Wedding Planning: Where to Start

Hey, that’s a totally normal feeling. Some of the first steps are to talk with your fiancé a bit about the big picture of the wedding, like setting a rough budget, choosing a city to get married in (destination? Hometown? City you live in now?) and discussing whether you’d like a large or smaller wedding. Those three things plus your date will help guide you in finding a venue.


If you’ve done that already, some of the next steps are booking an officiant, caterer, band/dj, and photographer. Then a florist. But all of that comes after you have a venue and a date.

Welcome to the club and congratulations. To start off I would go to pinterest for color palettes ideas for June weddings. Then think about what type of wedding you want to have so that will give you an idea of what venue to look for. The good thing is that you have a lot of time. Browse the internet for ideas and that you start you off.

View Quoted Comment Thank you! And I do want a beach ocean wedding I have been dreaming about it for years.

View Quoted Comment Thank you! I mean my fiance gives me a 4000 to 6500 budget and we both agreed on a beach wedding but he said figure everything else out and he plans the honeymoon..... take this into consideration he said we will be traveling for 2 months......

View Quoted Comment Oh wow thats nice. I would go for bright and ocean colors. Good luck with everything

I just wanted to say congrats to you! I can’t offer that much help as I had a wedding planner and she did everything. But start with your budget. Only you and your fiancé and determine that! Start thinking of color scheme and how you want the overall day to look. Pinterest and bridal magazines were a plus for me. Pay attention to contracts and ask as many questions as possible. You never know what will happen, COVID... it’s killing us June 2020 brides! Oh and have tons of fun! Try on a crap ton of dresses and go to the bakers who give free samples!! Have fun! And good luck to you!!!

View Quoted Comment Thank you so much! I hope your wedding day is perfect! Us women have to stuck together when the men are no help! 🤣

Budget is the first thing to do. After that, I started jotting things I must have at my wedding. Then I looked up venues. Good luck!

View Quoted Comment Thank you! You too as well!

View Quoted Comment Thank you! Goodluck to you as well!!

Since you have your budget, your next step would be guest list. It is single-handedly the biggest budget breaker. Given that you're having a smaller budget, you'll probably need to limit your guest list to under 50. When you say you want to get married on the beach, are you close to one? Would you need to factor travel into that budget? Once you've settled the guest list and the location, I would look at restaurants in the area with a private room that you can rent for your reception. They are often less expensive than typical venues. Once you find the reception space, you can see what the rest of your budget looks like and can begin to knock out your other major vendors: photographer, officiant, DJ (if you want the dancing aspect of the reception). While the budget you're working with is doable, you'll definitely need to be very organized about where you're spending the money; it's very easy to overspend without realizing it!

View Quoted Comment Thank you! And were looking about 6500 to 9000 max. We are looking to get married on myrtle beach SC. I would love some more advice from you!

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Unfortunately, I'm on the other beach (So Cal), so I don't have any suggestions for venues, etc. for you. I would look up the regulations in SC for getting married on a beach (do you need a permit, are there specific locations, etc.). Do you have an idea of the number of people you want to attend? Like I said before, that will be the biggest cost for your budget. Do you want a typical reception or are you happy with a dinner that doesn't have dancing?

View Quoted Comment I mean I dont have a big family nor a big group of friends it would probably only be 70 people if not that. I do want dancing of course for the first dance. I wouldnt need a permit unless I'm driving on the beach.

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A quick search brought me to this page which has some information regarding beach weddings in Myrtle Beach: Myrtle Beach Wedding Rules . 70 people would put your $9000 max at $128 per person. I would search restaurants with private rooms that you can rent out that are more in the $30-$50 per person range. That would leave you with about $5500 which could get you a photographer, cake, light florals, officiant, and potentially a DJ for just a couple hours of dancing. My step-sister had her reception at a restaurant some years back and I believe had a DJ. Food was great and while it wasn't the "typical" reception, it was still a great time -- low key, relaxed, focused on socializing.

The WeddingWire checklist is really helpful, but generally set a budget first. That will help determine the size of wedding you can accommodate and narrow down venues, which will help you pick a date. Some venues may include services like catering or coordinators while others require you to bring everything in. Then check out the checklist and determine roughly when you should start hiring vendors.

View Quoted Comment Thank you!

View Quoted Comment Yes I am looking for the same thing something cool and laid back not really wanting something extravagant as I am wearing boots to my wedding as well as my maid of honor and brides maids. It's really going to be like a ocean country wedding.

View Quoted Comment Omg a two month honeymoon sounds amazing! I want to vicariously plan that for you!! Do you live near a beach or would you travel?

View Quoted Comment Were definetly traveling he gave me two of the places were going to...... Rome and Scotland..... he said theres about 5 others maybe more....... he spoils me too much 🤣😅