Wedding Countdown
This is intended as a guide to help you plan the essential elements in the count down to your wedding day. Everything should go smoothly if you organize things in advance, and get help from wedding professionals and family members.
A year before the wedding:
- First things first: share the news with your family and close friends.
- A time and place for the wedding should be tentatively decided.
- Agree on an estimated number of guests.
- Time to budget for the wedding, reception and honeymoon.
- At this time you may want to consider hiring a wedding consultant to help with the planning and budgeting of the entire event or of certain aspects.
- Visit possible venues to discuss availability and Reserve a venue for the reception as soon as possible
- Make plans to get your marriage license
A few months before the wedding:
- Decide whether to have a live band or DJ for the reception.
- Contact a photographer and videographer early considering the best are often booked many months in advance.
- Choose invitations and thank-you notes.
- Consult a travel agent or website to make honeymoon travel and hotel reservations. Be sure to have valid passports and ask about required visas or immunizations if traveling internationally.
- Compile a flower arrangement list for the wedding and consult a florist regarding design, composition, and color.
- Finalize the guest list in collaboration with both families. Consider the needs and activities for the out-of-town guests.
- Reserve a number of hotel rooms for out-of-town guests.
- Place your invitation and stationary order. This allows for a month to have the order completed with any necessary corrections made, two weeks to address and mail them, and six weeks for your guests to receive and respond. If you have a large number or out-of-town guests, you may want to send them out even sooner.
- Shop for wedding rings. Custom-made rings may require more time.
A month before the wedding: - Order a cake.
- Finalise wedding guest list & send invitations
- Confirm all wedding-day beauty or grooming appointments in advance.
- Have your hair and make up rehearsal. Remember to bring the head-dress you will be wearing on the day so the experts can plan your look accordingly.
- Finalize arrangements with photographer and videographer.
- Finalize arrangements with the florist
- Finalize arrangements for transportation too the ceremony, reception and wedding-night destination.
- Start planning your honeymoon wardrobes and assessing your luggage needs.
- Choose gifts for the best man
- Try on all the wedding clothes including shoes, head-dress, underwear etc and make sure everything fits correctly and is comfortable (your wedding day will be a long one and should be as hassle free as possible!).
- Finalize arrangements for the wedding reception
- Confirm the number of guests with the caterer, in writing if possible. You many need to phone guests that have not yet replied.
A day before the wedding:
- Finish packing for the wedding night and honeymoon
- Have a manicure, pedicure, bath and an early night!
On the wedding day:
Relax and enjoy your special wedding!
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