I love working with my couples, and after six years in the industry, designing and creating wedding cakes still makes me so happy, however the chaos that comes with a busy wedding season – long, lonely kitchen time, a whole load of washing up, recycling, ordering and admin – can make us question why on earth we do it!

So, I wanted to explore ways that we can avoid total overwhelm during these long, busy summer months, staying on top of work as much as possible, whilst carving out much needed downtime amidst the chaos.

Yearly wall calendars are a fantastic visual aid – enabling you to see where your pinch points are for the year ahead and book downtime – so even if you haven’t managed it this year, you can ensure you give yourself more time out next year. These calendars also allow you to see the quieter parts of the year, so you can plan other seasonal work ahead, ensuring that when your busy period quietens down, you can keep financially ticking over if you need to. I highly recommend yearly planners by independent stationery brand Doodle Love – I have chosen this for next year, and their weekly desk planners are brilliant too!

This is such a hard rule to stick by, but it’s so beneficial for your mental and physical wellbeing. Protect your time – there will likely be days where even a lunch break is tricky to justify but it’s so important to take these moments.

I split my weekly schedule into ‘Work’ (per couple/commission), ‘Home’ and ‘Me’. The ‘Me’ column outlines what I’d like to prioritise for myself that week – I keep it realistic (I’d love a shopping spree, but in the height of a busy week, juggling children around summer holidays, and a bank balance that goes in and out like the tide, this is unlikely!) so start small with your ‘Me Time’ goals. Where possible, try to include one hour-long activity a week that’s for you (exercise, a creative hobby or pursuit - anything that makes you happy).

If your time is really limited, make your breaks as quality as you can. For example, if you can only fit in 15 minutes a day to sit down purposefully with a tea or coffee – make it the best coffee break you could possibly have. Sit in your favourite spot (preferably away from the kitchen), make yourself a good quality tea or coffee (the money you’re already saving by not having the time to go out means you can treat yourself!) and add your favourite uplifting songs as your backing track.

And always book yourself something to look forward to when work is quieter - coffee with friends, swimming sessions, a creative workshop or a retreat (watch this space - Lindsay told me she is planning a creative retreat for wedding professionals later this year!). Anything that reminds you that this crazy phase is temporary and things will revert to normality soon.

There are some brilliant ways that technology can help you during the busier months – here are my top three tips:

1. Set up an out of office – the pressure to reply to emails when you’re already snowed under can be overwhelming. Setting an out of-office notification, that lets everyone know that it may take a little longer than usual for you to reply, may sound simple, but really alleviates that pressure to respond quickly.
2. Silence notifications - Lindsay sets her phone to Do Not Disturb when she needs to get her head down to give her time to focus.
3. Schedule social media content – when I’m super busy, posting on Instagram is the first thing to go, but the guilt that comes with it lingers. To prevent losing your social media momentum, use a scheduling app or ‘scheduled content’ tool to line up your posts in advance.

I caught up with expert life transition coach, Chloe Leibowitz to find out about the most helpful, practical day to day exercises to help us feel on top of things when work has us feeling otherwise. Chloe says: “One of my favourite, easiest and most effective tips to keep overwhelm at bay, is quite simply writing everything down and focusing on clearing your mind. Every morning and evening take a few minutes to empty your thoughts and any lingering to-do’s. The aim is to get it out of your head and onto paper, helping reduce stress and mental load.”

In the throes of a mad wedding season, we’re on our feet for longer than we’re off them, and days spent leaning over a kitchen worktop can really take their toll. Jess swears by a deep tissue massage mid-way through the season to help get to those tough knots and deep muscle aches. If you prefer a gentler approach, a back, neck and shoulder massage is a brilliant way to relax and gently soothe tension too.