Well the big secret is it’s all in the plan. Having a well-thought out plan that starts with selecting the perfect wedding date and ends with arriving at the most romantic honeymoon destination is the only way to keep nerves from fraying and budgets from being blown. 

Plenty of tools are available to help you plan your wedding. It’s up to you to decide which tool will work best for you and then you’ve got to make sure you use the tool you’ve selected. Wedding planning tools range in price so before you go spending any money, take a step back and think for a moment about the b-word.

A ‘budget’ is crucial because it’s what will keep you and your partner (and anyone else funding the festivities) from going into debt. As unflattering as the word is, every wedding needs to begin with a budget. Wedding costs can rapidly spiral out of control because let’s face it, everybody wants their big day to be magical.

To determine a budget for the big day, start with figuring out who is going to be contributing towards the finances and how much each can afford to contribute. Once you have a total dollar amount to work with, you can then begin to allocate the budget to the different parts of the wedding.

The wedding plans all begin with the wedding date. Everybody wants to be a June bride, but with only four week-ends in this month, not everybody can. The wedding date you select will have a significant impact on your budget. A wedding during the busy summer months will cost far more than one that’s held off-season. Not only will the wedding date impact the price you’ll pay for everything from the function hall to the photographer, it also impacts availability.

Once the wedding budget and wedding date have been nailed down, it’s time to get busy and we’ll be providing you a timeline of tasks you need to accomplish in the days and months leading up to the big day!

Six to twelve months before your wedding date is the time when you need to make most of your reservations and put down deposits.

You’ve got to get a rough but fairly accurate estimate of the number of guests you’ll have because each wedding location can accommodate a certain number of people and you want a location that can comfortably accommodate everyone.

Here’s what needs to be accomplished during this timeframe.

• Select and reserve locations for the wedding ceremony and the reception
• Interview and reserve your professional talent including: Musician or DJ, Photographer/Videographer, Floral arranger, Caterer, Wedding cake baker, Wedding official, Wedding planner or consultant (optional)
• Select and confirm wedding party attendants for both bride and groom
• Select wedding party attire and coordinate fittings
• Arrange transportation for bridal party on the big day
• Place engagement information in local newspaper

Four months before your wedding date is the time to make sure everything is in place.

• Finalize your guest list including complete mailing address for invitations
• Order wedding invitations
• Select a destination for the honeymoon, make hotel and airfare reservations, get passports
• Reconfirm that bridal party dresses are on order and menswear rental attire is coordinated
• Begin planning the wedding shower
• Register at bridal registries for shower and wedding gifts – if not registering at national chains, remember to register at stores that are local to the families of both bride and groom
• Reserve suite for bride and groom’s wedding night
• Reserve block of hotel rooms for out-of-town wedding guests
• Shop for and order wedding rings
• Make sure you both agree where you will live once you’re married

Two months before your wedding date:

• Address and mail wedding invitations
• Make preparations for rehearsal dinner
• Coordinate details for marriage license in state where marriage ceremony will take place
• Coordinate, order, or make decorations and favors for wedding
• Select the music you want for the ceremony and the reception

One month before your wedding date:

• Have the wedding shower
• Complete final fittings for bridal dress and all bridal attendants
• Coordinate and schedule all hair and make-up appointments
• Purchase gifts for bridal party and groomsmen

Two weeks before your wedding date:

• Get marriage license
• Begin process of changing name on credit cards, social security card, driver’s license, bank accounts
• Prepare seating arrangements and prepare place cards
• Make sure accommodations for out-of-town guests are in order
• Reconfirm all details with those who have been hired
• Prepare change of address paperwork, pack and get ready to move (if applicable)
• Give final count to caterer
• Practice hair and make-up styles; grooms should get hair cut now

Day before wedding your wedding date:

• Hold rehearsal and rehearsal dinner
• Get some rest

The Big Day

• Make it to the ceremony on time
• Bring wedding rings
• Have a means of paying final tab for all services rendered and have cash for tips
• Eat before ceremony so you don’t get sick
• Smile pretty for your pictures
• Be proud because you’ve just pulled off a major feat!!

Wedding costs can rapidly escalate out of control which is why it’s so important to begin the planning by devising a realistic budget. And once you’ve got the numbers crunched, it’s equally important that you both stick to the budget. And while a wedding budget doesn’t sound all that glamorous, it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. In fact, planning your wedding without a budget is almost guaranteed to land you into serious financial debt.

What’s the key to success? As it will be throughout your marriage, open, honest, two-way communication is an absolute must. Newly-engaged couples must talk about how each envisions his and her special day. Women work on the assumption that guys don’t care about the details but that’s not always true. It is, after all, the man’s big day, too and he has a family to please as well.

Once the excitement of the engagement wears off, go somewhere quiet and talk about what’s important to each of you in regards to your wedding day. Listening to your partner’s opinion is as important as talking so be sure to do both. Then, make a list of what you both want (to arrive in a horse-drawn carriage, lobster, renaissance theme, color scheme, etc.) and what are absolute necessities (for example a photographer, caterer, rings, etc.). You’re going to use this information when it’s time to allocate your budget.

