Wedding Remorse: The Largest Errors That Brides Made On Their Special Day

By: Lilli Keeve | Last updated: Aug 09, 2023

A bride’s wedding day is undoubtedly one of the most crucial events in their life. They spend months and months planning their perfect day down to a tee. Often, it comes with a hefty cost, too. 

No amount of planning, however, can prepare one for the regrets or mistakes that they can’t take back. Some brides have expressed regret when reflecting on that wonderful and special day. 

Not The Dress Of Your Dreams

Choosing a dress is often something that the bride has been dreaming about since she was a little girl. It’s also one of the most important decisions she has to make. Even though the ultimate decision rests on the bride’s shoulders, her family and friends often weigh in with their thoughts and opinions.

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This particular bride shares that she caved into peer pressure from her loved ones. Sadly, it turned out to be one of those major decisions that stayed with her for the rest of her life. The dress she felt she had to choose wasn’t her style nor was it comfortable. The bride realized this much too late. 

Don’t See The Bride…It’s Bad Luck

In different cultures, there are certain practices and customs that the bride and groom should follow before and after the day of their wedding. One of these core ideas (often rooted in superstition) is that, before the ceremony, the bride and groom shouldn’t see each other. 

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A bride recalled how she followed through with this practice but ended up regretting the decision later on. Why is that? Well, a wedding day is such a day where one might feel afraid and nervous, or even regret the decision altogether. This bride felt that fear and nervousness and needed her man to console her. Unfortunately, she didn’t go through with that because she didn’t want to see the groom before the ceremony. 

Beware Of A Hungry Bride (And Groom)

Naturally, being nervous is one of the most common feelings on a wedding day. Brides typically avoid this feeling by focusing on the event that’s coming. This hyper-focused mindset can sometimes help them from consuming too much food before the special day. 

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In order to avoid sluggishness and keep sharp, not eating anything has become a shared regret among many brides regret. To satiate her appetite, this bride and groom ended up getting frozen TV dinners from Walmart and ate them at their hotel after the wedding. The most comical part is that she did all of this in her wedding dress – the hunger must have been quite severe! 

Photo Practice Makes Perfect

For a couple, the day of their engagement is a glimpse of how the future wedding ceremony will look. Taking photos on engagement day helps both the bride and groom to feel comfortable in front of a photographer, but this bride found out the importance of this fact after the wedding.

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In order to save money, the bride and groom decided to not have engagement photos taken. Although they saved some bucks in the process, they both ended up regretting it. On their actual wedding day, they were extremely uncomfortable posing in front of the camera. It could have easily been avoided if they had just invested in taking their engagement day photos.

A Big No-No Is To Not Rush The Dress-Buying

 A majority of brides probably experience the excitement of tying the knot with their soulmate and thoroughly anticipate that special day. They specifically plan to get everything they need in a proper timeframe so as to avoid delays or disappointments. This can lead, however, to rushing and future regrets. 

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The bride that’s the focus in this particular case shared her regret about buying things without much intention behind the choices. She basically picked the first dress that fit, and, in the end, she chose a sleeveless dress which isn’t what her heart desired. When the bride goes with the first thing she tries on during the dress shopping, that’s never a good sign! 

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Make Sure You Practice Dancing Before The Wedding Day

There are always fun activities to participate in on a wedding day. The notorious couple’s dance is one of those activities where the bride and groom can show off their groovy moves or awkwardly stumble through them. 

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Some couples are not the most naturally gifted dancers and decided to just wing it on the dance floor. This one bride felt much regret that she and her husband didn’t take lessons prior to the wedding day. Perhaps they didn’t have enough time to pack that into their schedule? Regardless, the result was an awkward and unplanned dance that they’ll always have to remember.

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Drunk Maids…Never Again!

Weddings are meant to be one of the most precious and exciting days – which always come with drinks involved. It’s only natural that the guests of the weddings let loose a bit and maybe have one too many alcoholic drinks. One of this bride’s maids couldn’t contain herself and it turned out to be a disaster.

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This bride recounted her wedding day experience and remarked that she would have done things differently (mainly, reducing the number of alcoholic drinks at the party). Her maid of honor was beyond wasted and had to worry about her all night long, a night that was meant to be for specifically her and her newly-wed husband. 

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Wishing There Was Another Photographer

All of the preparations, the grooming, and the dressing are major components of the wedding ceremony. They assist in making the bride’s wedding day as special and memorable as possible. Often, couples hire a dedicated wedding photographer (or two) to capture the important event. 

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In this particular case, the photographer took photos of the bride and the bridesmaids getting ready, as well as the groom’s side. The regret the bride expressed is that she wishes she had hired two photographers so the second one could capture the groom and groomsmen getting ready. 

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Only Inviting Certain People For A Valid Reason

Trying to decide which people to invite to your wedding is as crucial as the actual wedding ceremony itself. Some couples – for a host of reasons – cut certain people from the final list based on their style and budget. 

