As a seasoned wedding planner, here are 10 of the best ideas I’ve ever seen at weddings

I think every couple should have a small meal together before they enter their reception.

They likely haven’t eaten for most of the day, and this gives them an opportunity to have a moment to themselves before entertaining guests all night.

It takes only about 10 or 15 minutes, and I build this into every wedding-day timeline I create.

Faux cakes have become standard practice in the wedding industry.

Bakeries will make the wedding “cake” out of Styrofoam and decorate it to make it look indistinguishable from a real dessert. Then, they’ll keep a sheet cake in the kitchen to serve to guests.

This way, you can achieve the look of the cake you want without having to worry about going over or under on the serving sizes. You also don’t have to worry as much about environmental conditions with a faux cake — it’ll likely be fine if it gets a little too hot.

Lastly, when it comes to extra germs, it just makes sense to have a fake cake on display where people are walking and breathing while keeping the real deal away from guests.

The photographer is there to document the big moments, but it can take weeks to receive those pictures, and they’ll be of only the prettiest bits of the day.

So, I recommend that my clients pick a member of the wedding party or a close friend to be a “designated documenter.”

This person is tasked with getting videos and photos of those unposed, embarrassing, and candid moments that typically come with the best stories.

A lot of couples give their wedding parties tokens of appreciation, and I recommend getting your wedding party duffel bags as a gift.

I’ve seen only one bride do this. She gifted each of her bridesmaids a bag with their name on it so they could fill it with everything they needed (from matching outfits to hair spray) to go from the getting-ready location to the ceremony to the and reception.

These bags also made it so much easier for me as the coordinator to grab everything and ensure nothing got left behind at any of the locations.

Typically, the parents of the couple sit on the side that their child is standing on during the ceremony.

However, in recent years, I’ve had more couples request that their parents be seated on the opposite side of them so they can see their child’s face during the ceremony.

This is a small detail that goes unnoticed by guests but means a lot to the parents.

This story was originally published on July 1, 2021, and most recently updated on September 12, 2024.