Effortless wedding planning. Is there such a thing? Now that I’ve been through this process, I would like to think so. The one thing that made wedding planning so effortless for me was for sure having a long engagement. I had a lot of time to enjoy engagement, a lot of time to prepare and save for planning and by the time we were ready to make the leap, there were a lot of vendors we already had in mind thanks to our friends getting married before us.
If you’re in that position, use it to your benefit; that said I’m sharing 7 tips for effortless wedding planning.
Set a Budget
The first and most important thing that leads to effortless wedding planning is budget setting. Regardless if you have unlimited funds or are working with a smaller amount, you still need to communicate about what is important to you as far as the costs.
If the food and entertainment is super important, plan a larger amount for that. If venue is most important, focus on that, you get to decide what is most important and whatever that is, clear communication will lead to effortless wedding planning. For us personally, photography and certain decor items were really important so those were the things that we decided to put a bit more toward. For each couple it’s different.
Another tip for budgeting during wedding planning is to (in my opinion) not expect anything at first. Most of the time your families will chip in; but plan for your budget that you can actually afford if you had to pay for your wedding on your own. If that changes along the way, what a blessing, but effortless wedding planning comes with being honest about your finances.
If money is really a hang up for you, consider eloping, consider a longer engagement, or consider celebrating later; the party isn’t the most important part of marriage.
Plan Early
There is no such thing as planning too early. I know people will ask you a million questions in the beginning which will feel so overwhelming, but planning as early as possible is a great way to ensure you experience effortless wedding planning. Having a long engagement is still a reason to plan early. Since so many of our friends got married before us, by the time we set a date, I had booked all of our vendors by early spring.
A year out from our date, our wedding planning process truly became effortless because I got to coast most of the year knowing that all we had to do was pay final balances.*
*Fun Fact: I will say, no matter how early you plan, something will still come up.
Hire A Planner
Listen, if you REALLY want to have an effortless wedding planning experience, hire a planner. If you’re like me, I didn’t need a planner the whole way through since I do have experience with events, but I knew for a fact I wasn’t about to have my family running around like crazy people because I decided against a planner.
I opted for a month of planner and literally was so blessed to have someone who was there for me way beyond the one month period. We’re just now 3 months married
and honestly if I didn’t have my planner I know for a fact I would have been and felt all over the place. It’s amazing to have people in your corner, non bias to do what they can to make your big day special.
Communicate with Your Partner
It doesn’t matter the level of involvement each party desires, the most important thing is communication. Solid communication will surely lead to effortless wedding planning. My fiance knew that I would be able to handle most things, but I didn’t want to just assume that he would be okay with certain things or certain prices.
If you have a partner that doesn’t desire to be SUPER involved in the process use the details to include them even if they hit you with a “I don’t care whatever you want” attitude. Black is my fiances favorite color so I made sure to build off of that, I wanted to include as much black as possible because 1. it’s sexy and timeless and 2. it is a reflection of me and my man. We didn’t want floral print this or that, it was super important to keep a clean modern vibe for us. Little things like that even if your partner doesn’t care as much or cares much more, are helpful for effortless wedding planning.
Research, Research, Research
It can be easy to get discouraged during your wedding planning process. Searching for a venue, understanding prices, wondering if you actually need certain things is super intense, BUT if you spend the time doing your research it will turn things around.
Having a long engagement gave me a ton of time to research, and I swear I looked at every single venue option in LA. Our venue was always an option, but I wanted to still look in case there was a package or something that seemed to make more sense. Research helps provide an effortless wedding planning experience by putting you in control of things.
As you research you begin to get an idea and feel for what you want and what you don’t want and that makes it easier to start eliminating. The same goes for vendors, when it came to rentals I knew the style and look I wanted for certain things; I researched brands/vendors that I would order from in a heart beat, but that lead to a lot of separate companies, which is not the move at all in my opinion. After enough research and not settling, I was able to get EVERYTHING I wanted and then some, with one company. Had I not done the research I might have had myself all over the place with more contracts than necessary.
Stand Firm In Your Decisions
When you make a decision, stick to it unless absolutely necessary to change it. Sticking to and standing firm in your decisions is key for effortless wedding planning. Once the decision is made there is no turning back or bouncing back and fourth, you do that before you make a choice. Don’t let people pull and push you all over the place when it comes to decision making.
You know how tight or flexible your budget and everything else you have going on is, so make sure you stand firm. People should have to check with you and your partner before they decide, if people have the freedom (without your say) to do what they want, you will feel like no one is listening to what you want which can cause friction and stress you do not need. That doesn’t mean you need to be a monster, but stand firm; you’ll be extremely happy you did. Effortless wedding planning comes from making a choice as a couple and doing what is best for you both for your big day.
PAY ATTENTION
This is the most important thing, as you start to book and put deposits down, pay attention to your contracts. Pay attention to dates, times and addresses, those little details are extremely important and crucial to having an effortless wedding planning experience.
The distance a company has to travel to your venue could be a deal breaker as far as your budget is concerned so make sure you pay attention to that. If you are using your credit card there is a chance there is a transaction fee, there are just a million things that can so easily fall through the cracks if you’re not paying attention.
All in all effortless wedding planning is achievable if you set yourself up for success in advance. It can be a lot to take on depending on how quick the turnaround from your engagement date to your wedding date is, but it is certainly not impossible.
To my married readers, what are your tips for effortless wedding planning? Is there such a thing?
To read more about our wedding, see additional links below.
4 Things We Skipped At Our Wedding
My Beverly Hills Bridal Shower
