Do's and Don't Bothers

I’m glad I didn’t focus too much on decor. Skipped the chair covers, only had centrepieces and one thing on the welcome/guest book tables. There are maybe 5 pictures that actually show the decor and maybe 10 that actually show the chairs.
No DJ. This one is controversial but we actually had a pretty rocking dance floor with a Spotify playlist.
Glad we spent money on a photographer! Such amazing photos.
Giveaway your centrepieces! We had potted plants which were also the favour. There weren’t too many left after so it was a fairly easy cleanup. Plus, we didn’t have to hang on to/try to get rid of all these centrepieces after!
If you’re not going to be there for cleanup, let your wedding party know what you want done with your decor/gifts and cards etc. We had asked my MOH ahead of time to take it all. A friend had left a list of what was hers but didn’t tell us where it was going (some things were rentals that had to be returned the next day) so we just loaded everything up in vehicles and they dropped it all off at her place where her parents were staying. Turns out, it was supposed to go with someone else, but we didn’t know that!

DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE SEATING PLAN! Quite literally that was the most freaking ridiculous part of the whole planning process! If I were to do it over, I would not have done and redone the bloody thing time and time again to try to accommodate others. I seriously stressed out over it, as many people RSVP'd late, or third party (through my now mother in law), or had to change from a yes to a no due to travel issues, or from just 2 to 2 adults + 3 kids, etc, etc, etc. I would have simply reserved seats for the 10 people that needed a specific seat, and just let everyone else sit wherever they wanted.

Seriously, my husbands cousin wanted her kids at the children's table. I phoned her in advance and checked beforehand, as she can be a bit of a loose cannon. I had personalised name cards at each place setting (good lord, what was I thinking!), so she just found her kids place cards and just switched them out for a few of the adults at her table to put her kids with her - and put three random adults into the children's section, one friend of my husband without her husband. We weren't there to notice (even if we had been I truly wouldn't have cared!), but my now-sister noticed, and nicely shuffled some place cards around to make it less awkward....

But, really, don't waste too much energy on the seating plan!

DO enjoy your day and begin your happily ever after! Good luck!

We are really glad that we will have games for people to play during cocktail hour! Our guests have been asking us how long it is and where they should be for it and once we tell them we have a bunch of lawn games as well as some card and board games for them to entertain themselves with they are very happy!

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Omg this 100%!! I wasn't going to get one either but as the months went on we were getting more and more confused/stressed, we ended up talking to one coordinator and just the introduction discussion with her made us have a HUGE sign of relief. She is a month of coordinator and now that we are in the month of the wedding she has helped organize us SO MUCH! Getting lists of items, making down everything she will take care of! She also gave us the timeline we should follow for the ceremony which on its own was a HUGE time savings trying to math all that out on our own!

DO - accept all the help you are offered! I'm also planning from out of province and we are less than a month away now and I realized I added a lot more stress to my self because I insisted on taking on all the tasks instead of accepting help.
DO - get a day of wedding planner/coordinator! I have one and even tho she's technically "day of" she's been helping me for months! Also takes all the stress off of you the remaining few days and the day of.
DO - make lists! I am very very organized so I have lists for everything from small details to bigger ones. I have timelines for the vendors, wedding party and a guest one too, just for my peace of mine. Now this is not a necessity but if you are planning from far away having extra reassurance is huge and I've found it helps me keep my stress levels down.

DON'T - focus too much on small details such as things like the kissing menu as Michelle mentioned. Sometimes things like that get overlooked by the guests then you find yourself disappointed later on that no one participated. Also don't focus on planning any 'newlywed games'. Honestly no one will even notice if you skip them.
DON'T - forget to keep updating venue, vendors and wedding party on any important details. A few things I had forgotten to tell my bridesmaids and then when conversations started they were all unsure of what was going on and I already had it planned out but forgot to include them!

Planning a wedding from a different province is super hard..but as long as you stay organized and focused on the important parts you'll do great!

For DO's, lists are a great way to pack everything for different sections: Décor, Gift Table, Wedding ceremony, Reception, and Favours were my lists to know what was needed and packed away as needed not having to overlook as much. Getting family to make sure vendors in town are in touch and details to your specifics are set and timings. Little details can make a difference to not forget what has not been done or taken care for the day. Have envelopes ready a family member to give the vendors are going to come and require that amount.

Don't make any adjustments to your plans or outfits the week of travel due to packing everything needed and having to buy another dress in town before your wedding day. Adjusting to your guest list will mess up all your vendors information before there is any mishap.

Do not put a lot of thought into a "kissing menu" we made this awesome spin wheel and ONE PERSON spun it. Everyone forgot about it.

I'm a month away still but one thing I am really glad I did was hire a day-of coordinator. I wasn't going to, but then I met my flower/decor vendor and found out she did DOC as well. She's already helped so much, and it's a relief to think that on my wedding day I won't be worrying about every single detail.