If you’re reading this, chances are you just got engaged. Congratulations!

One of the most common questions people ask me is “How do I start planning?”. It’s a good question because everyone’s planning timeline will look a little bit different based on priorities, location, and whether your wedding is a destination wedding or not. Regardless of those factors though, every planning process should begin the same way in order to lay a good foundation for what’s ahead. Here are my recommendations for how to start planning:

1. Make your Budget. I know, I know. You thought wedding planning was supposed to be fun and here I am telling you to talk about your budget. Don’t worry, wedding planning is mostly fun, but it’s important to start with some of the more technical things first in order to avoid unnecessary stress later on. This means that now is the time to speak with any people who might be helping you pay for your wedding and discuss exact amounts that they plan to contribute. It also means taking a hard look at what’s realistic for you to spend. Once you have your overall budget, you can bring it to your wedding planner. She will help you itemize the budget based on your priorities and industry norms.

2. Determine your guest list and collect your addresses. Most of our clients come to us with an estimated headcount that’s significantly lower than the actual guest list ends up being for the save the dates. So, before you decide on your venue, you need to have a firm sense of how many people you’re planning to invite. You also never want to be at the maximum capacity of your venue. So, for example, if your venue can hold 200 guests, you don’t want to actually have 200 guests because it will be tight for seating and your dance floor will be small. This also gives you a little more freedom with design so that you can do a mix of table types or maybe have a lounge. Your wedding planner can put together a rough floor plan of the space for you so that you can see what your actual headcount would look like before you commit…of course, she can only do that if you’re prepared with your list! While you’re at it, it’s time to start collecting addresses. This takes much longer than you would expect, so even though it feels early, now is a great time to start.

3. Hire your wedding planner. If you decide that you would like to have a full service wedding planner, the time to hire her is before you find your venue. She can see potential issues with your venue that you might not otherwise see and will be able to provide you with estimates for hidden costs (for example, a tent for the rain plan or the real cost of renting in different chairs if you don’t like the ones at the venue). In most cases, there isn’t a financial benefit to contracting your venue before your planner and they are experts at planning events, so it’s helpful to have their advice straight through the planning process.

When looking for your planner, keep in mind that you will be working with this person for roughly a year. It’s important that you feel like you “click” and that he or she understands what you’re looking for. You should feel confident that she can execute your vision and that you trust her opinion. Don’t be afraid to ask for references and read reviews before you move forward.

Many couples think that one of the first things they need to do is to come up with their vision for their wedding. While it is helpful to have a sense for the type of wedding you want, for example, barn vs ballroom, it’s the planners job to figure out what your wedding actually looks like. She’ll give you homework to help to draw out details about the two of you that will make your wedding personal and she’ll work with you to create color palettes and mood boards - even if you have no idea what you want!

Of course, if you’re looking for a NYC wedding planner or Boston wedding planner, we are here for you!

Happy wedding planning! As a reminder, we’ll be sharing our wedding planning tips every Thursday. Follow along next week to hear from Chelsea.

xo,

SG