The secret to a great wedding day is to is to plan ahead and plan efficiently. Ideally, planning should begin about a year before the wedding day, soon after the proposal’s been given and accepted. Some of the first things that should happen are:
- A date for the wedding should be set immediately. Most people get married during the warmer months, on a Saturday, so it makes sense to book a catering hall, dressmakers, florists and wedding sites about a year in advance.
- The couple should know how large they want their wedding to be and who’s going to be invited. They should do this before they talk about it with their parents. Some flexibility is going to be needed.
- The couple should discuss their budget and how much money bride, groom and parents are willing to contribute. Unless the bride’s family is truly wealthy, it’s quite burdensome to lay most of the cost of the wedding on her family in this day and age. A family meeting will go a long way into clarifying who pays for what. Among the things that need to be paid for in a wedding are:
- Wedding rings for the bride and groom, and an engagement ring for the bride
- Marriage license
- Gifts for the maid or matron of honor and the bridesmaids
- Gifts for the groom’s attendants
- Clergy fee
- Bridal gown
- Flowers
- The wedding dress and accessories
- The honeymoon
- Rental of tuxedos and other attire
- Reception costs
Other things a couple needs to do about a year in advance are:
- Make an appointment with clergy to discuss the wedding details
- Choose members of the wedding party
- Set up a gift registry
- Choose the color scheme as well as the wedding gown, the bridesmaids’ gowns and other accessories
- Select a florist
- Interview and choose the musicians and the disc jockey
- Interview and choose wedding photographers and videographers
- Decide on the details of the honeymoon. As the wedding date nears the couple should make arrangements to get cheap rental car insurance while they’re on their honeymoon.
Four Months Before
About four months before the wedding the couple should check to see what the requirements are for a marriage license. If they’re going to be honeymooning abroad, they should make arrangements to get passports if they don’t already have them.
They should make a list for what they’ll need for the honeymoon and the wedding night and buy it. The bride should also give copies of the list to her mother and her maid of honor. Check social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google Plus for other tips from people who have just gotten married.
The guest list should be finalized, if it hasn’t been already and the stationery should be bought. The engagement should then be formally announced, including on social media.
Other items like hiring the catering hall, photographer, videographer, disc jockey and others should be finalized and down payments made.
The rings should be selected and the wedding attire should be ordered for the groom’s attendants and both mothers.
Two Months Before
Two months before the wedding the invitations should be mailed if they haven’t been already. Transportation should be organized. The bride and groom should buy gifts for each other as well as their attendants. There should be the final fittings for costumes.
The bride and groom should also get their marriage license and arrange for hotel and transportation for out of town guests.
One Month Before
About a month before the wedding the couple should plan the ceremony and the reception in detail. They should arrange for a family member or friend to handle the guest book. Both bride and groom should arrange to visit the beauty parlor or the barber shop a day or two before the ceremony.
The couple should also have their wedding portrait taken and let people know about name and address changes by getting forms from the post office, the department of motor vehicles, credit card companies and other parties. The bride and groom should also make sure to check different life insurance companies after the wedding to protect each other’s future.
Two Weeks Before
All the costumes should be fitted Two weeks before the wedding. The caterer should be given the final count for who’s going to be at the reception and the seating arraignments should be finalized as well. The honeymoon plans should be confirmed with the travel agent.
A Week Before
The couple should make sure that their rings fit and pick them up at the jeweler. The details for hiring the caterer, photographer or videographer, DJ or musicians should be confirmed. Someone, perhaps a hired hand or a trusted family member, should run errands.
The couple should pack their bags for their honeymoon and make sure all documents, including their passports, are in order.
On the Wedding Day
Before the ceremony, the couple should take it as easy as possible. They deserve it!
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