So, hopefully, by now you have made the big announcement of your engagement, have started to dream up the details of your day, and are more in love with your fiance than ever before! If you are newly engaged you can visit my previous post on what to do RIGHT after you get engaged here!
In this post, I am going to ask some practical questions that will help you focus in on what your wedding day will look like and how you can make that dream a reality! I recommend you take out a piece of paper and write down your answers to these specific questions. Share them with your fiance! They might not even be aware of all the things buzzing around in your mind and writing them down makes them more concrete. Let's get started!
What is your budget?
To start with the beloved topic of budget...Be honest here. This will have one of the biggest effects on your day because weddings can be expensive. If you're in a place where you are investing in your future, paying off student loans, or you are hoping to save up for a home then you might not want to spend as much on your wedding day. In that case, you need to be asking for help from your friends and family early on and often! If you have a bigger budget you still have to decide how you want to use that money! For all brides, it is good to write down a number to divvy it up into all your estimated expenses.
One tool I used when planning my wedding was WeddingWire's Budget Tool which you can visit here (you have to have a Wedding Wire account to view this page, they are free and this tool alone is worth the time to sign up!). They take your estimated budget and divide it into categories based on the average percentage of budget that goes to certain aspects of a wedding! As an added bonus, as you move things around, it will ask and update your budget to go to another area.
After you've come up with this number you can think more clearly about the latter 3 questions I've asked. The question of how you want to bless your friends and family...since you are planning one of the biggest parties of your life and all your closest friends and family are going to be there! It is SUPER SPECIAL. And they are there to celebrate you and your fiance! From the simple things of making sure they are comfortable during the ceremony (is it going to be above 75 degrees? Set out bottled water! is their heavy rain in the forecast? find umbrellas or ponchos to make your outdoor ceremony a little more bearable!) to going all out having welcome baskets for guests that have travelled from afar at their hotel room.
How do you want to bless your friends and family on your big day?
Knowing your budget will allow you to set realistic and creative ways to get your guests excited for your day and feel cared for with the thoughtful aspects of your wedding. Having a bottle of wine with local chocolates, coffee gift card, and letterpressed greeting card may not be in the budget! But if it is this could be a wonderful way to thank your guests for traveling to be a part of your wedding day. One business I just love is The Cotton Candy Confectionery. They offer homemade gourmet cotton candy that will blow your guests away (they carry classic flavors & 32 fun ones like coffee, buttered rum, mango...) You could include some of their cotton candy in your welcome bag (it's super affordable and fun!) or have it as your party favor at the wedding. The options are endless and you can be creative with how to make your wedding special for your closest friends and family!
What do you want your wedding theme to be?
Now, to my third question... do you picture your wedding theme being classic, rustic, or chic? Are there any color schemes that you love? I am going to write a whole post just on coming up with a theme/color scheme for your wedding. Pinterest can be overloaded and after all, you don't want to copy another bride but want your day to be unique and represent you and your fiance! To sign up and keep in the loop with future posts go here.
Thinking about your overall scheme will help you as you make all those tiny decisions you never thought would cross your mind! "What shade of grey do I want my tablecloths to be?! And why are there 18 different shades of grey!" was one of my ridiculous questions. From tablecloths to your bridesmaids nail polish to your wedding programs... it will be really helpful to come up with a vision and base idea for your wedding day.
Can you think of anything you must have/do at your wedding?!
Lastly, the MUST HAVES! Is there anything you've dreamt of since you were a little girl? Or an inspiring photo you've seen that you want to make sure is incorporated into your day? These are super important & good to let your fiance know early in your planning process. I didn't share with my husband how important it was for me to have a videographer & that led to me getting really upset one night (2 weeks before the wedding!!!) and explaining how sad I was to not have one. We ended up scrambling and got an amazing videographer but it was stressful. Share early and often about these things!
Golden Hour Paper would love to be a part of your special day. Our wedding invitations and design can be custom-made to represent your day beautifully! From Save the Date design to Thank You cards, favor tags, escort cards - we do it all and can mix custom inks to match your day-of decor. Feel free to fill out our inquiry form here or to shoot me a message at: goldenhourpaper@gmail.com
Overall, just remember that you are going to be married at the end of all this planning. Some days are going to be stressful. Some days there will be way too many questions coming at you. But every day there is an opportunity to be reminded of your love for your fiance and the fact that you get to make vows before your closest friends and family on your wedding day! If you have any questions or would like to hear about other hilarious things that happened to me while I was planning my wedding please comment below!
All the best,
Maddy