Once you both have an idea of what’s important, it’s time to crunch the numbers. You’ve got to determine how much money is available now (for example, in savings accounts, stocks/bonds, real estate, trust funds), how much you’ll have to commit to saving from your regular income streams, and how much you can realistically expect others to kick in.

Depending on how far out the actual wedding date is you may want to consider opening a higher-interest bearing account for the money so that it can earn interest. When considering what others may be able to put towards the cause it’s really important that you don’t make unrealistic demands. Take whatever others are willing to contribute graciously and try not to belabor the issue. Getting angry or disappointed in the amounts you are being given isn’t a very mature way of handling the situation. 

When you know where the money’s coming from and how much is coming, you’ll know how much you’ll be able to spend. Now make another list of all wedding-related expenses and allocate a dollar amount or the percentage you’re willing to spend next to each item. This will help when you’re actually contracting for these services.

Remember that if you exceed your budgeted amount in one category, you’ll have to scale back another so your budget will stay balanced. Because budgeting is so very important for most couples, you’ll find that wedding budget worksheets, software and other tools are available everywhere, so go find one and start using it right now!

Many couples will hold the wedding ceremony at a house of worship, usually one that the bride, the groom, or some other family member attends. When this is the case, selecting the location is fairly easy, provided the date is available. But what happens when the bride- and groom-to-be are of different denominations? More tricky still, how is the situation handled when the couple doesn’t have any religious affiliation? That’s when the couple needs to get together to discusses their wedding ceremony location options. And there are many.

Selecting the location of the ceremony should happen well in advance of the wedding date, up to 12 months if possible. If you wait too long to reserve the location, you may find it’s already booked. Besides a house of worship, wedding ceremony locations can be practically anywhere – at home, at a country or yacht club, outdoors at a local, national or state park, on a yacht, on a tropical island, at a mountaintop retreat, in a medieval castle, at Disney World – you name it, it’s probably capable of accommodating a wedding ceremony.

Before selecting a location, however, you’ve got to make sure it’ll accommodate your needs.

• Is the location large enough to accommodate all your guests?
• Are dressing rooms available?
• Are there electrical outlets for acoustics and/or music?
• Is the location easily accessible, especially for those with special needs?
• Can you find someone to officiate at the location?

The amount you’ll pay will vary from location to location. When you’re finding out the costs, be sure to ask what is included with the price. Make sure the items mentioned are written out on the contract, too. You’ll likely be asked to provide a deposit to reserve the date. This needs to be reflected on the contract as well as the balance amount and due date.

There’s more to consider about the wedding ceremony than just the location. The music and the vows need special attention, especially if you wish to break out of the ‘traditional’ mode. The music may be included with the location. For example, oftentimes a church will use its own organist. However, if your budget allows, you may wish to write your own wedding songs and hire a soloist and accompanist to perform them. Or you can hire musicians to match the theme of your wedding.

If these types of arrangements are in your budget, be sure to reserve the talent far in advance, right after you’ve secured the wedding ceremony location.

You can also write your own vows or make modifications to traditional vows. This puts a truly personal touch on the event. Just be sure to give a copy of your version of the vows to the person officiating so that everyone knows what to say.

Many couples choose larger-sized hotels or function halls for their wedding receptions because typically, everything they need to pull off this memorable event is right there on-site. As an added bonus, these types of wedding reception locations usually include the services of a wedding coordinator who will work with the couple to meet their every need. And the great thing about having a reception in a hotel is that overnight accommodations don’t require any extra planning.

Selecting the wedding reception location as soon as possible is highly advisable, especially if you need to accommodate a large number of guests and especially if your wedding will be held during the busy season. Although you do not need a firm head count, you will need an estimate. A medieval castle on a lake may not accommodate 250+ guests.

Also, determine your wedding reception budget beforehand as this likely will have an impact on your wedding reception location options. You may want to consider arranging your wedding off-season when rates on reception locations will typically be much lower. You will be required to make a down payment to reserve the space and date and this typically will be non-refundable. You’ll want to make sure you understand the cancellation policy as it may involve more than losing your deposit. Also discuss arrival and departure times to make sure all the elements you have planned can be accommodated during this timeframe.

Besides the types of venues already mentioned, plenty of other wedding reception location options are available, and they’ll each vary in terms of space, price and amenities, so it’s important to pay close attention when visiting the ones you’re considering. Smaller gatherings can be held at places such as at home, a museum, a botanical garden, or a park. Although these may be smaller in size, the details will still need to be coordinated by someone so don’t forget to ask for help, even if that means hiring a wedding coordinator.

When you’re looking at wedding reception locations, try to plan out the space, much like you would if you were buying or renting a home.

• Where will dining and dancing take place?
• Where will the guest book and place cards be located?
• Is there a secure area for wedding gifts?
• Will you need a stage for your musicians?
• Are there electrical outlets for the DJ?
• Your photographer will want to know about the lighting and whether there’s a suitable location to take wedding party photos.
• Is there a way to control the temperature? If the reception will be outdoors, you’ll need a back-up in the event of uncooperative weather, which may add to your costs.