How to plan a wedding. Love, Your florist.
I talk to a lot of brides to be. Inquiries for my flower business, people I know, parents of kids who are trying to figure out what to do, and it’s a LOT. There’s so much that goes into wedding planning. It’s overwhelming, especially if you’re trying to work full time, move, or just please everyone around you with all your decisions. (You shouldn’t do that by the way, because it won’t work.) It would be super great if we could all just hire wedding planners to do everything for us, but sometimes that just doesn’t work out with our budgets. However, if you are able to hire a planner, that’s your first step! For those of you who are here for all the steps and you’re doing this yourself, this is for you!
It’s super easy to plan the things you are really excited about. I was very excited about my wedding flowers (naturally) and wanted to focus on that from the beginning. Unfortunately, flowers are not usually the place to start. Your floral style can dictate what you do with the rest of your wedding, but typically florists should be round two of the “big things”. There are three things I’d start with if I were planning a wedding again and here they are:
The Venue
Your venue’s availability is probably going to have the biggest impact on setting your wedding date over any other factors in your life. Sure, you may need to navigate other family events, Grandpa’s 70th birthday, Aunt Barbara’s yearly trip to the Bahamas (if you care that much), and holidays, but if you are eyeing your dream venue, the moment you’re ready to begin planning, start making those inquiries. Venues book fast and you want to make sure you get into that beautiful building with the most perfect spot for cocktail hour. As a designer, the foundation of your wedding design and vibe is going to come from your venue. Getting that venue is so important!
The photographer
Photographers book up pretty quickly as well. And finding the photographer you want who is available on the date you just set can also be difficult. A lot of times, especially in Utah, photographers are networked and they know who has a similar style. If your desired photographer isn’t available, they might know someone else who will take similar photos who is. Don’t be afraid to ask them for recommendations after your inquiry!
The Dress
Finding that perfect dress may take you some time, so you should begin looking as soon as possible. Dresses can sometimes have features that are customizable, like the color of the liner or the underlay of the bodice. These usually have to be ordered to and can take up to a couple of months. I’ve also never seen a bride buy a dress that didn’t need some sort of alterations. These can take a month or more as well. Give yourself as much time to look and get it altered to be exactly how you’d like it. You don’t want to have to rush this process! Get that dress as soon as possible!
These are the “Big Three” to start with when wedding planning. They’re the most time consuming, the most important, and the hardest to get booked because of availability. Starting here will ensure you don’t have any surprises a hopefully help you get the started on planning your most beautiful day! These can go truly go in any order, especially if you have a photographer you just can’t live without. You can use your photographer’s availability to dictate your wedding date. The next three areas of focus would be (1.) invitations, (2.) floral designer/decor design, and (3.) food and catering. Invitations are on a timeline, especially if you’re going to have a lot of out of town guests. Floral designers only have so much availability. Food and catering is usually pretty flexible and easy to come by. Take a deep breath, make a list, and just know you’ve got this thing. I’m here to help along the way!
