If you want to get it right, planning a wedding is something you need to think very carefully about – it’s certainly not something to be rushed. Of course, that’s not to say that you can’t have a great wedding by simply going to city hall and being married there a few days after obtaining your marriage license. However, that might not be what you have in mind, and if you want something bigger with more component parts, planning is essential. Read on to find out what you need to consider before you do anything else.
The Budget
It’s never all that much fun to make a budget. It can even be stressful. At the very least, many people find it boring. However, without a budget, you might find yourself in difficulties. How will you know what you can afford to add to your wedding if you don’t know what you have to spend? Without a budget, it would be easy to assume you have more money than you really do and book too many elements. Not only would this be disappointing once you realize you can’t pay and have to cancel, but you might lose a deposit too, leaving you with even less to spend.
Equally, you might find that once you budget correctly, you have more than you thought, meaning you can add something you wanted but weren’t sure you could afford. Essentially, budgeting will make the entire planning process much smoother and hopefully mean you don’t miss out on something you definitely want to have.
The Venue
The venue is one of the most important things you can organize for your wedding, which is why it needs to be the first thing you do. Only once you have booked your venue will you have a date, for example, and unless you have a date, you won’t be able to book your transport, your catering, or even your honeymoon.
Plus, the venue is what sets the tone for the entire event. Getting married on a beach will be entirely different from getting married in a castle, for example. If you’re having trouble choosing, it’s best to ask for advice. One of the best people to ask is your chosen Chicago wedding photographer. They will have been to many weddings at a lot of different venues, and they can show you images from them all, giving you a much better idea of where you should hold your wedding.
The Suppliers
Once you have your venue organized, you can book your other suppliers. What suppliers you choose will depend on your tastes and what you want for your wedding, but some examples include a great photographer, a cakemaker, a dress designer, and a florist.
The best way to handle all of this is to make a spreadsheet. Here you can input each supplier, what they provide, their price, the deposit, and when to pay the balance. You can even include when they need to deliver the item or be at the venue. One spreadsheet can make a lot of difference between being confused and forgetting things and being organized and calm.
