40 Step By Step Guide of How to Plan a Wedding
Contrary to idealistic notions, planning a wedding is not all fun and games! It doesn’t take long for a perfectly calm and composed bride to turn into a bridezilla while planning her wedding. The planning can be an uphill task and if you are not careful you can easily find your find yourself going around in circles.
Well, first things first, it always helps to maintain lists, to meet deadlines, to make and keep appointments, to do your research, to take quotations from different sources and to keep a journal or an organizer handy at all times! Down below is a series of steps to be followed— in that order—when you begin planning out a wedding.
- Set a Date
This should be the first step to take, to decide upon the wedding date. After having carefully considered your own schedule and that of your better half and having factored in any conflicts between everyone’s schedules and the availability dates of close friends and family, lock a date!
- Choose the Season Wisely
While setting a date, it is very important that you pick a season that suits you. Most brides love to be spring or summer brides while some prefer autumn weddings. Hence, know your season and what works best for you before you commit to any dates. We are all happier during certain seasons!
- Set a Budget
The next important thing to do is to set a budget. Know how much you can invest into the event and then plan accordingly. It is always a smart thing to do since you wouldn’t want to go out of budget in the middle of your planning.
- Hire a Wedding Planner- If You Must!
Most couples are too busy to plan the details of the event themselves. Hence, the wedding plans often take the backseat and the event ends up being a total fiasco. If such is the case with you, then do not shy away from hiring a wedding planner! They are more hands-on with the job, they know what they are doing and they have good terms with the vendors. However, before you jump in head first to hire one, do take reviews from previous clients on the planner.
- Pick a Venue
Go for a venue which is available on the chosen date and accommodates the number of guests for the event. Also, do make sure that it has the necessary parking or valet arrangements.
- Create a Checklist
With a clear mind, jog your mind through the event proceedings and create a comprehensive checklist to keep handy before the wedding day. As you go about the chores, cross things off the list so that you can enjoy a sense of relief or achievement while you are running around performing chores and planning for the big day.
- Choosing the Right Vendors
Vendors can be risky if you do not thoroughly research them or sign carefully proofed contracts with them. Again, do check for references and reviews from recent weddings so that you can be sure that the chosen vendor would not let you down.
- Ordering a Dress
As complex as this may seem, you must order the right dress according to your style, taste and body type well in time before the wedding so that there is sufficient time for you to review and try out what has been made and make any necessary adjustments before the event.
- Choosing the Right Heels
Heels are almost as important as the dress itself. They can make or break the look. Do factor in for your height and your spouse’s height before choosing the heels for your big day.
- Choose a Theme
Go for a theme that suits your dress, the season and can be widely followed. The right theme could make everything automatically appear well-planned and help it all fall into place!
- Make a Guest List
Prepare a list of guests you want at your wedding. Keep the list short and ensure that the invitees are close to you or the people you would want to recall being there in the times to come!
- Hire a Music Band
This is your chance to entertain the guests. Go for a lively band which is widely enjoyed and can make people jump to their feet to dance!
- The Flowers you Love
You would definitely want to add more life and fragrance to your event by lining it up with colorful flowers. However, before you go all out with the flower arrangements, do keep the budget in check and do ensure that they go with the chosen theme.
- Choose your Bridesmaids and Maid of Honor
This could be a difficult task for most, especially when you have a very wide social circle! Let your bridesmaids be the closest of your friends, cousins or family and make sure you request them to be available at the time of the event.
- Booking the Caterer
Go for a caterer who has a good rating and favorable reviews. Also, do make sure you keep the fees in check and not go over the budget. Check with the caterer beforehand if they can help you out with your theme as well.
- Set a Menu!
Do make sure that the foods items you pick out are well-suited for the weather. Further, do try out the food for yourself before booking the vendor.
- Decide upon a Cake
Here comes the most interesting part! The cake. Our advice: Go for something fun and which also suits the tone and theme of your event.
