Decide On Your Ceremony Details
Youve already had your registrar meeting where you wouldve been given a form which allows you to process your ceremony details, so if you havent already, you should start to think about filling it in. Dont panic though you can send it off as close to up to six weeks before your wedding date!
Youll need to know everything from what song youre walking down the aisle to, to whos in your wedding party, whos giving you away, who your photographer is, what readings you want and whether youre writing your own vows or using the traditional ones.
Here on Hitched weve got lots of inspiration for all of those things, so dont feel overwhelmed. Take a look at our favourite non-religious wedding readings and our guide to writing your wedding vows.
At the eight month mark, you should decide whether youre going to be decorating your wedding venue yourself or whether you need to appoint a décor stylist. If you decide on the latter, meet with an expert ASAP and offload all your ideas.
If youre decorating the space yourself, this is a good time to scour the web for décor ideas and budget décor items which you can begin to order.
Things to consider include fairy lights, centrepieces, table décor, wedding signs, chair covers, tablecloths, outdoor furniture, chairs and anything else you might need to make your venue look fabulous.
READ MORE: 19 IKEA Wedding Décor Hacks You Have to Try
Keep Your Beauty Routine Simple
The week before your wedding isnt the time to try an unfamiliar or newfangled bridal beauty treatment, but you should be fine if you stick to the basics. Some treatments, such as facials, waxing, teeth whitening and lash extensions, should be completed at least a week before the wedding. Even if youve had these treatments done before, theres always a possibility you could have a bad reaction, and thats the last thing you want right before your wedding. Other services like airbrush tans, manicures, and pedicures can be done two or three days prior. For grooms, consider booking a hot shave and a haircut during the week leading up to the wedding.
A Printable Calendar And Checklist To Get Your Binder Started
Two of the most essential elements of your wedding planning binder are going to be your calendar and a wedding timeline checklist. Its so important to stay on track with planning in order to meet your deadlines, and to promptly make all of your appointments plus this free printable calendar and checklist is ADORABLE. Download your free checklist and calendar from Kennedy Blue and The Wedding Shoppe.
You May Like: A Line Low Back Wedding Dress
Assigning Friends And Family To Help With Your Wedding
As the big day gets closer, you will want to be in contact with caterers, vendors, and photographers. You have enough to worry about, between reading your wedding vows and creating a seating chart Take some weight off your shoulders by assigning friends or family members to check up with different contacts.
Choose Your Wedding Venue
This often goes hand-in-hand with Tip No. 7 but since not all venues offer both ceremony and reception services, lets dive a little deeper. Wedding Spot lets you explore venues by location, style, budget, number of guests, and services offered by the site. Popular wedding venue types include:
-
Barn/farm/ranch
-
Beach
-
Hotel/resort
Once youve settled on your top three or four venues, its time to find out if theyre available on your wedding date. If they are, the next step is a site visit, either with your wedding planner or with your partner or both.
Pro tip: Narrow down your search by budget first, then aesthetic and scenery. Choose several related aesthetics and scenery such as outdoor, beach, and waterfront to get the most options for your chosen area. Also, use a tool such as Farmers Almanac to estimate what the weather will be like on your wedding day and let that influence your venue decision.
Don’t Miss: How Expensive Are Wedding Invitations
Order The Invitations And Hire A Calligrapher
There are a few ground rules when it comes to ordering your wedding invitations: Order enough of them and account for some mistakes, make sure they will arrive in time, set up a system for recording RSVP replies, and confirm all addresses and spelling. But when it comes to design and wording, the options are endless. Need a little advice to rein it all in? Keep reminding yourself that the theme of your invites should match the vibe of your wedding and express you as a couple. If you commission a calligrapher, heres everything you need to know about calligraphy. Make sure your calligrapher knows it, too, and can prove it before booking him or her.
Week Before The Wedding
- Supply wedding coordinator with a list of supplier requests such as a table for DJ or setup space needed by florist.
- Print place cards
- Call all wedding suppliers to confirm arrangements – create a timetable for day
- Give ceremony and reception site managers a schedule of vendor delivery and setup times, plus contact numbers.
