pack an emergency kit
Welcome to the third installment in this series of items that can easily get overlooked on wedding days!
1. Prepping Your Wedding Dress & Veil
2. Pack an Overnight Bag
3. Pack an Emergency Kit
4. Pack Your Jewelry & Special Accessories Bag
5. Pack a Complete Invitation Suite
I love the opening scene of The Wedding Planner. J Lo strides around the church effortlessly adjusting a bridesmaid's dress with a clothespin & calms a weeping & slightly inebriated father of the bride, all with a smile of confidence on her face.
You, too, can have that same confidence.
Bridesmaids & groomsmen, pay attention! You can be the most prepared attendant ever by showing up with these items! Brides & grooms, like your honeymoon bag, this is something you can start putting together in advance. No need to wait until the last second!
Channel your inner survivalist & consider all possibilities for yourself & those surrounding you the day of your or your friend's wedding.
Aside from your normal overnight bag, here are some essential items that often get overlooked:
FOR HIM
An Extra Pair of Black Men’s Socks*
An Extra White Undershirt*
An Extra Belt*
Beard Products
Comb or Brush
Hairspray or Hair Gel/Pomade
Hair/Beard Trimmer
Makeup for Blemishes
The How To Tie A Necktie/Bowtie Youtube Video Downloaded to Your Smart Phone
(Everyday toiletries of your preference)
* When I say "extra", I don't mean one. I mean a "spare" in case something happens to yours or someone shows up without it.
FOR HER
Baby Powder
Bobby Pins
Clear or Neutral Nail Polish
Cute/Coordinating Pair of Flat Shoes
Cute/Coordinating Jacket or Scarf
Dry Shampoo
Hairspray
Feminine Products
Nail Polish Remover & Cotton Balls
(Everyday toiletries of your preference)
MISC ITEMS FOR EVERYBODY
Breath Mints or Listerine Strips
Chap Stick
Clothes or Fashion Tape
Cotton Swabs
Floss
Lint Roller
Mosquito Repellent
Nail File &/or Clippers
Q-Tips
Safety Pins
Sewing Kit
Stain Remover
Steamer // Check that the venue has at least one
Sun Block
Tissues
Toothbrush, Toothpaste
Tweezers
First aid
Allergy Medicine
Antacid
Aspirin
Clear or Nude Colored Band-Aids
Cold Medicine
Eye Drops
Dr. Scholl’s Blister Relief Anti-Friction Stick
Neosporin
* I highly discourage taking any meds the day (or week of) your wedding that you've never taken it before (obviously unless you have a medical emergency & your doctor has prescribed something). Allergic reactions can be disastrous! True story, my mother-in-law broke out in hives the morning of my wedding due to an allergic reaction to a medicine she had recently started taking! I'm talking, every inch of her was covered. Thankfully she was wore a long sleeve dress & panty hose & my makeup artist was able to perform a miracle. I'm so thankful she had the best attitude about it though. She's wonderful like that. :)
CRAFTING EMERGENCIES
If you're helping with the decor set up in any capacity or just want to be super prepared, it wouldn't hurt to have the following items within reach:
Hammer
Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
Rubber Bands
Scissors
Screwdriver
Super Glue
Tape (Clear, Double Stick, Scotch, & Duct)
Twine or Coordinating Ribbon that may be used in any of the decor
I finally followed my own advice a few years ago & made my own emergency wedding day kit. I thankfully haven't had need for most of the items & I sometimes feel silly carrying this bag around. But, then I go into disaster-mode thinking with visions of a windy wedding day & something flies into my eye & I rip my contact trying to get it out. I have horrible eyesight & shooting a wedding blind or even with one contact lens stresses me out. Knowing I have a backup pair makes me feel invincible.
Fun fact!
The number one thing people ask me for at weddings is safety pins.
blog posts in this series
1. Prepping Your Wedding Dress & Veil
2. Pack an Overnight Bag
3. Pack an Emergency Kit
4. Pack Your Jewelry & Special Accessories Bag
5. Pack a Complete Invitation Suite