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This bride hastily made the choice to invite those who she didn’t want to offend. But, unfortunately, that was not the best decision in the end. Both the bride and groom regretted it because the guest proved why they were reluctant to invite them in the first place! 

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Wearing White Is A Traditional Wedding Custom

Selecting white as the bride’s wedding dress is an unspoken tradition and has been that way for a very long time in American culture. On rare occasions, there are brides that choose colors that they prefer or look better on them than plain old white. 

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There are some brides, though, that give into the pressures of sticking to the tradition of wearing white on their wedding day. This bride regretted the choice to wear white even though she didn’t feel comfortable in it at all. Sadly, she felt like a giant marshmallow all day long – purple was really more her color, we’re sure! 

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The Highly Anticipated Honeymoon

Rushing into the excitement of the honeymoon is a mistake that brides often make. In particular, one bride recalled how she and her husband went on their honeymoon the next morning following their wedding day. 

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The imminent thrill and rush, she said, made everything go by too fast. It was only a week after the wedding that she came to terms with the experience. The ideal scenario would have been to postpone the honeymoon to at least the day after the wedding before embarking on international travel. If there’s a lesson to be learned from this, it’s that sometimes things need to be planned more methodically and slowly. 

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Sticking To The Tradition Of Wearing A Veil

Sticking to traditions sometimes isn’t a bad thing, even if it’s considered a cliché. After all, it’s a cliché because it works! The bride here mentioned that she had removed at least one customary tradition from the wedding process – something she did because she was young and didn’t put too much thought into that aspect. 

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What was that decision? Well, she chose to not wear a veil with her dress. That is one of those decisions that brides can never forget, especially since she knew how beautiful she would have looked. 

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Choose Your Fighter: Glasses Or Contact Lenses?

A bride has to look absolutely stunning on her wedding day, and much of the planning goes into her appearance. Some brides feel that they need to make adjustments to their everyday look or grooming habits to fulfill this desire. 

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This bride decided to ditch her glasses for contact lenses on her special day, which she hadn’t done ever before. Unfortunately, this was another decision that ended up being a regretful one. Her eyes were itchy all day and, on top of that, she was dealing with a dreadful migraine. She shared that she should have just kept her glasses on since her husband loved her that way. 

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Those Guests That Didn’t Show Up

No matter how much the bride plans for her wedding day, she also has to factor in some uncertainty to arise. One can’t ever truly prepare for who will show up and who won’t.

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The particular couple in this example had already planned out a specific number of meals based on the number of guests they invited. But, that turned out to be a big regret for both the bride and groom. They budgeted $60 for each invited guest, many of whom never even showed up! Sigh, that’s a waste of money and time. 

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Choosing A More Supportive Maid

For some brides, making a major decision based on a childhood promise and sentiment may not be the best thing for their penultimate wedding day. This bride ended up regretting the choice she made of choosing her childhood friend to be her bridesmaid. 

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The so-called “friend” was rather unsupportive of her best friend on the most important day of her life. She neglected her maid-of-honor duties – the bride would have been much better off without this bridesmaid ruining everything for her during such a momentous occasion. 

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Avoid Picking An Abusive And Toxic Bridesmaid

One of the most important components of the wedding ceremony and preparation are the bridesmaids. However, choosing the wrong bridesmaid is often a decision that many brides regret after the fact.

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This bridesmaid was unsupportive and abusive towards the bride and her husband. The bride recalled how her maid of honor fought with her before the wedding day, and rudely called her fat before the first dance. Looking back, the bride said it would have been better to not have a bridesmaid at all. If anything, the bridesmaid should be supportive, excited, and, not to mention, respectful! 

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Spend More Time Choosing An Experienced Photographer

While wedding planning, the budget has to always be at the forefront of couples’ minds. There are certain elements that will be more expensive than others and that’s a significant factor to not neglect in the planning process! Those memories become frozen in time, a stand-still document of that beautiful day, and they have to be picture-perfect. 

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The bride hired a photographer who seemed experienced based on her online ad. Even though she had an impressive portfolio, she did a terrible job on the actual wedding day. The couple can’t even rely on those photographs to remember their wedding by. 

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Planning Around The Weather

Of course, there are many things that a bride has to worry about on her big day, especially the hairstyle she is going to choose. Not to mention, the dress style and pattern, and the shape of her face and complexion all have a place in the deciding factor. 

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Unfortunately, the weather for this one bride was not on her side. She got married on a cold and foggy day. Her gorgeous hairdo was subjected to becoming wet mere minutes after exiting her bridal suite. Future brides, take this as a note!

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DIY Wedding Dress

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to take an unconventional approach to one’s wedding! Being a practical bride can be a good thing and if you want to make your own wedding dress, then more power to you! At times, it may be necessary to let others handle something instead of taking the reigns yourself. 