- Get manicure, massage, waxing & all your preening and prep
- Do full wedding dress rehearsal from underwear to veil
Read Also: How To Keep Track Of Wedding Rsvps
Send Out Your Save The Dates
This is where things get really exciting. Its time to send your save the dates to your wedding guests! Just remember you only send these to guests who are invited to the whole day, and not to evening guests.
Your save the dates should outline your wedding date and whether guests can expect a wedding invitation or wedding website to follow. Check out our favourite unique save the date ideas here, from magnets to bookmarks.
Make Contact With Entertainment To Finalise Details
Here at Entertainment Nation, our acts all provide a 4 week call to clients in order to finalise details of your day. This includes timings, venue discussions , and any live music requests if youd like to choose specific songs from their repertoire. If your band also provides a DJ service , you can let them know any songs you want included.
Read Also: How Much Are Flower Centerpieces For A Wedding
Have Your Final Tasting With The Caterer
At this point, youve asked your caterer to talk through these questions. Now its time to taste what theyre really made of. The tasting has become increasingly important as more and more couples choose to customize everything from their signature cocktails to their desserts. If youre nervous about heart-eyes obstructing your taste buds judgment, bring your planner or consultant. Theyve likely attended dozens of tastings, and will be your clear-eyed troubleshooterpaying attention to the detailing of the food and the attentiveness of the service, while youre crying over crab cakes to bae about how Its just starting to feel so real, you know? Heres more info on what not to do.
Best Day Ever Spot Personalized Sunscreen Favors
Courtesy of Etsy
If you are planning a destination wedding, or even just an outdoor summer ceremony and cocktail hour, these mod-style custom mini sunscreen bottles with attached carabiners will be an absolute hit. Choose from four chic pattern options and personalize them with your wedding details.
Don’t Miss: What To Look For In A Wedding Venue
Ah You’re Counting Down The Days
Give your reception site and/or caterer your final guest head count. Ask how many extra plates the caterer will prepare.
Supply the location manager with a list of vendor requests such as a table for DJ or setup space needed for a florist.
Plan the reception seating chart, and print place and table cards .
Get your hair trimmed, if necessary.
Attend your bach parties if you haven’t yet.
China: Hello Wardrobe Changes
Bia Sampaio
In China, brides typically walk down the aisle in a slim-fitting, embroidered dress, called a traditional qipao or cheongsam. For the reception, they typically change into a more decked-out gown with Western flair. But the bridal fashion show doesn’t end there. To cap the night, Chinese brides often make a final change into a cocktail dress. Triple the dresses, triple the fun!
Don’t Miss: Where Can You Donate Wedding Dresses
Fascinating Wedding Traditions From Around The World
- EMAILSHARE
From the bride tossing her bouquet to wearing something old, new, borrowed, and blue, American wedding customs are still so popular today that even the most non-traditional couples happily take part. But Americans don’t have a monopoly on such ritualspretty much every other country and culture also has its own beloved wedding customs.
Some are sweet, like how wedding guests in Sweden kiss the bride or groom anytime their new spouse leaves the room. Some are perplexing: Couples in the Congo, for example, are forbidden to smile on their wedding day. And some are seemingly strange, such as the way engaged pairs in Mongolia must kill and butcher a chicken to find a healthy liver before being allowed to wed. But what binds these seemingly disparate customs from near and far is one simple thing: love.
If you follow these traditions, the theory goes, you will find eternal joy with your soulmate. So, even if some Hindu brides must first marry a tree or some South Korean grooms have to tolerate getting their feet whipped by family and friends, hopefully, it’s all worth it in the end. When love and happiness ever after are the outcomes, it’s usually a win-win for the newly wedded couple.
Keep reading to learn about 45 of the most awe-inspiring rituals from around the globe to give you an idea of the many traditions that go far beyond the bouquet toss.
Use Your Negotiation Skills
You dont always have to take the first offer or price you get. If youre looking to cut back, it could be worth talking to the venue or hotel manager. “Many hotel chains will offer incentives such as shuttle depending on rooms which are booked,” says Goldberg. “Use your fabulous negotiation skill set to allow you to provide a stress-free day. Trust me, your guests will appreciate this more than you know.”
