Wedding Planning To Be Successful

Want to really enjoy your wedding day? The best way to keep stress at a minimum is by careful upfront planning. Ideally begin planning your wedding between 8 - 12 months prior to the wedding date. This is not an absolute and beautiful weddings have been planned on much shorter notice, but this will give you ample time to plan the wedding of your dreams, regardless of your budget. Follow a wedding timeframe planner to make sure that you stay on schedule with your planning.

For a successful wedding you have to delegate. Take advantage of your family and friends' excitement about your big day. Use them for creative ideas and opinions. You don't have to accept their advice, but the more ideas you have the better decisions you will be able to make. Collect and organize wedding photos, sample fabrics, receipts and business cards. This will help you keep a resource of wedding ideas in one convenient place.

A categorized ring binder is an ideal way to store wedding information, or you can label and categorize an expansion file from which you can quickly and easily extract information. The most important aspect of keeping up with wedding ideas is to be organized. Consider creating files under tables such as: Wedding Dress, Men's Attire, Bridesmaids' Dresses, Catering, Wedding Reception, Photographer, Florist, Wedding Vehicles, Music, and Honeymoon info.

A scrapbook of friends' weddings, magazine images, and website ideas and pictures is also helpful. This will help you decide what coordinates with your wedding theme and colors. You may also pick up creative ideas to add a special touch that you would not otherwise have thought of. It is fine to borrow ideas for your wedding, to make it uniquely your own.

Separate a list of the most important aspects of your wedding from a list of other things that need to be accomplished. This will help you stay on schedule and determine what you can delegate, as well as identify the most important things like wedding venue, catering, and having your wedding dress in and altered on time.

Save your sanity and your money by carefully developing a budget and sticking to it! You can have a beautiful, elegant wedding without spending a fortune. Prioritize the most important aspects of your wedding, and enlist the help of family and friends in creating reception centerpieces, wedding favors, and more.

You may want to think about opening a bank account specifically for wedding expenses. This is a good way to keep within your budget and keep track of wedding expenses. This will keep small expenses from slowly and unexpectedly running up your wedding bill. If you are planning your wedding over time, leave the money in an account where it can earn interest, which may help with additional wedding expenses.

Wedding Planning Countdown

In my experience attending weddings, the only dress code line I've ever seen on an invitation is for a black-tie wedding. It never even occurred to me to include a dress code on my invitation, but wedding planner Mindy Weiss says that it is helpful to your guests.

If I had it to do again, which obviously I don't, Mindy would recommend including attire on the invitation.

"I always suggest you include attire/dress code," she said. was always black-tie."

But today, "with all these options comes a certain degree of uncertainty, and that's where the dress code comes in."

The dress code specification should go at the bottom of the invitation if the ceremony and reception are held in the same location, but if the reception venue is separate, it would go on the reception card.

Avoid "the cryptic dress code," Weiss writes, citing examples such as "resort formal," "beachside chic" or "country club casual," which only serve to further confuse your guests.

Some people also ask if it's ok for women to wear white or black to a wedding.

White is only appropriate "if it is required," Mindy said, "for example, a black and white attire."

Black, on the other hand, "is the most common color I see at weddings."

The most important thing, Mindy says, is that the bride and groom look like they belong together, and that the bridal party is as formally dressed or more formally dressed than the guests.

Wedding Planning Tips

Depending on your personal preferences and the preferences of your husband or wife-to-be, a wedding can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 2 years to plan. If one step in the planning process is missed, the whole wedding could be ruined. To prevent this from happening, we have created a wedding checklist in order to ensure everything goes according to plan on your big day.

7-12 Months PriorAnnounce Engagement and have your engagement partyDecide on the wedding style and create a guest listChoose who you both want in the wedding partySet the date and time of the weddingBook your wedding officiantChoose your wedding songDecide on "extras" (cake, flowers, dj, photographers etc.)Purchase your wedding dress and bridal accessoriesPurchase bridesmaids dresses and accessories (maid of honor as well)Start planning your honeymoonBuy (or make) your wedding favorsPurchase your wedding invitationsPlan your rehearsal ceremony and dinner

2-6 Months PriorArrange accommodations for out-of-town guestsFinalize the dinner menuBook your limo (or other form of transportation)Book the rehearsal dinner siteBook your honeymoonPurchase your wedding ringsPurchase your gifts for the wedding partyRent the tuxedos for groom and groomsmen (including bestman)Schedule a dress fitting (bride)Book hair and makeup appointment (bride)Have your bridal showerSend out the invitations to your guestsPlan the wedding program

1 Month PriorGet your marriage license (and blood tests if needed)Final dress fitting (bride)Arrange seating for your guestsHave your stag and doe party

1-2 Weeks PriorPick up the wedding dressHave your bachelor and bachelorette parties

The Day BeforeGive the wedding party their giftsPick up the tuxedo(s)Decorate the wedding siteHave your rehearsal dinner and greet out-of-town guests

Wedding Planning

There have been a number of films about people involved in and it seems to be an extremely lucrative business that also ends up with the wedding planner becoming part of the ceremony " much to the shock of the jilted party!

