The first few minutes of your morning are the most important of your day and can set the tone for positivity and productivity. Ideally, you have an app or clock that taps into your natural circadian rhythm and wakes you during your “best time” within a certain window. Getting jarred out of a deep REM slumber to the sound of a blaring alarm clock sets you up for a negative day brimming with fatigue and crankiness. Have you ever noticed when your morning starts in a frenzy—snoozing your alarm, skipping breakfast, and rushing yourself out the door—the rest of your day seems to reflect that mood of chaos as well? The tone of your morning will determine the tone of your day, so it’s important to have a plan in place to start your wedding day morning off right.

Here are some ways to start your wedding day morning on the right foot, with a few implements for the days before.

Clean your ring

Rings get dirty for various reasons, being the use of cosmetics the most common one. Lotion, makeup or even perfume can make your diamond look dull. The best and safest way would be to take it to your jeweler and have it professionally cleaned. To bring that stone back to life yourself, fill a recipient with warm to hot water and add washing up liquid. Let it soak for 20 to 40 minutes and brush the stones with the help of a soft-bristled toothbrush. The best one would be one that doesn’t have any rubber bristles. Usually, kids toothbrushes are softer which makes them perfect to clean diamonds. Keep this toothbrush separately and use it only to clean your jewellery. This way, it will stay softer and clean.

Lay out dress and accessories

Before you start getting ready, you’ll want to make sure all of your accessories are laid out in advance. Make sure your wedding shoes, veil and jewelry are all accessible to the photographer so they can capture detail shots before you slip into your gown. Having your accessories laid out will make for a seamless getting ready process.

Early night before

Don’t stay out late the night before! It might be hard to pull yourself away from Welcome Drinks after the rehearsal because it’s so exciting to see all of your friends and family together in one room. However, staying up late will only cause you to be extra tired the morning of your wedding day which is a feeling no bride wants! Also, it’s important to lay off the alcohol the night before the wedding. Stick to 1-2 drinks max to ensure you look and feel amazing!

Stay on schedule

To ensure your wedding day runs smoothly, it’s important to create a detailed, hour-by-hour wedding day timeline—doing so will help you stay organized, stress-free, and on time (because even running a few minutes late can throw the whole day off track). Once you’ve drafted your wedding day timeline, share it with your wedding-party members, wedding coordinator/planner, photographer, caterer, florist, and other vendors so everyone’s on the same page.

Good Breakfast

An important part of feeling your best on your wedding day is to eat the right food. What you eat after rolling out of bed has the power to banish cravings, turbo-charge energy and give your body and brain the fuel you’ll need throughout your big day. Below are some healthy breakfast suggestions I came up with to kick off your day on the right foot.

• Whole-grain bagel with light cream cheese and apple or skim milk

• Whole-grain toast with peanut butter and banana slices and skim milk

• Oatmeal with skim milk, raisins and walnuts

• Homemade smoothie with one cup of frozen fruit, one cup of low-fat yogurt and one or two tablespoons of flaxseed

• Whole-grain cereal with skim milk, low-fat yogurt, and piece of fruit

• Scrambled eggs with whole-grain toast and piece of fruit

• Bran muffin, cottage cheese and fruit

• Whole-grain tortilla filled with vegetables, salsa and reduced-fat cheese

• Whole-grain waffle with peanut butter

Awesome Music

Prepping for your big day should be a fun and joyful experience—and playing the right wedding morning playlist while primping can lighten the mood and relieve any last-minute stress you may have. We recommend playing your favorite upbeat songs that your getting-ready crew can sing along (and even dance!) to while getting hair and makeup done, as well as putting on their ensembles.

Fabric Glue and Steamer  

No matter how many fittings you had it’s possible that something will go wrong with your dress or a bridesmaid’s the morning of the wedding. Make sure you’ve got a needle and thread on hand in case a strap tears, an applique comes loose or a seam pops. Consider a few no-sew solutions as well like double sided tape, iron-on adhesive and good old-fashioned fabric glue. Something else to consider? A hand-held steamer. Most bridal fabrics are super sensitive and easily wrinkled and you don’t want to risk scalding satin or silk with an iron!

Allow extra time

Make sure you allow for plenty of contingency time in your wedding day timeline. Things can happen and you don’t want to feel rushed out the door if timings run over! We recommend that you aim to be ready an hour before your ceremony begins. This means you can be relaxed and ready to go while allowing you time to enjoy being with your bridal party rather than rushing at the last moment.