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 delegate jobs to different (reliable) people if you need to
Do ask for help
Don't try to suit everyone because it will never happen
Do enjoy yourself on the day
Do make a budget and stick to it!

Don't invite family members who do not like each other

Do what you want to do - it is your wedding. Don't fell presurised to invite distant cousins that you haven't seen for years.

Easy one this - don't!
We had 12 family guests at our wedding which worked just fine!

I am currently going through planning my wedding for early next year!

I am starting to learn thick and fast a lot of things.

Don't:

Be influenced by the venues, if it doesn't feel right don't take it under pressure.
Listen to what everyone else done as it is the right way, your way is the right way.
go over your budget, you will regret it in the long run.

Do:
look for deals on everything, haggle where possible and cut costs that way, not with quality.
Listen to what is on offer and work out what suits what you are looking to get from the day.
make sure you enjoy the day and take it as it comes!

My advice would be think carefully about who to invite - ask yourself if you would expect to be invited to their wedding, if the answer is no, then consider why you want to invite them.

Do what makes you happy because you will never please everyone. Make sure you have lots of childrens entertainment & smile!

DO make sure your venue has easily-accessible toilets and more than one!
At one wedding I attended the toilets were on the next floor, reached by a marble staircase - I found myself ferrying several small children up and down!

DON'T get too bogged down by small details. You, and the guests, will not remember if things were not minutely co-ordinated on the tables etc. years down the line.

DO be aware of gate-crashers - if one side of the family is lax about invitations you might find people turning up who the bride and groom have no knowledg of! I speak from bitter experience.

Keep it simple, and try to enjoy the day. It goes far too quickly! I felt like I barely spoke to some of my friends as it went so fast.

its you and your partners day you its impossible to please everyone. so just ask the important people like your close family ;ONE thing they would really like to happen/have take place on the day and see if you can do it or come to some sort of comprimise. weddings are stressfull enough just make sure YOU AND PARNTER are happy bunnies

A friend had a separate children's room complete with bouncy castle - a surprising number of adults seemed to disappear in there too! If there are children serve food at sensible times and avoid waiting around.

Give your mother and mother-in-law a task just for them. Something they can really make their own but doesnt impact on you too much. It will keep them from interfering in the important stuff.

Dont get caught up in thinking you need to invite everyone. You don't.

Just remember that it is your wedding so make sure that you make decisions that you wont look back on and regret down the line.

don't do it, have a small event with just the people who really care about you

Invite who you want and only have what you can afford

Dont be a bridezilla it does not work out well for all, do have lots of fun planning and keep it simple.

Invite the people you really want there. You don't want a guest list that has been created by your parents and you find you don't know half of the people there on your big day.

Inject a bit of personality into your wedding. I have been to some wonderful weddings which were totally about the couple and their likes and hobbies and some not so good ones which were just so impersonal.

I agree that keeping quiet about the table plan will save a lot of headaches! Just let them all get on with it on the day and forget about it!

Do think about your guests - I went to a wedding where the bridal party all disappeared to their hotel after the wedding breakfast for a few hours, whilst the rest of the day guests just had to hang around the venue until the evening reception. Many didn't live locally and so just had to stay in the empty marquee until they returned and some entertainment started!

Check with your fiance/e whether the people on the long list their mother insists you invite are people they've ever met. If not, don't invite them!

Do your own thing - have belief in what you feel is the right way of doing things and do it

Don't expect perfection, something will almost definitely go wrong. If you're relaxed about it you'll be able to laugh about it sooner rather than later!

Well we only had 15 people at our wedding (including ourselves!) because of all the family hassles it could bring... we went to Malta with our best friends, No family invited!!! However.... we DID have a huge party on our return and I'm bridesmaid for a friend who is having family struggles already. My advice would be:

• If you're having top table troubles don't have one! Have a sweetheart table with two guest chairs for people to come and chat to you.
• Be realistic in your budget.. if you want to invite loads of people be prepared that you may not be able to afford that 4 course meal at £70 a head.
• Have the bridesmaids and ushers that YOU want.
• Be selfish. Its the one day thats about you and your partner.. have the dress YOU want, have the food YOU want, have the colour YOU want, get married where YOU want...... you're allowed!
• Only let someone pay for something if you're going to let their opinion have an affect on you.

DO Invite everybody DON'T expect them all to turn up

DO have a "What the bride and groom say goes" policy - too many weddings cause stress trying to make too many people happy. The only people that need to be happy are the bride and groom - any one that doesn't like it can stay at home!

Remember, the more money you spend has no correlation at all to how happy the marriage will be (only to how drunk happy your guests will be.)

Ha, like the trailer, looking forward to this - I loved the original film :o

My wedding tips are:

• Impose a 2 drink max limit on the bride and bridesmaids before the wedding. Don't be the You've Been Framed bride :o
• Get to the church on time unlike me
• Enjoy the car ride to the reception, it's a few precious moments of calm with your new DH.
• Serve some sandwiches or snacks if the meal will be late.
• Have a really nice meal. It's worth spending decent money on this. Our meal was lush :o
• Put wine on the tables but don't have a free bar. Encourage family and friends to stay in the venue if possible, so you can all have breakfast together the next day. It was one of the best bits Most of all, enjoy the day. It's true what everyone says, it's over in a flash but I have some wonderful moments etched into my brain like HD photos

Don't go for a gourmet wedding breakfast - it seems the more you pay, the les food you get!
Keep costs within a strict budget, it all has to be paid for and you don't want the added stress of debt.

If you have been living together for a while, don't 'expect' parents to pay. They may want to contribute but shouldn't be pressured.
Don't decide on a wedding venue a long distance away from your locality. Some guests don't want to travel miles, wearing their best clothes, to some far distance location, especially if children are invited.
The best weddings are informal celebrations of a couple's public declaration of love and commitment to each other. Weddings should be lots of fun and enjoyment to help the couple celebrate.