Planning a wedding, whether you have two or three years to do it, may indeed be overwhelming. Our Ultimate Wedding Checklist is for you if, like us, you constantly write lists in your thoughts or on scraps of paper, only to forget them moments later.
Remember, if you have taken a provident loan on benefits, you can easily budget your wedding minus the interest paid on the loan. This detailed guide provides you with a clear timeline of all the essential steps you must take to create a wonderful wedding day.
The research, budgeting, and schedule planning that go into wedding preparation can be overwhelming. We, therefore, made a comprehensive, downloadable list of everything you will need to do.
It involves all elements of a proper wedding, from choosing a location to going garment shopping, organizing the RSVP list, and booking a honeymoon.
At any point in time, feel free to call a professional wedding planner to do the needful rather than stressing out and worrying for the next few months.
Your wedding planning timetable and checklist
This checklist is a general timeline based on a 12-month engagement, but it’s important to keep in mind that every wedding is unique. We’ve seen brides who planned their entire wedding in just 10 weeks, while others took two.
Every couple will benefit from the broad principles presented in this checklist.
When you are engaged or prepared to begin wedding planning:
Make sure you and your partner are on the same page by sitting down and talking about your ideal wedding.
Create a budget.
Begin making a guest list. Decide on a rough guest count because it may affect the venues you choose.
Choose suitable wedding dates and confirm with significant guests to prevent conflicts.
If the ceremony and reception places are different, research them both (if you have no idea where to begin, this can be helpful).
You can also have a wedding reception. However, this is optional.
Establish a Budget
You should be open and honest about your savings, what you can save before the wedding, and who might help financially. Think about whether there is anything else, like a house or future family, that you also need to be saving for.
Starting your married life off in enormous amounts of debt adds unnecessary strain. Have an honest chat with your partner about affordability. Write down both your take-home incomes and calculate backward.
Jot down all the loans you have applied for, and you must keep providing, even during the wedding.
Reserve a tentative Place and a Date
Choosing your wedding location is perhaps the most crucial and expensive decision you will make during the preparation process. It determines everything, including the style of your images and the most effective theme.
Even if you shouldn’t act hastily, wedding venues frequently fill up much more than a year in advance, so you must move soon. Sit back and browse databases of venues, which you can sort by location and venue style 18 months prior to your desired wedding date.
Book a few venue tours for the locations that appeal to you the most. Then tentatively book a date at your top choice while you check the registrar’s schedule. Don’t pay a deposit just yet.
Now is also the time to employ a wedding planner because they may be quite helpful with venue selection.
What you should be doing 12 months before the wedding:
- Visit and reserve the site of your wedding and reception.
- Do some research on potential wedding vendors and services, including photographers, florists, cake makers, décor, and hair and makeup artists.
- Choose the entertainment you want for the ceremony, the cocktail reception, and the dancing.
- Reserving a photographer and a videographer
- For your décor, including both the venue and the ceremony, do some research and weigh your possibilities.
- Look into hiring a wedding planner or venue stylist; this is especially useful if you have a lot of logistics to handle or are in charge of setting up the venue.
- Start browsing wedding gowns and shortlist the ones you like the most.
- Sending and saving Date Cards are crucial if you’re getting married abroad or at a time of year that is extremely busy.
- Ask your wedding party to be at your wedding.
- Enlist the assistance of any family members or talented friends for the wedding (for the cake, flowers, dresses, etc.)
Verify a Registrar and Church’s Availability for Your Wedding Date
While booking a venue, your preparations will be severely derailed if there is no one available to marry you on your tentative wedding date. You must reserve a registrar if you want to host a civil ceremony.
Once it’s reserved, you’ll have some time to change your mind. But if not, you may proceed and pay the venue deposit with the knowledge that a registrar will be there on the big day.
If that’s the case, you’ll need to adapt your timeframe. You may still put a deposit down on the venue, but you’ll need to remember to contact and book the registrar as soon as the year comes around.
Be aware that some registry offices won’t let you book a registrar earlier than a year in advance. If you want to get married in a church, make sure the church is available on the day you want to get married there.
You will have to meet specific conditions, including living in the parish or attending a particular number of services in the months leading up to the big day. As each parish is unique, be sure to inquire.
Select a theme
It’s time to choose your wedding theme and color scheme, so get your creative mind working! This task during the wedding planning process is so much fun.
Your wedding’s theme should reflect you two as a couple, ranging from festival, nautical to rustic or travel-related. The sky is the limit.
To organize all of your ideas, we advise making a mood board and bookmarking anything inspiring you come across on the internet.
Reserve a DJ or get a ceremonial band
Your DJ or wedding band, as well as any musicians you want to play earlier in the day, are additional vendors that you should reserve early.
They’ll be the heart and soul of your celebration. So, book your favorite as soon as possible since they can only attend one wedding per day.
Book Caterers
You might think about using outside caterers if the wedding venue you reserved won’t be handling your meals. If you don’t want a typical wedding breakfast, consider having a BBQ, a hog roast, or a variety of sharing plates.
Then, proceed from there. Here, you may find a huge selection of recommended caterers from practically every region in the UK.
Get a florist
Booking a florist as soon as you know your theme and location is a good idea if you don’t intend to make your own wedding flowers. Many florists will work on more than one wedding per day.
But if you have grand plans for flower arches and stunning floral arrangements, booking them in advance won’t hurt. Don’t panic; you don’t need to have a firm idea of what you want just yet.
You and your florist will probably visit a location together later on in the process before you finalize everything.
Getting your wedding attire
Brides should be concerned with this since suits may be purchased considerably closer to the wedding date. Consider what kind of wedding gown you might wish to wear on your special day.
Search for styles and designers on wedding websites first. Then go inside your closet to see what you gravitate toward. Finally, browse to see which boutiques carry your favorite styles or designers.
Conclusion
In the final sprint, you may have to recheck all that you planned, including seating arrangements. You must also have a rehearsal dinner and pack for the wedding.
Another bag should be packed for your honeymoon. Final briefs should be made for bridesmaid duties and best man duties.