3 Easy Steps to Get Your Wedding Planning Juices Flowing

Welcome to The Coordination Company's blog! It seems only right that our first blog post is about how to get started with wedding planning. I’ve created a guide with a few steps to help you get into the planning mode.

Step 1: Setting your Budget

This is the first thing you should be thinking about when you are beginning wedding planning. What can you afford? This will help you determine how many people you will be able to invite, what kind of venue you can have etc. This is a decision that will feed into every choice you make throughout the wedding planning process. This may be a more difficult task given there is no “right way” or secret formula to establishing your budget. A good place to begin is to determine the absolute maximum you and your family could afford to spend and scale down to what you think is appropriate. Keep in mind that there are a lot of extra expenses you might not think about when first planning a wedding. Did you know it costs between $20 - $100 (depending on your state) to obtain a marriage license? There’s also the rehearsal dinner, day after bunch and other activities to think about when establishing your budget. If you google “How to set your wedding budget” you will find cookie cutter pie charts for allocating funds within your budget. Every book I’ve read and every planning podcast I’ve listened to has said that this is just not feasible. When you think about it, priorities differ between each couple. The more personal your wedding feels the more impact your wedding will have on your guests.

Step 2: Determining Size

As I said in step 1 this is usually determined by your budget. Unless you have an unlimited budget in which case you go girl. But for the majority of couples, this will be a direct reflection of their budget. Some couples will decide to opt for a smaller guest list even if they have the budget to accommodate a much larger roster.

Tip: When planning a destination wedding, be prepared for more RSVPs to come back with declines.  It’s more difficult to gather all of your loved ones at a destination due to expenses, work schedules and children.

Step 3: Envisioning your Wedding

Simply starting to think about what you want for your wedding is a good step in the right direction. When thinking about your wedding experience, take all of your inspiration from you and your fiancé’s relationship. You’ll want to incorporate as many personal touches as possible. Your wedding day will be a story of your journey together and you’ll be able to communicate to your guests through stationary, color palettes and cuisine choices. Envision how you want to make your guests feel throughout the day.

These 3 tasks should get you well on your way to starting your planning journey. Once you have a good grasp on these steps you will be able to start contacting planers, venues, caterers, photographers, etc. Cheers to a new chapter of your life!

XOs,

Kate