First 5 steps when entering your wedding planning journey

Hello Gorgeous!

So, you’re engaged?? Congratulations! I couldn’t be happier for you! The Certified Wedding Planners at Infinity Events truly understand how daunting the wedding planning journey and task list can look, but we are here for you. Let’s go through the first 5 steps you should take to begin your wedding planning!

The Budget

The first thing that every couple needs to do is talk money. I know… this is the least fun topic ever, but the reason you should conquer this first is so you won’t have to have the dreaded and uncomfortable conversations after decisions are already made. Truly, every decision and priority comes down to dollars and cents. I suggest having a conversation together as a couple first. See how much, if any, the two of you are willing to contribute to the wedding budget and talk about your top priority vendors while you’re at it. Communication is essential to making sure both parties are being represented in the wedding plans and design. The next conversation should be with any other financial contributors about what they expect to put forward. This should help determine top amount available for the huge project ahead. Sometimes couples procrastinate these conversations because they’re afraid of being disrespectful of those who are being so gracious in their contributions. I get that, but it is absolutely possible to be completely respectful of the funds available and come in under budget, but it is important to understand the full limitations.

There are also many couples are coming to me lately with a different perspective. They don’t really have a budget, but want to understand and agree with the value-add of each vendor category. This is a fine mindset as long as there truly isn’t a top line number that needs to be acknowledged.

The Guest Count

Something I say all of the time to couples and potential couples is that your guest count and your budget need to correlate or you will inevitably have to change something down the line. What will happen is either you will be forced to uninvite people (Yikes!) or come up with more dollars, which is sometimes not an option at all. If you know your approximate guest count from the beginning, your Certified Wedding Planner can help you make decisions accordingly. Another piece of this is choosing the right venue for you, and the venue is very dependent on the guest count as well. $30,000 for 30 people goes a lot further than it does for 300 people. Remember that you are helping yourself if you come up with that estimated number sooner rather than later in your planning journey.

The Wedding Planner

So… I might be biased, BUT the very first vendor you should book for your wedding is a Certified Wedding Planner! The reason I say this is because the biggest thing that you are paying for when you hire a Planner is our relationships, knowledge, and general education for yourself so you can make wise decisions throughout the process of planning. You might be asking, “how can I book a planner without a firm date? Don’t I need to book a venue first?” You are not wrong in being concerned about this, and if you do book a Planner first, you will need to work around your availability and the planner’s availability when choosing the perfect date and venue. But I have some great news! Your planner can REALLY help you when you are on the venue hunt. We can help you make appointments and see things about the venues you are touring that maybe you don’t see by pointing out pros and cons based on the experience that we have and bring to the table. After the venue, your Planner stays alongside you throughout the whole journey, continuing to help you make those wise choices that you will never regret!

The Venue

The next vendor you should book very quickly after beginning the planning process is, you guessed it, a venue! So much of your wedding can be dependent on the venue, its style, its history, its capacity, and its policies, so securing this can determine and impact many other choices down the line. Also, most venues can only host one event per day, so make sure to get on their calendar asap!

Relax & Trust

Now that you have a Certified Wedding Planner and a venue, you are officially allowed to relax a bit! Allow your Certified Wedding Planner to help take you through the steps in a timely manner and focus your energy on your relationship, enjoying your engagement season, and being a gracious person to all of the people around you who will inevitably shower you with love!

The Challenge

This is my challenge for you, gorgeous couples. Enjoy your engagement season fully, be crazy in love, and curate a year that will produce incredible memories that you will cherish for a lifetime. And, one more plug for you, think about hiring an educated, Certified Wedding Planner with Infinity Events so that we can help you do just that!