If you are newly engaged, you may be making a mental wedding checklist in your head. There is a variety of tasks that go along with planning such a monumental event. Many wedding planners often advise brides to make a very detailed checklist on paper so you don’t forget any important details. Here are some of the main items that should be on every bride’s wedding checklist:
Set a Budget
Once you have decided to get married, you and your spouse-to-be need to set a budget for your wedding. Alternatively, if your parents are footing the bill, you need to see what they are willing to put towards the wedding costs. Most wedding planners will tell you that one of the biggest areas you will need to budget for is food for your reception. Your guest list will help determine how big or small your wedding budget needs to be. You also need to plan for the venue, wedding attire, flowers, photography, and any other special touches you may want to your wedding day.
Book Your Venue and Set a Date
Once you have set a budget, you will need to set a date and book your wedding and reception venue. You can book two separate locations, like a church for the ceremony and a hotel ballroom for the reception. You can also look at a facility that will allow you to have both your ceremony and reception at the same place. Your venue will largely depend on the size of your guest list. Many places are not equipped to handle large crowds, so be sure that you ask for the capacity at each place you consider booking.
Order Invitations
Once you have your venue and wedding date set, you will next need to order your invitations. Wedding invitations need to be ordered as soon as you know your wedding date because they often take a while to print. Then, you will have to spend some time assembling and mailing them to your guests. You also want to give your guests enough lead-time to be able to respond.
Consider Hiring a Wedding Planner
There are some additional items that you will need to handle for your wedding, like booking photographers, caterers, florists, rentals, and a variety of other wedding day necessities. Booking these services is a great job for wedding planners, so you may want to think about hiring one to help you. They often have networked with many of these professionals and work with them regularly, so you may even be able to land a discount on some of your services. Many of these services have to be facilitated on the wedding day, which you will probably not want to have to handle yourself. Having a person to handle these tasks on your wedding day will be money well spent.
Your wedding day should be one of the most memorable days of your life. Having a solid, detailed wedding checklist is a great way to ensure all of the details are handled. Wedding planners can partner with you on your wedding day so that you only have to worry about looking gorgeous on your big day!
