Details of Planning a Wedding
Based upon an engagement lasting a year, most experts follow a formula to plan a wedding. Completing the details of the wedding in a certain time frame will keep you current in the planning process. Personalizing some details may add some time to the formula.
Ten to Twelve Months Before
Ideally the couple will have decided on a budget, a proposed date, and the guest list. These details will allow you to begin narrowing down the search for a venue. The site of the wedding ceremony should be chosen at this time as well. The couple may be open to the idea of having the ceremony at the same location as the reception. If so, add this to your site requirements.
Eight to Ten Months Before
With any luck, the ceremony and reception sites have been chosen and deposits secured. A second site visit to both locations should be scheduled with all vendors. The floral designer will better estimate the cost of the flowers if he is present for a walk-through. Some vendors, such as the baker, may not need a site visit the reception, however, as the bridal couple most likely will visit the bakery for a tasting. Other vendors, such as the photographer, may have worked at the ceremony and reception site in the past and may also not need a walk-through.
Begin interviewing different entertainment options for the couple at this time. Similar to venues, popular entertainers get booked far in advance.
ssential
Instruct the couple to view other wedding portfolios from the photographer. Write a list of must-have photos the couple would like the photographer to take throughout the wedding. The couple should also instruct the videographer on the look and feel of the video.
Four to Six Months Before
Collect stationery samples for the couple. Save-the-date cards (designed to let guests know the date of the wedding before the invitation arrives), should be ordered at this time along with the invitations and monogrammed stationery. Send the save-the-date cards closer to the six-month mark rather than four months prior to the wedding.
Two to Four Months
Once the invitations arrive, begin to shop for a calligrapher. The calligrapher should have her materials one month before the invitations are sent out. Order ten extra envelopes per hundred invitations to allow for mistakes. Be sure to include directions as well as lodging recommendations in the invitations. For a wedding, the couple will usually set aside a block of rooms for out-of town guests at a nearby hotel.
Fact
Encourage all couples to purchase wedding insurance. In case of damage to the venue, wedding insurance will cover any money the bridal couple puts down to secure the venue. Because deposits are often given a year in advance, wedding insurance will cover your losses if any vendors go out of business.
Invitations should be sent six to eight weeks before the wedding date. Keep this in mind when deciding on an RSVP deadline on the invitation. At this time you should also:
Recommend rehearsal dinner sites
Secure any rentals
Arrange for wedding day transportation
Recommend accommodations for the couple and out-of-town guests
Order the favors
One Month Before
The planning stages are almost coming to an end with the wedding a month away. Schedule a meeting with the couple to finalize the last details. During the meeting you will want to run the couple through the sequence of events of the wedding. The sequence of events will include all of the details from the receiving line to the first dance to the cutting of the cake.
You will also want to discuss publishing the wedding announcement in the local papers. The wedding program will also need to be designed at this time as well as the seating chart and place cards. For the seating chart, you will need the final count from the RSVP list. The caterer or facility planner will require the final count one to two weeks before the wedding.
Making Guests Feel Welcome
Weddings bring together many family and friends to celebrate the couple's union. With some guests traveling great distances to attend the wedding, there are certain measures you can take to make everyone feel welcome before and after the ceremony. In lieu of a traditional rehearsal dinner with only the bridal party, suggest the couple host a welcome reception to all guests the day before the wedding. A short cocktail party allows the couple to spend more time with their guests.
Also arrange for a welcome basket to be placed in all the guests' hotel rooms. A welcome basket can be a cookie basket, a bottle of wine with glasses, or an assortment of mixed nuts and local beer. Include an invitation to the welcome reception in the basket.
Planning for a farewell brunch on the morning following the wedding will give the guests a little more time with the couple and a chance to say a good farewell.
