Getting married is a pretty big deal. Not only because you get to marry the love of your life (which is, of course, important), but also because you’ll probably fork out a rather hefty sum for the occasion.
According to wedding planning website Bridebook, the average amount that British couples spent on their wedding day in 2021 was £24,000, so it’s no small fee. But what happens if you regret parts of your wedding?
This is what some brides are experiencing, so they are sharing their wedding regrets on TikTok to prevent other couples from making the same mistake.
In fact, the term “wedding regrets” has over 82.2 million views on the social media platform, with users revealing they regret everything from buying designer shoes to going on their honeymoon straight away.
So if you’re getting married in 2023 or beyond, here are the biggest wedding regrets according to brides on TikTok.
1. Buying designer shoes
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User @rendagrella said that buying designer shoes worth $1,500 (£1,248) for her wedding day earlier this year was her biggest regret. “I honestly could have just worn flats,” Renata said.
Another regret she had included leaving for her honeymoon the day after her wedding as she was “violently hungover”.
2. Photobooths and polaroid camera guest books
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Another video, which has been viewed 1.8 million times, sees Caroline Ripa (@carolineripa) detailing her wedding regrets including having a photobooth, polaroid guest books, and disliking her hair on the wedding day.
In the video Ripa explained that she wanted a “Kardashian-style” photobooth with a white background but that this was not provided and not many people, including her and her new husband, used the photobooth.
Of the polaroid cameras, she said this was a “huge regret”. “Nobody used it,” she added. “I think about 10 people signed the guest book. So I have this very expensive guest book, I spent a s*** tonne of money on film, and nobody used it.”
Ripa explained that her hair also didn’t feel like her and she wish she’s been more clear with her hairstylist. However, if she was going to do her wedding again she would get more disposable cameras because she “loved” those.
3. Not doing a first look
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User Lovey Lee (@alittlebitlovey) said that if she could do her wedding again, she would “100% do a first look”.
“I ignored the advice from TikTok, my wedding planner, my photographer, and friends, I did not listen to them when they said ‘you have to do a first look’. I was just adamant that I wanted that really authentic reaction to come as my husband saw me when I was walking down the aisle,” Lee explained.
“Deep down I just really wanted him to cry, he’s not a crier, so I thought when he sees me he’s going to get really emotional and he did not cry. I think I was riding my entire decision on whether or not he would cry which was so stupid looking back because he’s no a crier. And I also wasted valuable time where we could have done all of our portraits together earlier and I could have enjoyed cocktail hour, but instead I was rushing the photos so I could get to cocktail hour.”
Lee added that she also regrets not buying cheaper wedding shoes and that she wished she had bought a second dress for dancing after the reception.
4. Not going table to table at the reception
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Katie (@brunetteinblush) said her biggest wedding regret was not going around the tables to say hi to people at her reception.
“I think the thing that still haunts me the most is not going table to table at our reception and seeing all our guests before all of the other stuff started,” she explained.
“[It] literally broke my heart the next day when I realised the dozens of people that I didn’t even get to say hi to because I was so excited for them to be at my wedding.”
Other regrets from Katie include not practising the entrance to first dance, not seeing any special details (like a champagne wall) that were part of the ceremony, and not spending enough time with the groomsmen.
5. Not eating enough food
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British bride Isla Rose Potkins, (@islarosepotkins) said she had four regrets from her wedding. These included not scheduling enough time to get ready with her bridesmaids, not eating enough food (“we ended up missing out on a lot of it”), her seamstress only adding one loop for the bustle instead of two as the first one “broke quite early on”, and Potkins added that she wished she hadn’t done a first dance, but had done a private first dance instead as it would have been a “lot more intimate and a lot less awkward”.
