hair & make up // erica boyle hair & make up // photos by amanda moss // back seat photography 

Only twelve days until Joshua and I say I do. I keep being asked “are you nervous?”, “are you anxious?”, and “how stressed are you?” from everyone! The truth is I’m not nervous, I’m not anxious, I’m not stressed. I am excited, feeling full of love, and ready! When I tell people this they’re blown away. Truly shocked that I am not becoming a bridezilla or stressing to the point of eating gallons of ice cream. I believe the reason I am not feeling that way is because I’ve really taken the advice a lot of recent {and not so recent} brides have given me. I’ve taken each piece of advice to heart and tried to put it into affect. I also have an incredible support system! 

Therefore, today I wanted to share my top ten tips for the last thirty days before the BIG day. These are the tips I have found to be most beneficial and the ones I believe have helped me keep my cool. I’m also sharing a couple behind the scenes photos from my photo shoot for David’s Bridal. You can see the full features here and here. 

Side note: Erica Boyle from Erica Boyle Hair & Make Up dolled me up for the shoot. She did an incredible job! I couldn’t have been more obsessed with my make up and loved the Victoria Secret looking curls she gave me. If you’re in the Charlotte {and surrounding} area I highly recommend reaching out to this gal. She is wonderful and so fun to work with! 

Also, how beautiful is this little box. The Mrs. Box has a wide variety of velvet boxes in gorgeous hues to perfectly match your wedding theme or personal style. I obviously had to go with the baby blue! They’re also able to monogram the box with your new initial {swoon}. Who isn’t obsessed with rocking their new monogram after getting married?! On the topic of jewellery, I spoke to my friend from Australia yesterday. She just got engaged to her lovely husband to be and the engagement rings are truly gorgeous! There’s just something so beautiful about committing to spend the rest of your life with someone. 

My tips for the last days before the BIG day: 

1. Delegate 

This is one I have had to be told over and over again. I am finally getting it right though. Recently I’ve been asking my maid of honor, bridesmaids, and mom to help out with a lot of the little things that come up towards the end of planning. All the little details that are needed to pull the bigger things together. Also tasks for making the rehearsal and wedding day easier on me. That way I’m not worrying about a million different things. I can focus on getting myself ready and getting down that aisle. It’s been incredibly helpful and seriously reduced the stress! If you are to take one piece of advice from this list, this would be the one! 

2. Don’t stress over the little stuff 

This tip goes a long a bit with the previous one. Although this is more about the actual worrying. Worrying is NOT going to help anything. In fact it’s only going to make things worse. I promise you worrying is not worth the acne it may cause! The little stuff will come together! Also it’s important to remember that on your big day, you really won’t think about the little things nor will anyone else. Everyone is focused on the bigger picture. If you’re married, there’s tasty food, delicious beverages, and great music, your day was a HUGE success! The little stuff is not what you’ll think about when you look back on that day. 

3. Make lists 

I love making lists. Seriously, I take real joy in making a list and crossing items off once complete. I feel SO accomplished reach time I cross something off. Making lists is a task I’ve been doing since our engagement BUT I’ve found it to be incredibly important this last month. The main reason for this is because you’re thinking of so many different vendors, schedules, pay dates, details that need to be finished, what you need to bring to the venue, and so much more. It would be impossible to keep track of all of this without a list {or several}. This past weekend I made one list of to dos left, one for what to bring to the venue, and one for all of my clothing and accessories. After making these lists I had a huge sense of relief. Like I got this!  

4. Do a little at a time 

Over the past month, thanks to my mom {moms are always right, aren’t they?}, I’ve been doing just one or two tasks as a time. This has helped to complete the tasks faster, more efficiently, and reduced my stress. Choose one or two items, put those at the top of your to do list, and don’t move on until at least one of those is complete. If you’re still feeling stressed or time isn’t on your side, refer back to tip number one! 

5. Take dance lessons 

Joshua and I have been taking dance lessons for the last two months. One because we’ve both always wanted to be able to dance. Dance as in more than just twirl and shimmy together. And two because we wanted to do more than just slow dance for our first dance. While it’s been incredible practicing for our wedding and that moment, it’s also become the best date night! I am beyond excited every time we have a lesson as I know it’s real quality time I’ll have with Joshua and we’re getting to do more than just grab dinner or head to a movie or lounge around together. It’s new, exciting, and a great stress reliever! 

6. Over communicate 

Communication is key! Communicate with your fiancé, your parents, your bridesmaids, your wedding planner, and any other party involved in your planning process. Over communicating is only going to help your vision come to life and what’s important to you to be recognized. Also important in you not loosing your sanity! If you keep things bottled in or you except people to know you what you’re thinking you’re only going to end up frustrated and possibly explode on those that are just trying {or wanting} to help! 

7. Remember what the big day is all about 

Remembering that the day isn’t about everything being absolutely perfect. Or even about the wedding event at all. It’s about the marriage. It is about you and your fiancé becoming husband and wife. It’s about expressing your love to one another! Remember that when you start to hyperventilate about all of the little details. 

8. Pre-pack 

Pre-pack what you need to take to the venue and keep it all in one area. This will keep it very simple on the day of or day prior when you’re loading up the car. Also pre-pack for your honeymoon if you can. If you know what you want to take and you won’t be wearing it in the days prior then go ahead and start packing that bag. You’ll get excited each time you place something in the suitcase and you’ll have one less item to worry about the day before your wedding. 

9. Enjoy

Soak up the excitement of these last few days! I cannot get over this feeling I’m experiencing right now. I’m on cloud nine and I’m not even at the wedding day yet! Everyone is constantly asking how many more days and each time I answer I’m a little more giddy. Soak in that feeling. Don’t let the stress take over the happiness and joy you’re feeling! 

10. Breathe 

I attended a conference for women with work two weeks ago. One of the biggest take aways for me was that I need to breathe more. The keynote speaker at the conference talked about how women don’t breathe. As in they don’t intentionally take a moment to sit back and take a deep breathe. And how doing three deep breaths can truly calm you. So any time the wedding process is becoming too much, step back and take three truly deep breaths. See what it does for you!

I hope these tips help you as much as they’ve helped me! If you have any questions or want me to write about anything specifically about the wedding process please comment below or email me {[email protected]}. You can also take a look back at my previous wedding post featuring lessons learned in the planning process here.