Tips for a stress free wedding planning experience
Wedding planning should be fun, romantic and stress free. However, with so many opinions at stake and financial pressures it can turn into a very challenging time as a couple. The last thing you want is high pressure and bickering during the lead up to your special day. Therefore I have drawn from my experience as a luxury wedding planner and collated some top tips to prepare for stress-free wedding planning.
Plan out your timeline
Working back from your wedding date, set a realistic timeline for all your decisions. Ensure you factor in buffer time for delays as and when life gets busy. Your timeline will help you incorporate those date nights when key decisions need to be made. Setting these deadline for yourselves will help you to feel in control and enjoy your stress free wedding planning experience. Sharing the timeline with your wedding party as well as your suppliers can help keep others on tracks with any responsibilities that they they may be expected to uphold.
Confirm your budget
It is of utmost importance to be very clear about how much you have to spend as soon as your begin planning. This should be clearly allocated and discussed with the parties involved. For example if you have relatives kindly gifting money then ensure this clearly communicated from the start. Your budget will be the main factor when making decisions on your key elements like venue, suppliers and guest list. Therefore it is vital to have all those elements outlined and apportion a budget to each. By sticking to this budget you will feel empowered to make good decisions rather than overthinking and worrying about costs down the line.
Stay connected and communicate
It is essential to be able to keep all the people involved updated in a clear and concise way. Lots of opinions can become very overwhelming so by defining expectations from the start you keep control of the decision making. Nevertheless wedding planning can be such a joyous time to connect with others so once those boundaries have been set, you should feel empowered to share in your decision making to get all your loved ones excited for the upcoming occasion. Most importantly ensure you stay connected and keep the fun in your relationship. I’d highly recommend scheduling fortnightly date nights with your partner to keep up to date with planning and key milestones. By planning these in and enjoying them over dinner or your favourite takeaway it helps make memories out of wedding planning rather than it becoming a chore.
Organisation is key
Being organised is key to a stress free wedding planning experience. As well as keeping to a tight budget and schedule as mentioned before, ensure you collate all your documents, contracts, and contact lists together in an efficient way. Whether that be digitally or in a physical folder just ensure you can easily find and access them whenever required.
Choose your supplier team carefully
Choosing your wedding suppliers is essential not only for your wedding day, but also for your wedding lead up. Their work and style is just as important as how they communicate and whether they’re on the same page as you. Ultimately you want to feel confident and reassured that they will go above and beyond for you on your wedding day. This should be translated to you from the moment you enquire with them. If you don’t feel confident in their communication or their way of working at enquiry stage, they’re probably not right for you. Taking time to carefully select and hire your team of professionals will benefit you. Ensure you ask questions and make the most of their expertise to build relationships. After all you’ll not only be sharing your day with your loved ones but also your suppliers!
Hopefully these tips will help towards your stress free wedding planning experience. All of these elements are included as part of your experience when hiring me as your wedding planner. Therefore if you’re still concerned about your wedding planning experience, please don’t hesitate to get in touch so we can chat and help you to combat those worries and stresses. After all the lead up should be just as special and joyous as the day itself!
Photos by Natalie Lauren Photography