17 Things You Must Do the Night Before Your Wedding
It’s important to keep calm the night before your wedding and really look after yourself so you wake up on your wedding day feeling rested and refreshed. Here’s what to do the night before your wedding to make sure you’re at your best on the big day.
17 Essential Things to Do the Night Before Your Wedding
1. Do Some Beauty Prep
Make sure you look your best the next day with some skincare and pampering – but make sure you only use products you’ve used before so you don’t risk a breakout!
2. Refresh Your Eyes
You’ve probably found that your sleep is a little disrupted in the run up to your wedding – it’s all the excitement! You can refresh your eyes easily and naturally with some cold cucumber slices. If you don’t have cucumber to hand, teaspoons placed in the fridge for a while also help to revive tired eyes.
3. Avoid Alcohol
It’s tempted to have some fizz, but honestly, you’ll feel so much better if you focus on drinking water and making sure you’re fully hydrated. Drinking alcohol will dehydrate you and mean you wake up feeling less than fresh!
4. Go to Bed Early
It’s important to go to bed early – even though you might be too excited to sleep! Going to bed early and trying to switch off is important as the more sleep you have, the better you’ll feel.
5. Wash Your Hair
Check with your hairstylist on this one – but in most cases you should wash your hair the day before it’s styled because hair that is too fresh will be too slippery to style.
6. Prep Your Wedding Day Essentials
Make sure you have your bridal emergency kit ready! This is a small bag of things you know you’ll need on the day – a lipstick, tissues, eyelash glue etc. You can ask one of your ‘maids to look after this as part of their bridesmaid duties.
7. Eat Something Healthy
It can be tempting to order in a pizza, especially if there’s a gathering of you, but eating salty and greasy food the night before your wedding is a big mistake! It can cause bloating and disrupt your sleep.
8. Watch a Film
Grabbing the girls and watching a film is a great way to switch off and relax. We’ve got the best wedding films on Netflix here if you need some ideas.
9. Turn Off Your Phone
It can be tempted to scroll though all your well-wishes on Facebook and update your countdown on your Insta stories, but honestly, it’s better if you hide your phone! The bright screen will prevent you from feeling sleepy, and we all know how ‘just one more scroll’ pans out…
10. Don’t Use This Time to Tackle Vows
If you’re writing your own vows, or have a speech to write, now is not the time. Make sure the night before your wedding is as free of wedding duties as possible so you can properly relax. Which leads us on to…
11. No Wedding DIY
Don’t think that the night before your wedding is the best time to start tackling all that DIY! Make sure any wedding project is completed long before the day so you can just chill.
12. Stay Out of the Sun
Assuming there is sun, of course. But if it’s a glorious sunny day, it’s best to stay in the shade. You don’t want to risk sunburning your face or getting unfortunate tan lines that will look odd with your strapless dress!
13. Leave Your Partner a Cute Note
If you’re following wedding tradition and spending the night before your wedding apart, leave them a cute note to find at bedtime. It’ll add to their excitement and it’s just a sweet thing to do.
These romantic quotes about love will inspire you!
14. Practise Your Breathing
Calm breathing will help you if you’re feeling anxious or stressed. Breathe in for as long as you can and exhale for as long as you can. You might like to try some beginner’s yoga to focus your mind!
15. Lay Out Everything You Need
Make sure you know where your shoes are, and any accessories you want on the day – you don’t want to be racing around looking for them in the morning.
16. Get Your Nails Done
Leave this as late as you can so there is absolutely no risk of chipping – it’s also a great idea if you plan on honeymooning straight after the wedding so they will last for the duration.
17. Load the Car
If you need to take anything to the ceremony or reception, make sure it’s in the car the night before – you don’t want to be lugging boxes around with a fresh face of wedding makeup!
18. Avoid Caffeine
Try not to have any caffeine after lunch the day before your wedding – it can make you feel more anxious and impede on your sleep!
19. Take Off Your Makeup
Make sure you really thoroughly remove your makeup the night before your wedding – or skip wearing it that day entirely – so your skin can recover and you can avoid potential breakouts.
If you are feeling particularly stressed or anxious, make sure you read our guide to staying calm before your wedding!