Recommended Reading: What Do You Write On Rsvp Cards For Weddings
Create A Wedding Website And Social Media Hashtags
Like everything else, weddings have gone digital. Online options and social media are great ways to keep guests up to date on the wedding details. It also helps out-of-town guests stay oriented and connected to the big day.
Today, there are scores of easy-to-build wedding website templates. The wedding website builder With Joy lets you track guest RSVPs, share pictures of the wedding , and offer transportation and hotel information for guests. Zola is another super popular option.
While youre in the process of creating your website, consider creating a wedding hashtag for social media shares, too! Its often a combination of your names, the year, and perhaps the location. A wedding hashtag generator makes it easy.
Pro tip: Plan out what content youll share on your wedding website and social media ahead of time. If you dont, youll run the risk of letting it sit untouched. Updates such as your finished wedding registry, engagement photos, and accommodations are all great things to share.
Everything You Need To Plan A Wedding
Almost everyone has a dream wedding plan in their head: white dress, smart tuxedo, that first dance, leaving for your honeymoon in a beautiful vintage car.
While its easy to get caught up in the romance of it all, there are a lot of things big and small that you may not think to consider when preparing for a wedding. With a wedding, the detailswhether its gifts for your groomsmen or having a repair kit handycan make or break the day.
Below, you can find a checklist to help you make sure that youve thought about and planned for every part of your wedding: from the earrings worn by the flower girls to the ribbons on your car.
Some items also have recommended places to source them. Hopefully this guide and checklist will help you have a happy wedding day!
Recommended Reading: What To Get Your Fiance On Wedding Day
Choose Your Wedding Invitations
Consider picking out your formal invitations while your save-the-dates are top of mind. You dont have to send them until about 6-12 weeks before the wedding, but theres no harm in getting them ordered early.
Its traditional to send out cardstock invites, and its lovely to have a hardcopy invite to frame after the wedding. Visit a stationery store, or browse invite websites online. Select invites that reflect your wedding style and theme. The words you select will also set the tone for your wedding. For example, use traditional language for a classic wedding and opt for laid-back wording for casual, rustic, or beach weddings.
If you want to buck the traditional trend, there are many lovely digital options for invites as well, including Paperless Post, Greenvelope, and evite. These are perfectly acceptable, and , theyre eco-friendly and usually more affordable. You can even give invitees a link to your wedding website and have them RSVP there.
Pro tip: As people RSVP, add them to a free wedding seating chart tool so you can begin to assign seats, add in dietary restrictions and meal choices, and make special notes for your catering team that they can reference as you plan your menu.
Wedding Checklist: Big And Small Things You Might Forget
With so much happening before a wedding, its easy to let little things and even big tasks fall by the proverbial wayside. If youre paranoid about forgetting something, or a bunch of things, check out the following checklist of big and small tasks to remind yourself of what still needs handling!
Also Check: When To Buy Wedding Bands
Perfect Papier Personalized Matches
Courtesy of Etsy
If you and your fiance love collecting matchboxes as souvenirs from favorite restaurants, then this is the perfect wedding favor for you. Not only do matches always come in handy, but the modern personalization is a super cute touch. You can also pick the paper and print color to match your wedding decor!
Plan Your Wedding Entertainment
Prior to the actual booking process, you need to think about which parts of the day you would like live music/entertainment.
Image Credit: Betulbird Photography
Here are some suggestions:
- Ceremony Popular choices for this part of the day include a classical singer or solo guitar/vocalist playing you down the aisle and for signing of the register etc.
- Drinks Reception A sophisticated addition to your drinks reception is a string quartet, jazz trio or acoustic folk band.
- Wedding Breakfast A lot of people opt for a playlist for this part of the evening, but if you would like live music throughout dinner, why not book a piano/vocal duo to perform ambient background music?
- Evening Reception This is the main/focal point of your entertainment choices. Choosing the right band/dj/musician can really influence the atmosphere that is created on your night. Do you want something a little more subtle or do you want a foot stomping pop and rock party band thatll get all of your guests jumping up and down like lunatics on the dance floor?
Don’t Miss: Where To Sell My Wedding Gown
