Behind the “I Do”: Everything Every Bride Needs to Know

Hello, brides!

What an exciting moment: the very first Bridal News column! My name is Maria Constanza, a bridal makeup artist and hairstylist based in Curitiba (Brazil), and I’m also engaged to the love of my life, Luckas. In 2024, I created a group with all of my brides where we share stories, experiences, recommendations, and honest conversations. Over the years, that group has grown into a beautiful community of more than 100 women, filled with meaningful connections and support.

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In two years with this group, countless conversations have come up about the wedding industry and the things every bride should know before getting married. So yes, I’m here to save the day for all of you, understood? After all, I’ve always been and always will be a girl’s girl.

Speaking of the wedding industry, I imagine that if you’re here, you’ve already come across it and all of its endless possibilities. So many ideas, vendors, styles, and price ranges… How do you not feel overwhelmed while planning a wedding with so much information coming at you? How do you continue managing your professional, social, and family responsibilities while also organizing an event for so many people, involving thousands of dollars and a perfectly timed schedule?

It’s impossible to start talking about wedding planning without addressing your routine first. I do not want to be just another voice in the media telling you that your entire life needs to revolve around planning or your day will not be perfect. However, there is definitely a financial, emotional, and time commitment involved in creating your dream wedding, unless you hire an event planner to handle and decide absolutely everything for you, which is not the reality or even the desire for most couples.

Think about it with me. You will likely speak with around 100 vendors before choosing the essential ones for your day and comparing services and pricing. Then come the venue visits, dress fittings, and tastings, which, honestly, are the best part of all.

Invitation deliveries, rehearsals, endless meetings, and countless micro-decisions are the stages closest to the wedding day, and they are usually the most stressful for busy couples.

And finally, add to all of that the endless voice notes from your aunt, the one you see once a year, completely offended that you do not want to invite your cousin Juninho, who last saw you when you were 14 years old. It’s enough to drive anyone crazy, right?

As a psychologist, I care deeply about your mental health, haha. So here’s my very first piece of advice: if possible, start planning your wedding one to one and a half years in advance and, please, do not do it without a wedding planner.

Having the right professional by your side will save you a huge amount of stress and financial loss, if they are truly good at what they do. You can listen to my podcast, Behind the “I Do”, to better understand the difference between a great planner and a terrible one.

And this advice also applies to those who know how to read contracts, okay? You may have all the technical knowledge needed to understand the clauses, but not the experience within the wedding industry to recognize what is truly essential for a wedding day and what might be missing from a vendor’s service.

And if I scared you a little, I’m sorry. The last thing I want is for a bride to suffer during the months leading up to her wedding, especially on the big day itself. But as I always say, “Well-informed brides make the best decisions!”

That’s exactly why I’m here: to help make your wedding day the best day of your life, whether I’m your vendor or not. So, how about we meet here again next week for more honest advice and a good cappuccino?

With love,

Your Fairy Godmother, Maria.