Planning

Yes ma'am. I use a binder and excluded many things that didn't matter to me. Such as favors, programs, spouse gifts, etc.

View Quoted Comment Yes, I recently bought a wedding binder. Hope it helps me keep on track.

Hi May! A sweet relative of ours who did hire a wedding planner gave me the best tip that the professionals do! Excel spreadsheet and place the timeline for the entire day starting at 7am with the activity to occur (example: 1:00pm - florist arrives to setup - florist name, phone number, address and how long it will take). Be sure to have whoever is placing your linens down completes before your florist arrives ❤️ Send final copy to all vendors. If a vendor needs to talk to the florist or whoever, they have their name and number right there. Good luck!!

Congratulations on getting engaged! Tons of brides plan their own weddings. You will want to start by creating a budget then your guest list. Both of these will help you when it comes to finding your venue. A lot of venues provide in-house catering and therefore charge per person so you will need to know roughly how many people you plan on inviting to make sure that the venue you select will fit within your budget. You will also want to make sure that the venue can accommodate the number of people you plan on inviting. I've seen numerous posts on here where the couple realized the venue was too small after the fact so they had to pray enough people wouldn't attend which definitely isn't ideal.

I would recommend getting a wedding planning book or using the checklist on here or The Knot (another wedding planning site similar to this). My mom bought me the The Knot wedding planner which I loved having because I could take it with me to meetings with venues and other vendors. It was also great to have all of the information in one place rather than papers and things in several different places. I have linked The Knot planner below.

I would also check out Jamie Wolfer's YouTube channel. She is a wedding planner who makes weekly videos providing advice to couples getting married. Just this week she released a where to start video for couples that just got engaged. It included a ton of useful information. She also had a free timeline that you can download. As well a 6 or 12 month program that you can buy if you choose that she created to walk you through the wedding planning process like she would if you were one of her clients. I have also linked her channel below.

If you are looking for ideas, I would recommend Pinterest. I created a Pinterest board for all things wedding related. I also broke it down into sections so I had a section for wedding dresses, bridesmaids, flowers, hair and makeup, etc. It not only helped me when it came to deciding what I liked, but it also helped my vendors see what I liked because some of them asked me to send them my link so they could really get a feel of what I wanted for my wedding day.

I would also either create a separate email or folder within your existing email for all things wedding related. That way you can stay organized. I also created a folder on my desktop for all things wedding where I saved all of my contracts and any other forms I received such as the form my DJ sent us to fill about about what songs we wanted for special moments like the first dance.

The Knot Planner: https://www.walmart.com/ip/The-Knot-Ultimate-Wedding-Planner-Organizer-binder-Edition-Hardcover-9780770433369/20664188?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&&adid=22222222227000000000&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=42423897272&wl4=aud-1025747331336:pla-51320962143&wl5=9007869&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=20664188&veh=sem&gclid=CjwKCAiAouD_BRBIEiwALhJH6DAKWwfTZrNPX1AXkXDhuvLVWBJTgUPVs9L4VtOfGt2D3hDCVYDyHhoCz3AQAvD_BwE

Jamie Wolfer (wedding planner) YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdAcY6YGgF-RgGYXTsOENbA

Most people here are planning on their own without a paid planner. Those who do have a planner are only hiring them for the last month.


Get a 3 ring binder from Target/Walmart with pocket protectors to store paint chips for colors, contracts, receipts, etc. So much cheaper than the premade ones.
Google Sheets has a wedding planning template you can customize.
Ask any and all questions on the forums. Use the search feature to locate past topics that have been discussed.
Sit down with your fiance to discuss your top 3-5 priorities. Usually the guest experience (food/drink/entertainment that they do not pay for themselves) and photos. Skip the rest. The only things that are required are your fiance, an officiant, license, and a reception for all guests attending the ceremony. Everything else is optional and things like champagne, favors and photobooths will not be missed.
Take a look at Eventective.com for a venue. Be very careful with all inclusives because they have minimums you may not be able to meet and include aspects you may not not be able to eliminate if you don't or can't afford them.
Go on Yelp and Thumbtack.com in your area to look for vendors. Price depends on where you are located. What people on the forums are paying is relevant only to them, not you, because everyone is scattered across the country.
Avoid the word wedding whenever possible because it makes the price increase astronomically. Go for grocery store flowers/cake, corporate catering, etc to get better quality at a lower price.

For sure have lists!

one list for things you need to buy, one list for things to do, one list for guests and their contact info, etc.

it sounds like a lot of lists but it helps you know what you need to do and buy

Congrats on your engagement May!!

I've planned my wedding from top to bottom. When we originally had planned on hosting out of state, I had hired one because I wasn't able to physically be there but since our new plans are now local, I basically took over everything. I had bought a binder and ended up using a few pages. It was personally a waste of money for me. I use excel spreadsheets and the planning tab provided on this platform. It helps to a T and I haven't missed a beat because of it. Just like the first comment, we also disregarded any portion that didn't pertain to our vision.

Wishing you the best of luck!

Doing it on my own. The venue has a day-of coordinator or I would have hired one.
I don’t mind staying up late to get decor in order but I’m not directing traffic in my wedding day!

I'm basically planning my own. I'm the last of my close friends to marry and I basically did my younger sister's. I have anxiety in general and lack of control is a horrible trigger that my fiance is well aware of. I bought a binder and have been organizing since. I have no issues speaking up for myself or asking a million questions if it means getting answers.

I'm planning my own wedding and found a free printable download wedding binder from the Basic Invite website. Also, the checklist on Wedding Wire is helpful because you can eliminate or add anything you need to remember. Hope that helps!

View Quoted Comment Thank you ladies for all the responses! Best of luck planning!