7 Wedding Day Tasks for the Bridal Party

This guest blog was written by Parker Radbourne, of The PK Photographs, a wedding photographer in San Antonio. He’s had a camera in his hand since middle school, and loves the winters, and even summers, of Texas since relocating there a few years ago. His obsession with weddings started with his first out-of-high-school job at a wedding retail shop that sold / rented everything wedding except for the dress, the ring, and the cake. A detail orientated photographer, he’s picked up on a few small and easily remedied situations that frequently pop up on the wedding day, and has put together a blog post for us on that topic!

A Less Stressed Bride

When your wedding day is finally here and the preparation, planning and hours with a glue gun are finally behind you, it’s time to enjoy your hard work. Yet, the big day can still be a bit overwhelming with everyone coming up to you with questions on where this goes, who is taking care of that, and what time so-and-so will be arriving, it can be a lot to handle. You’ve likely delegated a lot of tasks out to members of your bridal party in getting ready for your big day, but what about on the day itself? The more that can be taken off of your plate, the smoother and easier they day will be for you. I mean, it is YOUR wedding day. We have a few tips to help with this.

1. Have Someone in Charge of Snacks and Water

You won’t even think about eating until you smell the food at your reception, but fainting isn’t fun, either. Have them bring granola bars, bottled water, and other snacks for the bridal party and family to keep everyone full of energy and strength. Don’t forget about napkins or wipes, so nothing gets dirty!

2. Have one of your Bridesmaids be the Bustle Expert

Have a bridesmaid or two with you when you learn how to get your dress bustled at the store, and have her record a video of it and practice doing it herself, so it goes smoothly on your wedding day.

3.Give a Copy of the Timeline for the day to the Most Punctual Person on Your Team

If you don’t have a day-of coordinator or planner, make sure you give a copy of the timeline for the day to the most punctual person on your team. This is vital to keep everyone on time while getting ready, the ceremony, and formal portraits. Usually, the DJ or emcee will help run the reception events on time.

4.Give Learning Tasks to Groomsmen

Task one groomsman with learning how to tie bow ties, and another with learning how to fold pocket squares, (hint, the squares can be folded before the wedding day). As a wedding photographer I have diagrams on my phone showing how to fold a pocket square, tie a bow tie, tie a straight tie, and how to pin on a boutonnière. At almost every single wedding I end up texting these to a groomsman!

5.Let the Guys know Who Gets Flowers

Make sure one groomsman, or the groom himself, knows what different corsages and boutonnieres will be arriving, and which goes to whom, (hint, some florist's will label each one for you, this is a huge help).

6.Have Someone in Charge of Clean Up

Task one groomsman and one bridesmaid with keeping an eye on the cleanliness of the rooms while getting ready. Have them try to keep everything, (bags, purses, shoes, clothes, etc.), in one corner of the room so when your photographer and videographer arrive they can start capturing the moments then and there, and aren’t spending 10 minutes cleaning up the room so it is ready to be photographed.

7. Give the Formal Photo List to Someone in Your Bridal Party

Make sure a member of your bridal party who knows both families best has a copy of the shot list for formal portraits, and has made time to reach out to everyone on that shot list so they know to hang around after the ceremony. Too many times someone has to run and find Uncle Joe who was excited to eat, drink, and dance, and is already on his way to the reception hall. We don’t want to exclude him from these once-in-a-lifetime portraits, but we also don’t want you to be late to your reception. This member of your bridal party can also help the photographer expedite the formal portraits by having the next group ready to jump in as the previous group finishes.

Don’t forget the most important task of all: to have fun and help you celebrate your marriage! Make some memories with these very special people on your wedding day, and don’t forget to thank them for all of the time, energy, and support they’ve given you!

Thank you for the blog Parker Radbourne! Take a look at his photography here,