When Not to DIY for Your Wedding

Sure, we know. Wouldn't it be cool if you could handle some of your wedding details on your own? You could save a lot of money and seriously, some of it doesn't look that hard! Just follow steps one through seven and viola! the perfect centerpiece. Before you make the decision on becoming a DIY Bride, review the 5 points below. If you fall into any of these categories, just say no to DIY:

1) You're Already Feeling Overwhelmed: planning a wedding is stressful. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Your stress levels depend on multiple factors, but generally there is some added stress somewhere in your life. If you're already feeling exhausted with wedding planning, don't add one more thing to worry about to your list. And worry, you will. You'll be having conversations with yourself along the lines of, "am I doing this right" or "I am going to finish it in time." Buy it or get someone else to do it instead, so you can relax a little more.

2) You Have No Help: It might sound fun doing an entire project on your own. You'll have the cutest wedding favors and guests will gush at the thought that you handmade each one especially for them. But let's face it. Making 150 party favors is tedious work, no matter how much you enjoy it. And if you haven't factored in your other time commitments and priorities or haven't secured reliable help for your DIY project, you may be out on a limb. Don't get stuck in a bind. If you're committed to being a DIY bride make sure you've got a few good friends who will help.

3) You're a Newbie: Okay. From everything you read in the magazines and see on Pinterest, this stuff can't be that hard, right. I mean everybody's doing it! Wrong. If you've never done a creative project before, now may not be the right time to see if you like it or are any good at it for that matter. DIY is work. You don't just magically end up with the pretty design you see on Instagram. You need patience, the ability to follow instructions, and practice. Don't test run your DIY skills for your wedding; there will be plenty of other opportunities ahead.

4) You're Short on Time: Whether your wedding is right around the corner or you're just plain busy, doing-it-yourself will definitely take up more of your time...and a good deal of it. The indicated amount of time to create your masterpiece isn't spot on. Add to it the number of minutes it will also take you to pick up the necessary supplies, transportation to and from, set up, clean up, returning to the store if necessary to take an item back or buy more, etc. You get the idea. What was supposed to be a 20 minute DIY ends up being a couple hours. If time is money, you have to ask yourself, would it be more worth it to buy than DIY?

5) You're Not That Into It: You family tells you it will help cut costs, your friends have done it, and your neighbor next door promises to help. But frankly, you were never a DIY kind of girl. More mathematical, than creative or perhaps never tapped into the artist within. If you're not excited to DIY than don't do it at all. You're supposed to be enjoying your engagement and planning your wedding. The last thing you want is to be forced into doing something that's really not you. This is your wedding, after all. It should reflect you and your groom, not the latest trend.    

Maid of Honor and Best Man Toast Tips

Want to make sure whoever is toasting you at your wedding is going to do a good job? Then pass along this super advice from Josh Womack of the Laugh Staff. Josh was gracious enough to share three toast tips in today's guest blog!

Dear bride-to-be,

We know your world is literally spinning from the moment you say “I do” until the last relative or friend leaves the reception (this marathon party-goer always seems to be a friend from high school who is having the time of their lives…maybe they weren’t even a close friend, ha!).

With all the planning, tasting, registering and so on, one of the most overlooked aspects of the wedding is the best man and maid of honor toast…and actually, it’s one of just a couple things brides CAN’T control (besides the weather or the ring barrier getting stage fright).

Think about it. You know what will be the first song you dance to, you know where you will take pictures, you know what color the bridesmaid dresses will be…the one thing you DON’T know is what will come out of the mouth of your maid of honor of best man.

We created Laugh Staff to help with just that. Here are Three Toast Tips should you ever have the honor of speaking on behalf of your close friend of relative.

1)      Get To Know Your Voice – In my opinion this one is just as important as the actual content itself. Have you ever heard yourself talk into a microphone (unless you are a lead singer or pop icon, which you may be)? It sounds different. One of the steps we recommend is practicing your speech into a tape recorder three or four days before the wedding. If you just run through your speech and hit record, you can listen to it back when you are driving, doing a spreadsheet, cutting the grass, whatever. When you hear your words and your voice repeatedly it gets your brain wired in the right direction. That way when the toast does come, it will feel prepared and ready to go.

2)      Smile When Talking – This can be hard to do, no doubt. A smile can do SO many good things though. As a stand-up comic for the past seven years, whenever I look into the audience I always check to see if the audience is smiling and leaning forward…which is just important as the laughter itself. Every maid of honor and best man wants to be funny, but it’s just as important to be likeable. Know that the audience WANTS you to succeed. And if you are a single best man or maid of honor, a warm smile can go a long way. Maybe your story will start that night!

3)      Talk about the Bride, Groom, Their Parents….Not You – This is an oldie but a goodie. Most best men and maid of honors say “I” and “Me” WAY too often. This night is about the bride and groom so pay tribute to them. Recite a funny conversation you overheard them having (an appropriate conversations obviously) or talk about how the bride described the groom when he wasn’t around. If you really want to score points, think outside the box. Find out beforehand what the relationship is between the parents and the bride and groom. Thank the parents for helping to put on not only a great party but a great weekend. If you can pay tribute to the job they did raising their children too, well, you might just be invited over Thanksgiving, Christmas and game night. Score.

Josh Womack lives in Cleveland, OH and is the founder of Laughstaff, a speech-writing company that uses stand-up comedians as consultants to best men and matrons of honor around the world. Laughstaff has written over 100 speeches and will help you deliver a wedding toast that is heartfelt, hilarious and memorable. Follow them at @Laughstaff on Twitter and check them out at http://www.laughstaff.com/.