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This bride admitted that she saved a lot of money by having a DIY wedding. But, her biggest regret was having to clean up her wedding dress right after the ceremony instead of spending time with her husband. Lesson learned! 

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Stationing A Photo Booth Outside

Everybody is well aware of all the time, effort, energy, and money that goes into wedding planning and organizing. Both bride and groom have to ensure that the wedding ceremony and the reception that follows it has to be complementary. 

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Stationed outside, is a cute photo booth at another hall outside of the reception hall. She shared that the guests left the reception to go use the photo booth, which made the reception hall quite empty when the dancing was supposed to commence. However, if the booth was in the same room, then things would have gone differently.

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The Infamous Cake Face Smashing

It’s astonishing to think that the traditions of weddings are older than the many civilizations that exist these days. As a result, it shouldn’t come as a shock that certain customs and traditions that are associated with it come from a vast array of cultures. One has to make the bold decision if those traditions are relevant or not. 

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The couple should choose which traditions they feel comfortable with and those that they don’t. So, this couple chose to take part in smashing cake in each other’s faces and regretted it the day after. Even though everybody, including the bride, got a good laugh, it still didn’t sit right with her the next morning.

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Get A Church Organist That Can Actually Play

Weddings that take place at a church are definitely unique and beautiful. The combination of the pleasant hymns and the musical instruments play their part as the bride makes her way down the aisle. It’s this type of event that makes one’s wedding day even more special. 

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But, this could also signify that things may not go quite as planned if not handled properly by an expert. In the case of this bride’s wedding, the organist they hired didn’t play some notes correctly. Regretfully, the bride wished she had listened to her the day before. 

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The Dress That Didn’t Fit

On the wedding day, brides clearly want to look their very best. Often, they get caught between looking fit and looking highly uncomfortable with their dress of choice. There are moments when a bride can experience both of these. 

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Having a fitted dress comes with disadvantages (or restrictions) and this bride’s fitted dress options made her regret her decision. She wasn’t able to fully enjoy the food during the occasion because she simply couldn’t fit it in with the dress she chose. 

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A Wedding For Others…Not For You

For most people, weddings are what they desire and dream about their entire lives. The fateful day holds an immense amount of significance and importance to them. Sometimes, that leads to planning for others to enjoy and be impressed with everything, and not purely for the couple’s own enjoyment. 

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They wanted to show off how special their day was, which led to everybody enjoying it but themselves. The bride shared that she would have felt better if they didn’t even have a wedding ceremony at all, but had just eloped as they had originally planned. 

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Creating Unnecessary Anxiety Before The Wedding

Many couples who are about to become wedded to each other usually do their best to follow many different kinds of wedding customs, traditions, and unwritten rules before their wedding day. Some couples go along with these traditions because of the supposed luck they bring, while others just follow them for the fun of it. 

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This bride followed the tradition of sleeping separately from her husband the night before the wedding, even though they had slept together in the same bed for the past few years. Ultimately, this decision created unwarranted and unnecessary anxiety, which could have been avoided if she hadn’t done so.

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The Night Before The Wedding Day

Some brides consider the night before the wedding even more important than their actual wedding day. This prior night is crucial to making sure all things are in order for the following day. Honing in on each small detail, the bride ensures that the life-changing day is as perfect as what she had imagined in her head. 

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However, the bride may become riddled with anxiety, which could disrupt the flow of the whole occasion. It’s best to find time to relax that night and take all the emotions in as they come. We wouldn’t want any brides to end up missing out on all the inevitable fun as this one did. 

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Having The Perfect Hairstyle

A hairstyle is one of those things that are elemental to adding to one’s beauty and uniqueness. Through trial and error, this bride would come to the realization that she wished she had kept her original hairstyle instead of letting her mom change it.

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Concerned friends and family who want to voice their opinions about how the bride should appear on the day can often give misleading advice. This bride decided to listen to her mother and let her choose the hairstyle that differed from her preference. She wasn’t comfortable with the final result and regretted it. 

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Having Expectations That Are Too High

Many brides feel similarly that they place too much pressure on having the wedding day be absolutely flawless and planned to perfection. Nevertheless, their high expectations just let them down. They have the idea of what they want the day to be and look like, and, for some, that’s before they’ve even met their future husband!

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The biggest mistake that most brides make is that they expect their wedding to be the best day of their lives. While it can certainly be special, there shouldn’t be so much pressure to have it be the best day ever. The goal to make it special is attainable and realistic, but making it anything more than that leads to deep remorse.  

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Drinking More Than Was Necessary

Anxiety is a common feeling for both bride and groom to experience on the day of their wedding, while others are full of nothing but excitement. Both emotional states can lead to different results overall. Overdrinking is one of those examples. This bride expressed how much she regretted the amount of drinking that happened between her and her husband during their reception. 

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Sadly, the bride and groom spent their first night as an officially married couple on the floor of their hotel bathroom. They shared the toilet, too. 

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