdrop after all!), just make sure you focus your search on coastal venues.

Inevitably there will be some things which are more important to you and your partner than others so make sure you list these out and discuss them with your planner at an early stage. It’s important that they’re known and understood to be your priorities to ensure your wedding day can be as close to perfect as possible.

2) List Your ‘Nice To Haves’

On the flip side, there will be certain aspects that you would like (of course we always want it all!), but they aren’t quite as essential to you both as your list of ‘must-haves’.

Perhaps you would like a venue that can play music until 4am? Or want to be near a nice town for your guests to enjoy either side of your wedding day?

These are the things that your planner will always try to factor in where possible, but will compromise in order to achieve your ‘must-haves’ if needs be.

Photo by Rosie Photography

3) Be Flexible

As much as possible, try to be flexible and open minded. If you’re too fixated on a particular vision or if everything is on the ‘must-have’ list then you’re probably looking for something that doesn’t actually exist – sorry!

No one wants to settle for anything on their wedding day (and I wouldn’t expect you to!) but you should be realistic and open to alternative options for achieving what you have in mind. This attitude will make the planning process much less stressful and much more enjoyable.

4) Consider The Budget

Always remember your budget and consider how flexible it can (or can’t) be. Perhaps your perfect venue is available but out of your budget? You need to consider whether you’re willing and able to increase your budget for that venue, or whether you are happy to forget about it, move on and look for other options that are within your price range. Don’t waste time trying to force something to fit your budget if it just doesn’t…you’ll only stress yourself out 🙂

Photo by Rosie Photography 

5) Put Some Perspective On It

The most important thing to have is a little perspective. To me there is a difference between a ‘perfect’ wedding and a ‘dream’ wedding. Very rarely in life is anything perfect (it’s sad but it’s true!) but does that mean you can’t have a dream wedding…absolutely not!

Your wedding day should be one of the most special and memorable days of your life, and that is what I always try to achieve with my couples. Try not to get hung up on smaller details not being ‘perfect’ and instead look at each aspect as just one component of what helps to make your dream wedding.

Remember that on your wedding day, you’ll be marrying the person you love, surrounded by your closest friends and family; those are the biggest things that make your dream wedding day.