Last summer while out on assignment photographing a wedding show, I encountered my very first real-life bridezilla.  From a distance she looked like every other excited blushing bride-to-be: smiling, well-dressed, surrounded by a group of giggling girlfriends. But as she came closer to the candy bar booth, her seemingly lovely persona melted away to reveal a shrill woman imbued with irritation.

“What do you mean the chocolate malt balls don’t come in baby blue?” she snapped at the candy worker. “They need to be baby blue! This is a disaster!”

Now I don’t claim to have any first-hand experience when it comes down to how to plan a wedding, but, as I ducked behind the candy stand to hide my disdain, I couldn’t help but think that there has to be a better way than getting hung up on tiny details like malt ball colours.

So, to find out how to plan a wedding without turning into bridezilla, I called Elise Schmitz, founder and owner of Toast Special Events in Ottawa, for some expert advice.

Wedding tip #1: Prioritize your budget
Setting a budget is all well and good when it comes to wedding planning, but it’s important to remember that budgets are never ever absolute and that, as Schmitz politely puts it, “things happen.”

“Have a conversation in the very beginning about what is most important to both of you, such as the photographer, the food, the venue,” recommends Schmitz. “The budget will shift to accommodate your priorities the further into planning you get.”

Even though there is a certain flexibility to every budget and money matters, it is also very important to exercise will power and avoid those oh-so tempting last minute impulse purchases – adorable bride and groom sweats, a more expensive brand of champagne, diamond accents here, there and everywhere (too much? Well, you get the idea).

“The last thing you want to do is have a budget that is $20,000 and realize at the end that you’ve spent $35,000 on a ton of little extras without keeping track of the bills,” says Schmitz.

For more tips on how to plan a wedding without the stress, keep reading on the next page...