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When you're planning a wedding, questions that once seemed easy to answer are suddenly so complicated you need charts and graphs to plot your course of action.
Should you wear your hair up or down? And does that decision depend on the neckline of your dress? The shape of your face? The length of your veil?
Of course, there are tons of people ready to offer their opinions. Wedding coordinators, bridal shop personnel, mothers and soon-to-be mothers-in-law, even wedding etiquette experts are quick to point out the dos and don'ts of planning your nuptials.
Sometimes, however, it's best to listen to the real experts -- recent brides. They know what worked, what didn't, and what brides can do to keep their sanity.
Karen (Broxton) Laszig, who married Jeffrey Laszig at Christ Lutheran Church on Hilton Head last November, learned that when ironing out the reception details, patience is definitely a virtue.
"Make sure you get everything in writing," Laszig said. "And if it takes 20 times to get it right, then take 20 times to get it right."
Hilton Head resident Margaret (Esquivel) Gray agreed that brides should not back down from what they want out of the professionals they hire.
"Don't be afraid to tell them exactly what you want," said Gray, who married William Gray Jr. of Bluffton at St. Francis By the Sea Catholic Church last September. The couple held their reception at the Westin Resort on Hilton Head, a decision Gray said was the right one for their 400-person guest list.
"Everything went pretty smoothly," she said. "I really didn't have any problems."
When it comes to reception planning, recent brides said the key is to keep the stress levels low by delegating responsibilities to others.
"If you can get help coordinating the reception details, do that," Laszig suggested. "Plan the ceremony yourself, and stay completely out of the reception if you can."
Jodi (Wixted) Roach, whose marriage to Steve Roach, both of Hilton Head, went off without a hitch, said to let the professionals do their jobs.
"When it came to the professionals I just said, 'You know your business and you know what you're doing but here are a few things I want.' Then I left it to their expertise," said Roach, who tied the knot in a garden wedding at The Beaufort Inn last November.
These brides agreed that the longer you plan, the more time there is to worry about tiny, unimportant details.
"I wanted to get everything done early," Roach said. "The hardest thing is leaving (details) up to the powers that be. But everything always works itself out."
Both Gray and Laszig, who planned their weddings in a few short months, agreed that sometimes less is best.
"A lot of people start too soon," Gray said. "Try not to get too stressed out about it."
"I put (my wedding) together in about three months," said Laszig. "You just gotta know what you want to do."
And what advice could they offer brides to help them keep their cool and their perspectives when the big day arrives?
The key is to make sure last-minute details are taken care of as early as possible, Laszig said.
"The night before, if possible, have everything delivered to the church," she said.
Whatever you do in the hours before you say 'I do,' try to keep the stress level as low as possible.
"Treat your wedding day like a normal morning," Gray suggested. "Go exercise, do something with friends so you don't get stressed out."
And above all, remember the reason you're floating up that aisle in the first place.
"If anything goes wrong, you're most likely the only one who will notice," Roach said. "The most important thing about that day is that you're marrying the one you love. The rest is just details."
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