Celebrate the launch of My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 by sharing your dos and don’ts for throwing a big family wedding and you could win a £300 Love2Shop voucher. NOW CLOSED!

[ZaneMumsnet]

Weddings should be occasions of joy and happiness; however there are some times when they can be stressful and downright insufferable. From unreasonable demands from brides to issues over inviting (or not inviting) children, not to mention the sticky issue of wedding lists and seating plans, they can be a bit of a nightmare. To mark the return of the long awaited romantic comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, we would like to hear the rules you’d put in place for successful big family weddings.

Written by Academy Award® nominee Nia Vardalos, who stars alongside the entire returning cast of favourites, the film reveals a Portokalos family secret that will bring the beloved characters back together for an even bigger and Greeker wedding. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 hits cinemas on March 25.

Check out the trailer below:

If you were coming up with a list of dos and don'ts for how to throw a big family wedding what would they be? Have you been to some terrible ones you’d like to share a story about? If you were going to have one, how would you make sure it all went without a hitch?

Whatever your ideas and stories are, we'd love to hear them.
Everyone who posts on this thread with their tips will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky Mumsnetter will win a £300 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw,
MNHQ

Standard Insight Terms and Conditions apply

Do- make sure that toilet facilities are adequate and that someone cleans them during wedding party - related doesn't mean tidy.

Don't- let other family members use the brides dressing room - it doesn't matter if they are family!

Decide what is important to you and what you will "compromise on" as in, accept the suggestion /demands of your mother /sister /mil/postman.

I agree really wedding table lists - write them and don't canvass opinions.

Inclined to say the same for the wedding dinner.

You won't remember the canapés in, 6 months time. Arguably you will be lucky to get one if the photographer gets you first.

Remember it's a wedding. A celebration of your marriage, which is the important part.

Repeat this to yourself at regular intervals maintain your sanity.

Do what you and your other half want for your day and don't let other people bully/guilt trip you into things you're not happy with.
Don't get overly stressed about organisation - planning a wedding is only as stressful as you make it.

Make sure that if you have booked a photographer that you ask to see his previous photos and check and discuss her time spent etc, too long and I am afraid your guests will be bored and hungry! Don,t leave it to chance as you could be very disappointed.

Decide what you and your partner want and stick to it. Accept from the outset that you are bound to annoy some people so it doesn't come as a surprise and upset you.

If possible use companies who are used to working with each other. This will avoid a lot of hassles as they often will solve problems themselves without bothering you.

Have a grid for the day before and the day itself, times across the top, people down the side and write in the boxes what each person should be doing.

Make a list of what photographs you want to be taken - i.e. who is in each group. Give this to the best man and have him herd/collect those needed for each photo - this speeds things up amazingly.

Wine at the meal, champagne for toasts - then people pay at the bar.

Remember it is just one day and it doesn't have to be perfect! Relax and enjoy it.

do what you want your day to be, not what u think you have to

You're not going to please everyone, so you may as well just please yourself.

I would say try to keep the numbers of guests as small as possible. A small intimate wedding abroad would by my recommendation. It is your big day not anyone elses. A big party could always be thrown when you are back to celebrate your nuptials. By then the stress will be over!

Don't feel pressurised into inviting people you feel obliged to invite. It's your day invite who YOU want not who you should have"

I would always go for small and elite, understated, intimate and just the people you love and care about.

Double check everything!
Ask for presents/money before the big day.

I think the important thing is to be sensitive to people and also to be fairly relaxed about the whole thing. it is your big day but make it a day for everyone. Alos be organised and let people be clear on their roles.

Do's make sure you invite all the children otherwise it causes friction

Don't's always mix the families up so everyone has to get on with each other, no them and us situations

Not all family members get on so think about table settings!

Do: Invite only who you actually want to be there. Pick the dress/outfit that you like. Remember that it is all about you and your partner. Enjoy your guests, food and music. Make amazing memories.

Don't: Stress out - it's only one day. Get too caught up in the tiny details, none of it will matter on the day. Give in to anyone else's version of your day.

Don't overstretch yourself and don't get drunk too early. Do smile-a smile puts folks at ease and do try and relax.

Don't forget it's yours and your partners day so do what makes you happy and not what you think you have to do to please others

Start planning way before hand and make a list of things to do/get. You'll find that you keep adding to the list in the run up to the event.

don't leave the invitations too late, DD did & we had aload of people who couldn't make it

Went to a lovely wedding last year where the service was short and sweet, music wonderful, bridal party outfits just beautiful. Then we all trooped across to the reception venue. A great start, the live band played great music while people were greeted by the couple, seating plan made sense, dancing commenced. We then waited 4 hours to be fed. My son was eating his hands, my husband was looking skywards at me at every opportunity, daughter feeling faint. The lady next to me had to send her husband out to Boots in the town to get some headache medication as she felt so poorly through travelling a long way for the wedding and not eating. Oh dear. We began to see the funny side when a young couple on our table said they'd seen an Indian restaurant as they arrived, they put on their coats and asked us to save their place and off they went for a meal. They returned and carried on. Another family on our long table went out to get burgers and chips, they smuggled them in under their coats and their four children were plonked under the tables to eat incognito. Comical! Such a shame, no nibbles even and no crisps to buy at the bar. A lesson learned for me, feed the troops!!!

DO - Exactly as you want

DON'T - make compromises that you are unhappy with to please other people

do what you want at the budget you can afford, you won't please all the people all of the time so just make sure you are happy with the arrangements. most things that irk people are being given a very expensive or unrealistic gift list and also assuming people will book in overnight at an expensive venue at their own expense, neither of these sit well with a a lot of people.

Having just arranged a Big Wedding - I think my biggest tips would be - source the venue and if on a budget ensure you can DIY as much or as little as you want. THEN write out a plan and STICK to it! It is so easy to be sucked in to this and that and adding more people to the list and before you know it the size doubles and so does the cost! ALSO - book yourself a room as close to the venue as possible! I was up till midnight decorating a Marquee and up early greeting cakes and produce in the morning so I managed to stay on site.

Make sure that everyone knows what they're supposed to be doing and where they're supposed to be at any given time. And make lots of "to do" lists.