What To Do Before the “I Do”
by Tina Dannel
You said yes — congratulations!
Being engaged and beginning the process of planning your wedding can be exciting, but it can also be very overwhelming. Whether you’re getting married in eight weeks or eighteen months, there are a few things that are important for every couple to keep in mind to ensure everything runs perfectly on your BIG day.
Every couple needs help planning their day, so hiring a certified wedding planner should be tops on your list. You may want a “day-of” or “month of” package, you may need assistance throughout the planning process, or you may even want to hand off your colors and theme and have someone else do all of the work for you. Regardless of the level of planning support you need, don’t wait until the end to hire your planner. Your wedding planner will customize a timeline just for you and will be a trusted person you can count on to help make sure you have an experienced and professional team of vendors to make your wedding vision come to life. Your wedding planner will ensure that you stay on track throughout the planning process and that your wedding day goes smoothly from start to finish.
The second most important detail about your wedding is to set a budget! Don’t do ANYTHING without a budget. Your budget may not be as limitless as your imagination, so knowing what you have available will help you to stay within reason. With no budget, you could end up spending more than you should on one thing, leaving you having to cut out some of the details you really wanted! There are many resources to help you know what an average wedding cost is in your area, so do some research and set your budget. Once you know how much money you have available for your wedding, planning is much simpler. Shop only where services are available in your price range, this will keep it real while allowing you to feel less pressure about what you can afford. Too many weddings fail to live up to the dreamed atmosphere because the bride and groom never accurately linked their dream to the resources available for the wedding.
The next thing you will need to do is to find your venue. Finding the perfect wedding and reception venues is one of the most important aspects of wedding planning. Start with the basics first, what theme works best for you and your fiancée? Is your style more rustic chic, glamour and bling, steampunk, or nerdy? You also want to keep your guests in mind. What is the ideal location for your family and friends? Is it a big hotel everyone can stay in, an intimate wedding in a backyard, or a rented hall? When considering your venue you will want to consider the amount of service they provide versus the amount of service you will need or want. There are three kinds of wedding venues: full service, partial service, and no service. Full service venues provide material rentals and vendor services. Many full service venues require that you work with their contracted vendors, so you will want to check out these vendors independently to make sure they will be up to your standards before booking the full service venue. A partial service venue usually has tables, chairs, and linens available. They also usually have in-house catering as well as an on-site planner who will deal with all of the venue details; you will still want your own planner to work with you, your family and your vendors. A no service venue, will allow you to supply everything yourself. This gives you more control over which vendors you use for your wedding.
Finding a caterer for your wedding should be fun. Enjoy your food and cake tastings. Think of the time of day you will be having the meal and plan accordingly. Think about options such as seated dinner, buffet, family style, stations, or brunch when deciding on meals. You want to make sure the food is fantastic, so use the different meal options to help you to fit an awesome caterer into your budget.
Hiring the vendors you trust is super-important. Use your resources to ensure you’re hiring professionals. Your wedding planner will know professional vendors who fit your style and budget. Also, Wedding Wire is a great source, or use referrals from friends, family, or your venue. The DJs, hairdressers, officiants, tailors, photographers, videographers, transportation companies, photo booths, and other vendors you hire are such an important aspect of your day. Since they’ll be playing a major role on your wedding day, you are going to want to take the time to find professionals who will be caring, precise, punctual, and most importantly, trustworthy. We’ve all heard those crazy tales of wedding vendors not showing up the day of the wedding – don’t let this happen to you. Take your time to shop around. Don’t just go with the first vendor that fits your budget. Interview and research them to make sure they’ll take care of your wedding needs.
Don’t forget to enjoy the process! Pick your colors, design your centerpieces, decide on favors, name your tables, buy a cake topper and create a guest book that is uniquely you. Have fun with it and try your best not to stress! Many engaged couples get caught up worrying about things that they cannot change and forget to have FUN planning. Your wedding day is about your love and designing a day that is dedicated to your relationship. Stress isn’t good any day, but especially not for enjoying your wedding day, so let go of the things you can’t do anything about. Take pleasure in in being surrounded by your loved ones and honor your love and the beginning of your life together. Allow your new marriage and the love of your family and friends to be the memories you have of your wedding day, regardless of the little details that may not go as planned.