style Trends
Deanna Loren Photography
Congratulations on your engagement! We hope this guide helps you along your wedding planning journey! Remember to enjoy this time! Don’t stress on the little details, planning your wedding with your fiancé is something you’ll remember for a lifetime! There are so many details from deciding your budget to finding a photographer for your honeymoon; we have broken down everything you need to know about the wedding planning process. Happy planning!
The first few months are super important to get the ball rolling in the wedding planning process. You should always start by setting a budget before you think about anything else! This will help you figure out how big your guest list can be and which venues you can consider. Once you get through all of the money talk, which we know can be super stressful, its time to start on the fun stuff!
After spending a few months doing research on venues and vendors, it’s time to start booking! You should start with the venue and photographer/videographer, these book up fast! Once you pick a photographer, schedule your engagement shoot with him/her. This is a good period to start thinking about your wedding party, hotels for out-of-town guests, bridal attire, etc. Don’t forget to continue working on your guest list, this tends to be the trickiest part of wedding planning!
Keep on booking! Try to stay organized and keep up with your payments for everyone that you’re booking. Another thing for you and your fiancé to start working on is your music selections for your DJ. Sounds pretty simple and fun, but this part usually takes more time than couples realize! Figure out where you want to go on your honeymoon, and start planning!
Your photographer will most likely have your photos back to you form your engagement shoot! Now you should order your invitations using one or some of these photos, so you can send them out soon! You will end up spending a lot of time shopping in these few months! Go ring shopping with your fiancé for your wedding bands! It’s time to go shopping with your lovely ladies for their bridesmaid dresses! Don’t forget to send the boys out to get fitted for their tuxes around the same time as well!
Now that you have your bridal party all set, and everything pretty much booked, it’s time to start focusing on some of the smaller details! Schedule a day to meet with your planner, to figure out your day-of timeline, and design your event diagrams. Start thinking about where you’d like your rehearsal dinner to be, and call in a reservation! Try to have it somewhere close to your venue so your bridal party doesn’t have to go very far after the wedding rehearsal.
Did someone say cake? Sign me up! It’s time to do your cake tasting to pick out your absolute favorite flavor! The most popular cake flavor of 2019 happens to be the same as the one in 1960! You’ve guessed it, vanilla! Followed by chocolate, and yellow cake. If you want to go with a unique flavor maybe consider pink champagne, or peppermint fudge! In these last few months you should pick out party favors and special gifts for bridal party and parents.
It’s time for you to apply for your marriage license! OMG its getting real!! You should make sure your invitations are mailed out by the 60 day mark to ensure your guests have plenty of time to respond. Of course, all brides want to look their best on their big day, this is the perfect time to start trials for all things beauty for the wedding! Schedule a hair and makeup appointment for your wedding day once you’ve done your trials and love the way everything came out!
It’s go time! You’re one month out from the day you’ve been dreaming about since you were little! This month is filled with all of the final appointments. You’ll need to schedule your final dress fitting and buy all of your accessories you’ll need, create a seating chart, and buy your gifts for the wedding party. By this time you will have most likely received most of your RSVP’s so you can update your final guest list, and start calling the people you haven’t heard back from yet!
This is the home stretch! There are just a few minor details to square away before your wedding day. These last couple of weeks should be spent circling back with your vendors, wedding party, and family to make sure everyone is on the same page and knows their part on the wedding day. We recommend you start packing for your honeymoon the week of your wedding. This isn’t the time to put off packing until the night before!
Relaxation! Don’t stress, this is getting exciting! Go to the spa and spoil yourself to a mani and pedi, maybe even a massage! It is also smart to get your payments ready to be handed off to your coordinator so you don’t have to worry about it the day of! Have fun at your wedding ceremony rehearsal, and rehearsal dinner! It’s feeling real now!!
The day has come!! All of your hard work has paid off! You have zero responsibility today besides marrying your best friend, and being present with your family! Everything is under control, and any problems that do end up coming up are okay! You only need to enjoy being pampered, and spending the day with all of your loved ones.
Stay up to date with the latest trends and styles as you prepare for your big day.
Have your engagement photos featured in our magazine. Enter our contest and you could be highlighted in an upcoming issue.
Enter
