When to start planning my wedding?

Question

my fiance and I have set a date for next August but he wants to start planning now... We are both in between jobs and trying to find jobs. I am also starting school on Aug 18th and will graduate from a one year program August 1st of next year. So when should we really start planning i dont want to rush but i feel like we have other things we need to take care of rite now. We do look at magazines and talk about it alot but i just dont fell like we have to start now. So what is the proper amount of time to plan a medium size wedding?

Answer 1

when you have time, start making some phone calls, if you get some stuff done soon, it will take the stress off later.  It doesn't take much time to get some of the major stuff set up.  But it isn't like you have to get started now.

Answer 2

As a wedding professional myself, we suggest that you start about a year ahead of time if you are having a summer wedding, you do not need to get your dress yet, in fact I would not suggest getting your dress till around 6 months ahead of time, do look at the kinds you like though, hone your style in dresses so you do not need to try on ever different style in the store.  But do get your ceremony and reception locations nailed down as they go fast in the summer and if you wait you may not get the weekend or day that you want.  If you are having a church wedding, be sure you talk to the pastor about how much skin can be exposed as it may limit your dress options, some congregations do not allow strapless dresses or halters/shoulders exposed etc..

Answer 3

Planning a wedding should be a wonderful experience, so the more time you have to plan it the better. It will eliminate the stress of any problem that may come up. Make sure to look for the reception hall first due to the fact that they are the first to be filled so the sooner you book the hall the better. The next thing would be one of the most IMPORTANT after saying "yes i will marry you" is your dress, go with your gut feelings about it and not your friends and family. Be prepared to put down lots of deposits. Also take this in consideration for wanting to plan this wedding early, It will cost considerably less than if you wait. Congratulations!! and good luck to you and your future husband.

Answer 4

One year is a good amount of time. You can try to get some things out of the way now so you can space out the tasks that way you don't get so stressed along the way. For example, booking the venue is something that should be done a year ahead (popular venues at popular times get booked out years in advance). And buying a dress should be done say 9 months ahead (some dresses take 6 months to make, and also you need to allow for alterations time).

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If you have the big ticket items sorted, then you don't need to start right now.

Remember...

* It takes time to find a dress that you like, suits you, and at your budget.

* Drawing up a guestlist and agreeing on a guestlist, and making or getting the invites organised etc also takes up some time. But this does not need to be started till say 6 months before the wedding.

* Need to decide on a budget early

* Plan and book your honeymoon stuff (do this a few months before your wedding so you can look for good deals and also not to be stressed about this right before the wedding)

Answer 5

I would recommend about 1 and a half - 2 years to fully prepare for a wedding! However, some people can throw together a beautiful wedding in just a couple of weeks. It all depends on you two.

You can easily plan a lovely wedding in just over a year. I think that is plenty of time, to plan everything, get things ordered, get invites sent out, etc. Good luck with it, make sure you dont let it interfere with your course!

Edit - it doesnt have to take the whole year, day in, day out. Have a look here : http://wedding.theknot.com/default.aspx?... - its the best wedding website going, and they have here : (dont know if itll work because i think you have to sign in) http://weddings.theknot.com/checklist/Vi... a checklist, that tells you the things you should have done by so many months before your wedding. Follow this and you should be fine!

Answer 6

well, i have known for almost 2 years what our wedding date is- but in that 1 yrs graduated college, bought a house, had a baby, went back to work full time... been bsuy!

I have been putting together an idea book of what I wanted since the engagement. But, for planning, I have only really been doing that in the last 6-7 months- AND I get marrid in 30 days and now am reallys tarting to put things together and finalize everything... I work better under pressue, I guess!. I would say an hour a day would suffice for time to plan- for 6 months or so... good luck!

Answer 7

6 months to a year ahead.  My wedding is in 5 months and I just started to plan.  Really no big deal.  But, it does depend on where you live!

Answer 8

I started planning in June 2008 for my wedding in June 2009.  Things book up so fast. I am not having a  HUGE wedding but believe me, photographers start booking dates, caterers, musicians, officiants, florists...  There is a ton of stuff to do. I never realized it . I am very happy that I have started my planning because all the major stuff is done and booked and I feel pretty stress free.

I kinda think you need to start now. Don't worry about your dress you need about 6 months to order that- maybe even less. So you could order your dress in February -March of next year and be safe. Plenty of time to woek on that diet. But maybe dress shoppingand browsing will keep you motivated.

enjoy your planning, don't stress.

Answer 9

start now, at least find the place you want to be married in (cermony and reception) and book it. me and my fiance haven't even sset a date and im planning it, we are waiting for the people sueing my car insarance to finish b4 we set a date but in the mean time he needs to know how much it will cost so he can save the money. oh and just cuz you don't plan to get your dress this early doesn't mean you should look at them. besides it take a bit of time to make the dress and you could always get it alltered.