How to Plan a Wedding

The engagement ring is on, you said 'Yes!', and you're just about to embark on your wedding planning journey... we're super excited for you! This is such a fun time, but it can also sometimes feel overwhelming, exhausting, and never-ending. It's no secret that wedding planning takes a lot of organization, but once you nail it (a wedding checklist will help no end but more on that later!), and everything falls into place on your big day, believe us, it will definitely all have been worth it!

First things first, there is no right or wrong way to plan a wedding. Honestly! This is primarily because weddings these days come in all different shapes and sizes, right? From big, beautiful bashes to intimate gatherings with just friends and family, all weddings are equal. But regardless of how healthy the wedding budget is or how many guests are invited, there are some things that all weddings have in common.

'How to plan a wedding' is a big claim, and whilst we can't promise this article will guide you seamlessly from saying yes to exchanging your vows at the altar, it will hopefully keep your wedding planning on track and ensure nothing gets missed along the way. Ready to switch up into expert wedding planning mode? Let's go!...

Your wedding planner

If the wedding budget allows, we would nearly always recommend booking a wedding planner to help you plan your wedding day. The larger your wedding party, the bigger the reason to have an expert on board to help. Whilst your wedding venue may have a wedding coordinator in-house to help, it's nothing like having a wedding planner on your side from day one. This dedicated professional will be on the same page as you and will understand your wedding plans inside out.

Not only are wedding planners worth their weight in gold on the day itself, but they are also invaluable when it comes to researching and booking wedding vendors. They are so involved in the industry that they should be able to help you find and secure your dream wedding venue, offer advice on which wedding date to book, find a brilliant wedding photographer, and help with pre-wedding events too. Whilst you and your soon-to-be spouse will naturally still want to be involved in the wedding planning process, having a professional on board simply means you don't need to get weighed down by all of the minor details and small decision-making.

Wedding website

If you've just started out and you're wondering how to plan a wedding from day one, one of the first easy wins you can do is create a wedding website. A wedding website can help you hugely in the planning process - not only can it act as a destination for all of the important information you need to share with your guest list, a lot of wedding websites, such as Say I do, allow you to send save the dates, wedding invitations and manage your wedding guest list directly within the platform - handy!

There are so many beautiful and stylish digital options available to couples these days that can sit perfectly in line with your unique wedding theme (if you already have one). Whether you're having a destination wedding and are going down the beachy vibe, or you want somewhere private to share your engagement photos with your close friends and family members, your wedding website is the place to do this.

The wedding admin

We'll get into the fun wedding planning stuff soon, promise! But we have to touch on the practical side too. Before you get too far into your planning journey, remember to get wedding insurance. You never know what might happen on the run-up to your wedding that is totally out of your control: illness, an issue with the venue, suppliers backing out, etc. This isn't to scare you; it's simply to make you aware that, unfortunately (although rare), these things do happen, so it's better to be prepared just in case.

Another important wedding element that often gets overlooked for the more fun, beautiful aspects is the marriage license. Research what the deal is with your local area, and make sure you file the paperwork in time! Oh, and try not to lose the marriage certificate in all of the excitement on the day too!

Wedding inspiration

Regardless of whether you're having a small wedding or a big destination wedding at an exotic location, you will need to get started on researching the wedding suppliers you want to help plan and execute your special day. From wedding flowers to finding the perfect wedding dress, the wedding cake to the right outfits for your maid of honor and the bridal party - there's a lot to consider!

Pinterest is a great place to start. It's bursting with inspiration images of everything you could possibly imagine when it comes to weddings, all you need to do is pop your search term in and wait for thousands of images to appear magically. Take Pinterest with a pinch of salt though, and try not to get too carried away or succumb to comparisonitis! Remember, this is your wedding day; you are the bride and groom in question, so stick to your own style. You don't want a wedding day that looks like everyone else's, do you? From beach weddings to elegant wedding bands to how to style your wedding venue - it's time to start searching and get pinning!

Work with your wedding suppliers to create the wedding of your dreams. Your wedding size/guest count doesn't really need to be a consideration; your vendors should be able to tailor their services to suit you. Remember, they're experts here. They've likely worked on a lot of weddings up to this point, so if you need help with any aspects such as the planning timeline or anything to do with planning destination weddings, always ask.

Wedding attire

The wedding dress - one of the most important and exciting stages when planning a wedding! Depending on when you're getting married and how long you have to plan, we would recommend taking your wedding attire into consideration ASAP. Some bridal designers/tailors will need months to design, make and tweak your wedding outfit until it's absolutely perfect, so the more time you give them, the better! If you're purchasing an off-the-shelf wedding dress, you won't need as much time, but who doesn't love ticking tasks off your to-do list? So if you find something you like, go for it!

Send everyone a wedding invitation

Save the date cards are often the first piece of correspondence that couples send to their couples to let them know all about the big day that's coming up. If time allows, these are typically sent out 6 to months ahead of the wedding day. But really, as soon as you lock in your dream venue and have a date confirmed, we'd recommend sending them out. All your wedding party needs to know at this point is what date the wedding day is happening on and which of the wedding venues you visited did you actually book! You can confirm the final details with them later down the line; you just need to make sure they put your wedding date in their calendar and that they're committed to attending.

Next up, it's time to send the formal invitations. If you've already created a wedding website, this platform is the perfect way to send your invites. Not only can you track the RSVPs here, you can also match them to your website.

Keep the invitations themselves as elegant and beautiful as you like but don't forget to pop your wedding website URL on there so that your guests can hop over to find out more and stay up to day with the wedding plans. Share information such as the wedding ceremony location and where the wedding reception is happening (if the reception venue is at a different location). Inform guests of any bachelorette parties and if there's a rehearsal dinner. Your wedding website and your wedding invitations should work seamlessly together, making your wedding planning process a stress-free experience.

The run-up to the big day

We can't deny there are going to be a lot of little details to organize ahead of the big day, but we have an excellent tool to help you - our bespoke wedding checklist! When you sign up to Say I do and create your wedding website, this gains you access to a wedding planning checklist that will sync to your wedding day and list everything (yes, EVERYTHING!) you will need to do/buy/remember to organize ahead of your wedding day. Some tasks won't be relevant; no worries, you can simply check them off or delete them. But if you're concerned about missing something like the delivery of the wedding cake, positioning your wedding party in the perfect seating plan, or ensuring your close family members have everything they need - this is the resource for you!

All that's left to do is create a Say I do account. Let us do some of the wedding planning heavy lifting for you so that you can sit back and actually enjoy your engagement ahead of being a bride and groom!