Source: Pinterest

The 374 guide to nailing the night before (and the night of) your wedding

The ultimate survivor's guide to making it through your wedding weekend

23 JUNE 2026

Source: Pinterest

The night before a wedding is its own particular kind of wonderful chaos - excitement, nerves, pure elation that months of admin and planning is finally nearly behind you. 

 

Everyone will tell you to enjoy the moment. Knowing how to is another thing entirely. To help you navigate the night before (and the night of) in style, here are our top tips. 

The night before

Get some sleep

A good night’s sleep may feel like a near-impossible ask, but it’s worth attempting. White noise is surprisingly effective (hit up Spotify), and consider magnesium, credited with relaxing the nervous system, to help you doze. Pack this Sweet Bea magnesium butter and rub into the soles of your feet just before your head hits the pillow. 

Brief your key players

The single most effective thing you can do the night before is gather your bridal party and run through the next day’s schedule - roles, timings, responsibilities. Send it ahead so they arrive informed. It might feel overly organised, but it means far fewer questions landing with you on the day itself. 

Know your limits

Your favourite people have arrived and the drinks are flowing - it’s easy to get carried away, but restraint is your friend. Decide in advance how many drinks constitutes your limit and stick to it. If you know you struggle to leave a party mid-flow, set an alarm for 10pm so you can make a swift exit. Mykryl, the viral anti-hangover supplement, is also worth having to hand - just make sure you take it for a test run before the wedding weekend. 

Designate one assertive, organised friend to intercept unnecessary questions

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Appoint a chaos buffer

As the co-star of the show, the moment guests start arriving you’ll become everyone’s focal point - family wanting photos, suppliers asking questions, and over-eager guests all simultaneously trying to grab your attention. Assign one organised, assertive friend to intercept all of this - protecting your time and energy throughout the night. 

Write a letter

To your partner, a parent, or whoever feels right. Writing a letter forces a moment of quiet in an otherwise busy evening, and gives you time to reflect on what your wedding day actually means before it arrives. Keep it somewhere safe - you’ll be transported back to that exact moment, every time you read it.  

Charge everything

Lay out your dress and accessories, steam what needs steaming, and then charge absolutely everything else - phones, speakers, portable charger, ring light. Tomorrow morning is not the moment to discover your speakers are at four percent. 

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Photo: c/o Nina Wernicke

The night of

Hand over your phone

It's one of the most consistently recommended pieces of advice we hear, and for good reason. Give your phone to a trusted friend first thing in the morning and ask them to photograph the day from their own perspective. Come bedtime, you’ll be able to scroll through photos you didn’t even know were being taken and re-live it all over again.

Spend 10 minutes together

Find your partner at some point during the reception, step away from the crowds and take a moment to enjoy the view. Everyone you love, all together, at the same time. You’ll never have another moment in your life quite like this, so don’t miss it.

Keep a secret snack stash

Despite the considerable investment in your wedding menu, there is every chance you’ll make it through the whole day eating very little. Put aside your favourite snacks somewhere discreet for you to tuck into at the end of the night. Bag of Nik Naks in the taxi home, anyone?

Record a voice note

Before you go to sleep, record a voice note. There’s something about audio alone that feels more intimate than video: it’s just the emotion behind your words, captured at their purest. Give it to your videographer to weave into your edit, layered under your favourite song. A time capsule you’ll come to treasure. 

Ask for one last shot

Before your photographer leaves, ask them to capture one final image: messy, slightly undone hair, heels on the floor. These candid end-of-the-night shots are often the ones brides end up loving the most. 

Prepare a 1am outfit

In case the evening ends with a debrief with friends in your room - which it often does - have something chic and easy to change into. An oversized men’s shirt would be our choice: effortless, comfortable, and still stylish enough to qualify for any late-night photographs that happen to follow. 

Before they leave,
have your photographer capture one last end of the night shot

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