The Ultimate Wedding Day Emergency Kit & Checklist
Photography by Esther Louise Triffitt PhotographyIf you’ve come to this article, then your wedding is right around the corner! We totally understand that this time can be a mix of nerves, stress and excitement, so let us ease some of that wedding planning stress with our ultimate wedding emergency kit and checklist. So, what is an emergency wedding kit? The short answer is, it’s your holy grail. This kit is there to provide you with anything you may need when something doesn't necessarily go to plan or you just need some touch-ups throughout the day. We’ve put together an extensive list of 66 items you might need on the day for brides and grooms. Hopefully, this kit remains totally untouched, but it never hurts to be prepared!
Our editors independently research, review, and recommend the best products. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links.
66 wedding emergency kit ideas for brides and grooms
Why should you have a wedding emergency kit?
As we mentioned, a wedding emergency kit is the one thing we think every couple should have. Your emergency kit will mend, touch up and repair the small things before they turn into much larger problems. Your dress has a rip? No problem, you have a safety pin in the kit! But what if you didn’t? The hole becomes bigger and no safety pin in the world could fasten it. Dramatic, but you see our point. The wedding emergency kit is an honorary member of your wedding party.
TOP TIP
Our wedding emergency kit can be spread out between the bridal party or the groomsmen. You don’t have to leave it all with one person. Delegation is your friend. Perhaps you have the maid of honour keep some of the makeup touch ups and emergency clothing hacks (e.g. boob tape if the bride is in a strapless wedding dress and powder for touch-ups before photographs) while the best man has the general must-haves to keep suppliers in line and stick the timings, and the bridesmaids have the toiletries and medical essentials.
Wedding Emergency Kit
Now, this is what you’ve been waiting for. Our wedding emergency kit is pretty extensive. We did this so that it covers every kind of wedding, so some points on this list may not be entirely relevant to you. For example, we’ve included spare contact lenses but you might have perfect vision and nail polish but you might wear acrylics, so keep in mind what’s relevant to you. Let’s get into it…
Essentials
- Cotton buds
- Nail file
- Nail glue (if wearing fake nails)
- Nail polish to match your nails
- Hand lotion
- Hand sanitiser
- Bobby pins or other hair bands
- Tweezers
- Hairbrush or comb
- Hair styling tool
- Small compact mirror
- Hairspray
- Dry shampoo
- Deodorant
- Sunscreen
- Handbag-sized perfume or fragrance
- Floss
- Chewing gum
- Breath mints
- Spare contact lenses or glasses
- Eye drops
- Menstrual products
- Paracetamol or pain relievers
- Antihistamine tablets
- Insect repellent, if relevant
- Insect bite ointment
- Rescue remedy or calming essential oils
- Razor
- Tissues
- Plasters
- Blister plasters
- Phone charger
Makeup Touch Ups
- Eyeliner
- Concealer
- Lip balm
- Lip gloss/lipstick (buy a match to what your makeup artist is using)
- Lip pencil
- Pencil sharpener
- Setting powder
- Setting spray
- Eyelash glue
- Oil blotting sheets
- Makeup remover
- Baby wipes or wet wipes
Clothing & Accessories
- Sewing kit with needles, thread, spare buttons, and safety pins
- Fashion tape (for keeping clothes in place)
- Scissors
- Stick-on instant hemming tape
- Clear nail polish if you're wearing tights (to stop ladders from getting bigger)
- White chalk (for masking stains on a white dress)
- Stain remover wipes
- Lint roller
- Crochet hook (if your dress has got lots of buttons)
- Shoe polish
- Spare shoe laces
- Flat shoes (if you're going to be changing them in the evening)
- Extra earring backs
- Safety pins
- Boob tape
- Gel pads for feet or insoles
- Spare tights
- Steamers (for any creases)
General Must-Haves
- A copy of the wedding-day itinerary and timings
- A list of contact details for suppliers
- A small amount of cash
- A stylish bag to store everything in
Katie Loxton Mr & Mrs Wash Bag Set
This matching Wash Bags Set from Katie Loxton includes two luxurious vegan leather wash bags – one for 'Mr' and one for 'Mrs'. These are perfect for keeping the emergency wedding makeup, toiletries or medication on the day of the wedding.
Team Hen Bride Makeup Bag
This stylish off-white nylon makeup bag from Team Hen is the perfect bridal accessory to keep some of your wedding kit inside. With chic gold and chenille patches, this makeup bag has plenty of room for the essentials!
Personalised Foil Compact Mirror
This chic personalised compact mirror with iridescent initial detailing from Lisa Angel is the perfect companion for your emergency wedding kit. The square pocket mirror is finished by an expert in-house team with the foil initials of your choice across the soft grey cover, glistening with an iridescent finish.
Bee Floral Manicure Set Lisa Angel
Make sure your manicure is always fresh with this Bee Floral Manicure Set. Inside, there are five tools including a pair of nail scissors, a nail file, some nail clippers, a cuticle pusher and some tweezers, so you can touch-up your manicure anywhere! Plus, the case is so sweet and is perfect for a summer wedding!
When should you pack your emergency wedding kit?
We recommend getting your wedding emergency kit together around a few weeks before the wedding. Just pick up some things as and when you have the time. Don’t add another thing on the list to stress about and don’t leave it too close to the wedding. Trust us, the week before the wedding, there'll be plenty going on and it could mean you forget a few things off the list. Again, this is something you could ask the wedding party to help out with.
Think of the wedding emergency kit as an honorary member of your wedding party
Remember, this wedding emergency kit is there to help you, not stress you out more. As we said, not all of these items are needed or will be relevant to your wedding. This is just something you could delegate out to your wedding party to help you feel more at ease going into the wedding, knowing that if anything goes wrong it will be handled. Plus, most of the time, your wedding planner/on-the-day coordinator (if you have one) or venue will have these items to hand. They are experts in weddings, after all. Take a look at our list of questions to ask your wedding venue just to double check that everything will run smoothly. Have you found your wedding readings yet? Take a look at our complete list of wedding readings!
