Look, I get it. Planning a wedding is hard work! (Hey, that’s why it’s my full-time job.) Even with a planner’s help, there are lots of steps leading up to the big day. You might be looking at a list of dates you need to schedule trial runs with your vendor team and thinking to yourself, “Do I NEED a trial run before the wedding?” You chose the best of the best vendors, right? So why is a trial run so important? Let’s dive into what vendors you need a trial with and why!
Hair & Makeup

Carved Tree Photography
This one might be the most obvious vendor to have a trial with, and that’s because it’s the most important! You can Pin hairdos to your heart’s content, but until you see how those styles look in your real hair you can’t really know how it will turn out. More often than not, your stylist will need to change the approach after your hair trial run, whether it’s adding extensions or you decide on a Plan B altogether! This applies to your makeup trial run as well. You want to see how your ideas actually look in person – and this allows you to feel relaxed and confident in your hair/makeup artist on the big day too.
Cake

Amanda Matilda Photography
I mean, who doesn’t want to try more cake, right? A cake “trial run” is really your tasting meeting, but it’s just as important. Even if you’ve had the baker’s cake at a friend’s wedding or you know exactly what flavors you want going in, it’s a great idea to be open to trying their full range of options presented. You could discover something you like even more, or come up with a combination that’s all your own! Plus these tastings are some of the fun parts of wedding planning. Make it a date and enjoy the time together as you decide on your final flavor and design.
Catering

Ashley Rhian Photography
Much like your cake, you should always plan on having a catering tasting. Similarly, even if you have ideas going into the meeting, try to remain open to suggestions and new information that might come your way! These are professionals for a reason, and they will listen to your ideas and desires to help your visions come to life in the best way possible. Plus you can fill up on some really delicious food!
Photography

Angela Hays Photography
So when we say you need a trial run with your photographer, we really just mean engagement photos! Your engagement session acts like a trial before the big day so that you get comfortable in front of your photographer and the camera. You’ll see how they work in an actual session before the wedding and feel completely relaxed and confident in their process on the big day! Plus you get some great images out of it that you can use on your save the dates or around the reception.
These are our top four vendors that you need a trial run before the wedding with! Not only are these a fun and exciting part of wedding planning, they are essential for you to feel relaxed and confident on the wedding day since you know exactly what to expect.