You’re engaged – yay! This is the most exciting time of your life, however you know you’re going to have to start planning your wedding really soon. The first step in this process to determine your wedding vision – this is done before you choose the venue, the dress, the date. All you have chosen so far is your future spouse!
Don’t worry, this part can be really fun! It’s where the dreaming comes in. It involves lots of pinterest and blogs and color schemes – who doesn’t love that? If this sounds overwhelming, here is our guide to creating your wedding vision.
Identify your overall goals for the wedding day
Are you a relaxed and laidback couple who spends your weekends on hikes or in a cabin in the woods? Maybe an outdoor backyard wedding in the fall would be a great way for you to celebrate. Or if you are both huge foodies and love entertaining family and friends, then a long feasting lunch outdoors might be your idea of the perfect day.
If there is a particular memory or hobby you share that is special to you, then it can be a nice personal touch to incorporate this into your wedding vision as well. For example, if you have fond memories of the first trip you took together to Mexico then why not allow this to be a part of your inspiration with a Mexican menu or tropical plants included in the décor?
Once the planning starts it can be hard not to get caught up in the little things and forget about the big picture – so sit down with your partner and talk about your absolute essentials for the day and the things that are the most meaningful to you.
Set the tone
Next, you’ll probably want to decide the tone of your wedding. Do you want it to be formal, casual, or somewhere in-between? You will also need to decide if you want a religious or secular ceremony.
You need to decide what you want your wedding to feel like. A good way to start planning this is to sit down with your partner and start jotting down your visions. You’ll be able to narrow it down as you go.
Create your aesthetic
When it comes to the style and aesthetics of your day, it’s likely you have some dream wedding inspiration tucked away somewhere already – whether it’s a Pinterest board, torn out photos from a bridal magazine, or a phone album filled with Instagram screenshots.
It might even be a tangible thing like a postcard you have saved or a swatch of fabric that you love. Gather all of your inspiration together in the one place, and make sure you cull any inspiration that is no longer relevant or that you aren’t one hundred percent in love with. There is definitely such a thing as ‘too much’ inspiration and you don’t want to become overwhelmed by having too many ideas!
Once you have culled your inspiration, you can start creating a vision board – online tools like Pinterest or Canva are a super easy way to do this, but you can also get old-school with a scrapbook or journal.
Determine your budget
Setting your wedding budget is one of the first things that need to be done. You will need to figure out who is helping to contribute financially (if anyone) and how much they are willing to contribute. Then, you’ll need to figure out how much you and your partner can contribute.You need to figure out how much you and your fiancé are comfortably able to put toward your wedding.
Here are some things to think about when figuring out what you’re able to contribute:
- How much money are you willing to take out of your existing savings accounts to put toward the wedding?
- How much money are you able to save between now and the wedding?
- What percentage of your monthly income can go toward the wedding?
These are all super important to consider when trying to figure out how much money you want to spend toward your wedding! Once you have your budget determined, Stick! to! it!
Get Wedding Planning Support!
The final step to beginning your wedding planning is to get all of the support that you can find.
First, you’ll want to consider hiring a wedding planner. Whether you choose a full-service planning package or a month-of coordination package, a wedding planner can help ease a lot of the stress of wedding planning! We can help you choose the best vendors for your personality and needs, save you money, and more.
Next, be sure to utilize all of the online resources that you can find. This could be checklists, The Knot, WeddingWire, and more.
Finally, use the people that are closest to you. If you don’t ask them for help, then they won’t ever know you need help! Ask your fiancé to go to appointments with you, ask your parents to help with tasks, and ask your bridal party to help you. You’ll be surprised at how much people are willing to help with your wedding!