What Every Engaged Couple Needs to Know That No One Ever Tells You
Yay, you're engaged! Now the fun part begins - planning one of the most special days of your life! That being said, make sure your fully prepared to plan your wedding celebration without any unexpected surprises or bumps in the road. Here are some things to take into consideration when you begin the planning process:
You May Question Your Sanity
It’s so, so easy to get overwhelmed when you first begin wedding planning. The thing is, before you even start, you probably think you know exactly what your dream wedding will look like. And then you see other ideas you never even thought about (uh, hello, Pinterest!). Or you realize that cake you thought was going to be the easiest cake in the world to get made is actually way, way, way outside your cake budget (I don’t know from experience or anything…). Wait, did you just say cake budget? I need a budget for my cake? All these questions and ideas can make you feel certifiably insane. I’m here to tell you, friends, it will come together beautifully! And you will love every single minute of your wedding day, regardless of what cake you choose or what your centerpieces look like, because you’re marrying your best friend, and what can be better than that?
Set Up a Separate Email Account
This tip was actually brought up to me be a sweet client of mine who is tying the knot in just a few weeks. And it makes total sense to me! When you first get engaged, you’re so excited to sign up for e-newsletters and websites and may even contact several vendors before settling on your favorites. Having a separate email account will help you keep all wedding-related items of business separate from your personal or professional email account so everything you need is in one place and you aren’t overwhelmed with random wedding emails twelve times an hour. And how fun is it to tell your vendors your email address is jenandbengethitched@yahoo.com?!
Do Your Research Before Planning Your Budget
More than likely, you haven’t planned a wedding anytime in the last year or two, right? So, it’s pretty safe to say you might be a little clueless when it comes to expenses involved. I recommend pricing a wedding based on what you really want – the dream venue, the dream flowers, the dream dress. If that’s within a realistic budget for you, than that’s great! Your budget is all set! If it’s way outside of what your ideal budget is, you can start choosing the items that are most important to you. For instance, your dream flowers may be double what your flower budget should realistically be. There’s no right or wrong way to outline your budget, so pick and choose what’s the most important to you. And if you need help with your budget, I'm your girl - learn more here!
You Really, Really, Really Want to Consider a Wedding Planner or Stylist
If you and your fiancé both work full-time, it’s safe to say you may want someone in your corner helping you along the way. Wedding planners and stylists have relationships with tons of vendors and can help ensure your dream wedding comes to life. They also have the ability to talk to these vendors during the day (because, well, that’s their job!), whereas you may have to take time off work just to meet with vendors. The best part? A lot of planners and stylists will let you be involved as much or as little as you’d like. Lastly, a wedding planner, stylist, or coordinator will also set everything up for you the day of the wedding so you can relax and know your event is in good hands.
You’ll Likely Have a Lull in Planning
Unless you have a really, really short engagement, there will likely be a period of time when it seems like there’s a lull in the planning process. You’ve ordered your invitations, you’ve picked out your dress and flowers and cake, you’ve secured a venue…now what? When you get the larger parts of planning done, the smaller details don’t take up as much time so it can seem like there’s a lull. If you’ve planned properly, this is normal and that means the big things are covered! Yay!
The Season May Affect Your Budget
There are several ways the season can affect your budget. Many venues (and vendors) are not busy in the winter, so often offer lower rates than the busy “wedding seasons” of spring and fall. At the same time, if you want a winter wedding with a bouquet full of out-of-season flowers, you’re going to end up paying a pretty penny for florals. Being mindful of the details you want will help you choose the most cost-effective season for yourself.
Factor Tipping into Your Budget
One part of the budget many couples often overlook is tipping vendors the evening of the wedding. Depending on the overall budget of your event, tipping can end up costing upwards of $1,000 after all is said in done. If you factor tips into your overall initial budget, you won’t have any surprises the day of your wedding! This is a really great guide to tipping your wedding vendors.
You may also want to check out these 10 questions to ask your wedding stationer, many of which are great questions to ask other wedding vendors!
What else would you add to this list that couples often overlook?
Photo courtesy of Caroline Lima Photography