I am not suggesting that everyone involved in is out to steal the bride or groom but the subject did make for some amusing moments.

is, of course, an extremely serious business. The stress involved in coordinating the venues, outfits, flowers, catering and all the other aspects of the big day can be too much for the couple to undertake themselves and they will gladly pay vast sums of money to professional wedding planning services to ensure everything goes smoothly.

However, you can perform your own wedding planning if you are well organised and plan everything in advance. The key is to enlist the help of any friends and family members to assist you with the wedding planning.

Another good piece of advice is to begin your wedding planning well ahead of the wedding day. Really, planning a couple of years ahead is not unheard of. Sit down together and make a list of all of the aspects that are involved, right down to who will do the clearing up at the end of the reception when the newlyweds are off on their honeymoon.

If you build in a few provisions to cope with unexpected glitches you can become wedding planning experts with no professional training and be guaranteed a great day without the danger of the wedding planner running off with the bride!

Wedding Planning Checklist

Everyone could use a checklist for their wedding planning. It is and should be the first step in any wedding planning process. Without a checklist you will be sure to leave important things out which could cost you precious time and unnecessary money in the end. Not to mention lots of unwanted stress!

The following wedding checklist itemizes everything you need to do or consider when planning your wedding. I have put them in the order I see necessary to accomplish each process.

Announce your engagement Choose your wedding date Choose the type of wedding that is best for you (location, formality, time, number of guests) Figure out your budget (good to determine now if there will be any help with expenses from others) Make a guest list (separate into three categories: must invite, should invite, would like to invite) Choose and reserve your ceremony site Choose and reserve the officiant Choose and reserve your reception site Choose and order your wedding dress and accessories Choose your color scheme Choose and book your photographer Choose and book your videographer (if you want one) Order your passports (if needed for honeymoon or wedding)

At least six months before your wedding day:

Choose your wedding party (maid of honor, best man, bridesmaids, ushers, flower girl, ring bearer) Choose your caterer or decide on menu, beverages, and alcohol ordering Choose and book musicians or Dj and decide on music (if needed for ceremony and reception) Schedule all fittings Choose flowers and book your florist (if needed)

At least four months before your wedding day:

Choose and order stationary needed (invitations, announcements, thank-you cards, seating cards) Address your invitations Decide date, time, and location for your rehearsal dinner Shop for wedding gifts for each other and wedding party Start planning your honeymoon (if you choose to have one) Register for gifts (if choose to) Pick out and order your wedding rings

At least two months before your wedding day:

Choose wedding cake and order Choose and order or make party favors Choose and order or make room decorations Choose and order room accessories (guest book, ring pillow, toasting glasses, cake knife, etc.) Choose and book your transportation for your wedding day Choose and reserve tuxes and other rental items needed Choose your hairstyle, makeup, and nails (book stylist or schedule appointment for day of wedding)

At least six weeks before your wedding day:

Mail your wedding invitations Make reservations for your rehearsal dinner Mail your rehearsal dinner invitations or inform in another way Send announcement and photograph to your local paper Get your marriage license Have your final fitting of your wedding dress

At least two weeks before your wedding day:

Contact all guests who haven't responded to the wedding invitations to get a solid head count Make the final seating arrangements for ceremony and or reception Pick up rings and make sure they fit Start packing for your honeymoon

At or on the day of the rehearsal dinner:

Give bridesmaids the accessories you want them to wear on your wedding day Make arrangements for someone to bring ceremony and reception accessories on the wedding day (flower girls basket, ring bearers pillow, toasting glasses, cake knife, guest book and pen, etc.) Make arrangements for someone to return rental items the day after the wedding Make sure all members of your wedding party know the details and timelines for the wedding day

By the week before your wedding day:

Pick up wedding attire and make sure everything fits Finalize and confirm all details and timelines with officiant, attendants, wedding party, and all service providers

Make sure you have everything with you that you need for wedding and honeymoon Give groom's ring to the maid of honor Give bride's ring to the best man Wedding planning finished! Enjoy your wedding day!!!!!

I hope everything I have outlined here will help you immensely throughout your wedding planning. It can be a very stressful and time-consuming process but I assure you if you follow this list your day will be more relaxed without last-minute surprises.