- The Honeymoon
This part makes everyone excited! Do not neglect your honeymoon plans while you are planning your wedding day. Keep the two in parallel as you would not want to miss out on a thing for your honeymoon as well!
- Creating Invites
Take onboard a creative designer for your wedding day and save the date cards. Make sure the cards go with your wedding theme, are personalized and are not too stiff in their tone of voice.
- Giveaways
This is another way that you can please your guests. You can seek some innovative, fresh ideas for giveaways to add some warmth to the event. People enjoy taking away giveaways which they can hold on to and flaunt later on. It gives everyone something to talk about and cherish about the event.
- Keeping Everyone Involved
One of the toughest things to do it to keep everyone engages, especially the groom! Men generally shy away from wedding planning or may feel matronized by the entire outset. This leaves the bride with another major responsibility to keep the groom involved! Besides the groom as well, friends and family at times, has to be made to feel as if they are a part of it all. Emotions, from all sides, are awfully awry when it comes to such an event and someone has to take the responsibility to set the right pace here.
- Practicing the Dances
Here comes the fun part! Do make sure that you book a good choreographer and make everyone dance to your tunes for your big day! Wedding dances are always fun, however, keeping them organized and orderly is the real challenge here. Especially when dance offs and dance numbers are the new thing!
- Create a Hashtag
Decide upon a hashtag for your wedding, this could be a combination of yours and your spouse’s name. You may use it on social media and as a wedding monogram as well on your robes and towels. This would be the new, hip thing to do!
- Book a Photographer
Most brides like to go for a photographer they can reckon with. Go for someone who is neither too expensive nor too substandard at their job. Do seek reviews and keep an eye out for the style of photography and if it reasons with you.
- The Videography
This is just an add-on. Not absolutely necessary, however if you can afford it then it could be a present to your future self and serve memories.
- The Hen Party!
Allow, and even collaborate with your friends to arrange a hen party for you! This would be memorable and ease your nerves before the big day.
- Writing your Vows
These are the most important and most anticipated part of the event. Do give these a thought and pour your heart out once you are ready. You would definitely want these to be special and reflect your true feelings for your better half.
- Write the Show Flow
After all the careful planning, you would definitely not want your event to appear haphazard. Do take out the time to organize the flow of events before the big day so that timings and schedules are carefully followed in order to avoid any last minute trouble.
- Accommodations for Out-of-Town Guests
Do take care to note if there are any out of town guests attending the wedding. It would be a warm gesture on your part to help with their accommodation and to ensure that they are comfortable during their visit.
- Register for Gifts
Do ensure to register for gifts so as to avoid any unwanted presents or a duplication of what you already have.
- The Bridesmaid Dresses
Order the bridesmaid dresses and allow it sufficient time for the booking and trials so as to not let any of these ladies down.
- Book your Ride
Nobody wants their appearance to be unceremonious. Do make sure that you book an impressive ride for your entry.
- Dress Trials
Brides tend to lose weight before the wedding day. Hence, you might also want to hold a series of fittings before the big day. A final one should be a couple of days before the wedding in order to make any last minutes adjustments.
- Book Hair and Makeup Artists
Once you are sorted in the dress department, do make an appointment with hair and makeup artists to put together a look that you want.
- Purchase Wedding Rings
Buy a ring and get it engraved! Most engrave the wedding date or the initials of the bride and groom.
- Sending out Save the Dates and Invites
Send out the invites at least a month before so that people can make their arrangements accordingly and nothing is last minute.
- Finalize the Guest List
Do take a final run down of the list after having factored in all of the RSVPs to your invites. This would make it easier for you to calculate everything and carefully plan out your event.
- Make a Seating Plan
Make seating arrangements once you have sorted the final guest list. This would help you do away with any redundancies.
- Book a Spa
At the time where stakes are high and nerves are on the verge of snapping, a spa day with your bridesmaids before the event would be all you need!
- Rehearse
A rehearsal dinner would help you gain some comfort on the flow of the event and assure you that matters are under control! Rehearsal dinners are always recommended.
