I like to take care of things myself, especially when they are important to me. Therefore, one of the hardest things to learn was that I wouldn’t be able to – and really shouldn’t try to – make everything at our wedding myself.

Simply, there are things one can easily DIY and things one should leave to professionals.

If it was for me I would make all the food plus the decoration myself, deck the tables and compile different playlists so we wouldn’t need (and have to pay for) catering or a DJ.

However, over the last couple of months I’ve learned to let go and give up a few things to people who deal with these things professionally. I hope I’m not going to turn into bridezilla a few days before the wedding and make these wonderful people hate me forever.

So what are the things you can easily take care of yourself and which parts of your wedding should you outsource to a trusted vendor?

By all means leave to the pros

• Photography – Your wedding photos will be the one (physical) thing that you keep from your wedding day. Your uncle may own a D-SLR camera and bring back nice pictures from his holidays. However, there is a reason professional photographers charge quite a bit of money for their work: They’ve spent years studying and learning how to compose photos, know all the technical tricks (e.g. how to avoid using flash in difficult lightning conditions) and will post-process each photo to get the best out of it. Also, they not only own state-of-the-art equipment (including back-up cameras), they also know how to use it best.
• Catering – You are a passionate cook and love preparing meals for your friends. However, on the days leading up to your wedding you will most likely be busy with things other than peeling potatoes, cutting veggies and icing your wedding cake. Find a caterer you trust may provide you with the food you imagine. If I found one (picky person that I am), you can too.
• Coordinating on the day of your wedding – Whether you hire a professional wedding coordinator or have a trusted friend move the herd to where it’s supposed to be at any given point in time – just don’t think you have to do it yourself. You’ve planned everything (including enough buffer time so it won’t matter too much that the ceremony started 5 minutes later than scheduled), now leave it to a trusted person to make sure things happen the way they are supposed to. Relax and have someone else take care of things while you’re spending the day with your friends and family.

Knock yourself out DIYing

• Everything decoration – from centrepieces to flowers. If you have a hand and an eye for them, let loose your creativity and start crafting those pompoms.
• Invitations – Designing and printing your own invitations (and sending Save-the-Dates via email only) is actually a great way to save money. You will find numerous online stores providing templates, or you can design your own from scratch with Photoshop or similar programmes.
• Wedding favours (if you’re planning on having any) – This is actually something you could invite your bridesmaids or maid of honour for – if they enjoy crafts as much as you do.

These things really depend on how important they are to you and how skilled you are – DIY or find someone who does it professionally

• Make up and hair – If you are or one of you friends is an expert make-up artist, this is a great way to save money. If you have any doubt about the level of skills, hire someone. You will want to look your best and there will be a lot of photos taken so you should think twice about going for second-best here. Definitely do a trial before the big day and have a critical friend give you his or her honest opinion. Even better: Have her or him take a few photos.
• Music – If an mp3-playlist will suffice for the wedding you have planned, go for it. Still, I recommend considering that the venue may not have a sound system and you will have to bring your own – of a good enough quality to support the volume you are going to need to fill the room and to actually get your guests up and dancing. We are going to leave this to a professional.

What did you do yourself for you wedding and for which services did you hire professionals? Do you disagree with anything on my lists? Let me know what you think in the comments below!

 

*** Featured image from https://www.etsy.com ***