Going to the Chapel

Dear Gala Guru,

I am a wedding planner in the greater Philadelphia area.  First off, thanks for your blog and the opportunity to share stories.  I wanted to let you know that I recently took on a bride who was a nightmare.  Nothing pleased this young woman.  Her outlook on everything was so negative.  She yelled at everyone, from catering to the photographer. She nearly put me over the edge.  After everything was set up, she wasn’t sure she really liked the colors after all.  After she chose the colors herself and everyone jumped through hoops to make it happen, she decided an hour before the wedding she wanted to go with a different color.  She went to tastings for the menu and the cake and signed off on every detail, including the cake size.  She decided at the last minute she just needed a different cake.  We did a lot of hand-holding and had to explain that none of these things could be changed at this point. There was a meltdown at every point on this day.  I had not seen much of the groom throughout the planning process, so on the wedding day, he showed up about 10 minutes late for the pre-wedding run-through.   He seemed very calm and not stressed about anything.  The wedding was beautiful, but I was never so glad an event was over.

Wedding Madness

Dear Mad,

Thanks for sharing your experience.  Dealing with a bride who changes her mind more often than a chameleon changes colors must have been like trying to hit a moving target. Your professionalism in handling her last-minute cake and color crisis deserves an award. I mean, who does that? Maybe she was auditioning for a reality TV show. I know that for most brides, their wedding day is considered one of the most important days of their lives.  A day many women have waited for their entire lives. So, it’s only natural that there is a fair share of stress on a bride surrounding the desire for perfection.  Everyone handles stress differently.  That said, my heart goes out to the groom on this one; it’s fantastic that he stayed in the race and didn’t run for the hills during all the chaos. Maybe he thought,” for better and for worse.”  It sounds like you handled the situation with grace and humor. Kudos to you for taming the wedding madness!  Remember, there is always a reason to celebrate!

The Gala Guru

www.thegalaguru.net