01 Dec Drinking on Wedding Day – Think Moderation

I suppose this post will be a little controversial, but as someone who witnesses a lot of personalities cutting loose on wedding day, I thought I would write about it anyway.

I enjoy a nice martini, margarita, or glass of wine like the next girl, but I learned a LONG time ago that moderation is the key. This particularly applies to your wedding day. My intent here is to lay out some examples along with my perspectives. Hopefully it is just food for thought… I’m not preachin’, I’m just sayin’.

Photos – when I was looking around on message boards to see how people felt about drinking both before and after their wedding, most seemed to agree that a nice glass of champagne or wine prior to walking down the aisle helped to calm the nerves. They also agreed that 2 – 3 drinks during the whole reception was best for them to avoid the “drunk eye” in all their photos and to actually have a shot at remembering the night. Another instance I’ll touch on is the pre-ceremony photos that your photographer is trying to capture, both candid and posed, can be uncomfortable for your wedding party if everyone tied one on the night before.

Being Mindful – Obviously if you are being married in a church, you should abstain from consuming any alcohol while on church property (and no, the catholic faith doesn’t generally condone alcohol consumption inside the church walls… that’s only in the reception hall… nice try!). You can find yourself in a heap of trouble with the wedding coordinator and no one wants to get caught throwing one back in front of the pastor or priest. This also goes for couples who have chosen to marry outside of a house of worship but have asked their childhood minister to oversee their nuptials. If you must, then you must, just put away the bottles and cups in their presence… it’s just the RIGHT thing to do.

Personal Comfort – yes, I get that alcohol can relax a bride or groom (we’ve already covered that), but I’ve also seen a bride that had to come out of her dress 5 minutes before the ceremony when she seemed to not be able to breath well. Later her mother explained she doesn’t handle alcohol well. Alcohol can enhance sensations and can make you feel hot when the room is actually at a comfortable level.

Memories –  like the corners of my mind, misty water-colored memories, of the way we were (okay, that’s from “The Way We Were” by Barbara Streisand). Some of you may not know that song, but you should, it’s the perfect song that videographers should use for the footage that probably does not get included in your final wedding video. You know the bridesmaid that keeps slipping on the dance floor and spilling her drink, or my personal favorite… the bridesmaid that bends over to pick up her clutch she just dropped and turns her entire glass upside down. It’s like she’s that car dashboard flamingo that tips over and back, again and again. It’s all fun and games unless you are the poor schmuck that has to clean it up. Don’t you want to remember your big day and night?

Loss of Hearing – no, I’m not saying drinking alcohol causes you to loose your hearing, but as the person responsible for herding all the cats on wedding day, sometimes it sure seems like wedding parties that have been kicking it back awhile become more and more difficult to corral and get moving.

Again, I’m not preachin’, I’m just sayin’. Tell me what you think… agree or disagree?