Category Archive

lessons learned

After the dust has settled, sometimes it’s nice to share the core lessons that you learned from your wedding… sort of a paying it forward sorta thing, to help future couples avoid making the same mistakes you did. We’re always looking for more “lessons learned” submissions, too. Tell us what YOU learned!

the greatest teacher failure is alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Learn from my wedding planning fails: 5 wedding wins and 4 total fails

I am forever creating grand visions that are near-impossible to accomplish. Our wedding was amazing, but planning it was one of the most stressful things I have ever done. There were definitely some things I would have done differently…

Mission to not plan my wedding: Success (how I planned for my wedding as little as possible)

Mission to not plan my wedding: Success

Maybe you are one of the dreamy people who has looked forward to your wedding your whole life, knowing exactly what you’d look like and how’d you feel on the most special of your days. It is safe to say that you are most likely not like me, because I think I broke the record for most laid-back bride, and the time I spent planning the wedding was barely, if at all, more time than the duration of the wedding itself. Here’s how I did it…

A sweet Philadelphia elopement with an homage to some of the best photo spots in Philly

I never wanted a big wedding: here’s why I wish I’d gone with my gut & eloped

Not everyone has dreamed of a big wedding. So when you’re confronted with the planning of one, there might be some lessons learned the hard way: “If you want to have a gorgeous and huge wedding with all the trimmings, go for it! But if you’re more like me, who never really thought hard about a wedding until you were with your life partner, and you love the outdoors, more intimate ceremonies, and really just can’t wait to marry the love of your life without all the trappings of a more traditional wedding, I’ve got your back…”

My wedding wasn't the emotional event of the century (and that's totally okay!)

My wedding wasn’t the emotional event of the century (and that’s totally okay!)

When Adam (my now husband) proposed to me, my answer was “umm… oh… okay.” It was a Wednesday night and we were playing Fallout. While I was yelling “GET THEM” at the TV, he got down on one knee and presented his grandmother’s ring to me. I was well aware this was not a picture […]

How to keep wedding planning anxiety from stonewalling your excitement

How to keep wedding planning anxiety from stonewalling your excitement

I have been a daughter, an employee, a friend, but the wife role terrified me. My preconceptions of what the wife role entailed crowded my thoughts. I am a huge romantic, and people dream of meeting the love of their life and living happily ever after. But what if it’s not the way you envisioned it? Here are the things that helped me most through my engagement to soothe my wedding planning anxiety and realize this WAS meant to be and where I was supposed to be in my life…

Our wedding was a financial wake-up call

Our wedding was a financial wake-up call (and our lessons learned!)

After catching up post-wedding and entirely overhauling our finances, I can see all the places we went wrong. Whenever people ask how we knew it was time to restructure our finances, I answer with one thing — our wedding. This one event clarified a world of issues with our financial well-being, or lack thereof. And so, in addition to the standard simplifying and DIY projects that helped me through the process, here is some invaluable advice with which we walked away…