So you have just got engaged; congratulations! It is such a busy, a little crazy but an exciting time. I bet there are a lot of thoughts flying around your head and a lot of mixed emotions. But make the most of it. Enjoy being engaged and flashing off that beautiful ring. You may be planning a long engagement. You might be planning to get married soon and you’ve already chosen a date. Whenever you choose to get married, here are a few tips to help you plan your wedding. You will get a lot of (unsolicited) advice. Learn to take some of it on board but know what you need to dismiss. You can follow these tips to make it as stress-free as possible.

Get an Organiser

I think it is worth getting a planner or organiser that is specifically for wedding things. It will be handy to keep all your thoughts and notes together. It is great for making lists and keeping track of what you are doing. Make sure you write down and remember who you have assigned things to and what still needs to be checked off and done. It helps with budgeting too. Keep all your receipts so that you stay on track.

You’ll be visiting a lot of venues and seeing things like menus and price lists, so keep it all together. It will make things much easier in the long run when you can see everything together.

Set Yourself Targets

You will need to have a rough date in mind for your wedding. When you do, it is a good idea to set yourself some targets. Think about what needs to be done ahead of time and write down specific dates for it. Things like wedding invites should be sent at least four months before the wedding. The venue will need to be booked quite ahead of time, perhaps around a year in advance. Dress fittings need to be in the weeks leading up to the wedding. The list goes on and on. Making deadlines and writing it all down will help you to stay focused and organised. It all needs to be done but no need for it to all stress you out.

Set a Budget

It is a good idea to know the budget that you have to work with fairly early on. It will influence what you choose and where you go. You and your fiance might be paying for it yourselves. Parents or relatives may be helping out. It is a good idea to find out, in a roundabout way, what money is available to spend.

Be Clear on Contracts

This is a piece of advice in the future when you are dealing with caterers or hotel managers. When you are choosing venues or food, even the cake or flowers, make sure everything is clear. You don’t want anything to go wrong so make sure the person understands exactly what you are after. Double check dates and deposits and make sure what you expect is spelt out exactly. Don’t worry that you appear to be difficult. You won’t be and they will be used to dealing with such contracts all the time. It is going to be one of the most important days of your life so it is vital that it is just as you want it.

Don’t Go Homemade

If you want the wedding to be as stress-free as possible, it is a good idea to outsource everything. Making things at home can be super stressful as it takes up a lot of time. Sometimes the easiest option is to have a professional deal with. Take the invitations for example. You may have just the idea in your head of what you want them to look like. When it comes to making them, it could all go wrong. This wastes money and adds stress. Think about having someone else make them, like these wedding invites by Paper Themes.

Your Fiance

An important point to remember is that it is your fiance’s wedding too. Plan with them and get their input. You might feel that all the stress is on you and they aren’t helping out. They may feel like they aren’t able to help out. So just make sure that you include them. Give them assignments and share the workload. Then no one can complain that they weren’t asked to help.

Good luck with the rest of your wedding plans. It is such an exciting time but doesn’t need to be hectic or stressful.

Tips for Planning a Stress Free Wedding