1. Get on the same page as your fiancé about wedding spending. This is very important. Make sure that you and your fiancé have a sit down conversation and talk about expectations, what the budget looks like, and who is doing what when is comes to the planning and implementation.
2. Draw up a realistic guest list. No body wants to divide their family and friends into different categories but we have found that it’s helpful. Create an A team (musts) and a B team (optionals).
3. Create an excel spreadsheet for your budget. Make sure you have a way to track your spending to date and overall budget. This will help you visually see how much everything will costs in the beginning and then you can determine what’s a priority. Here is a website that we think has really useful wedding budget spreadsheets to download for free!
http://www.excelspreadsheet.net/personal/15-useful-wedding-spreadsheets/
4. Find the right photographer. Interview as many photographers as you can. We have heard scary stories how the wedding photos didn’t turn out. Beware of having a friend or relative do it for free!
This is somewhat cheesy but don’t forget to have FUN while planning! Brides tend to put a lot of pressure on themselves, and everyone involved to make the wedding day perfect. We encourage you to savor the process of planning. A lot of brides tell us, “It happened to fast,” “I blinked and it was over,” about their wedding day. So don’t forget to cherish the moments picking out your wedding dress, arranging your flowers, and telling the DJ what your favorite songs are.