How to Plan a Wedding in Less Than a Year
We witness a lot of weddings. Some have been in the works for years others have weddings in 6-9 months. You can have a beautiful wedding no matter what timeframe. I know that not everyone wants to wait a year before getting married. We will cover the steps to have a wonderful wedding in less than a year.
STAY ORGANIZED
Staying organized will be your best friend. You are planning a wedding with life going on around you. Make sure to stay organized. I found that every major wedding website has its wedding planning feature. You can also be old school (my favorite) and use a pen and notebook.
Keep your guest list organized in an excel spreadsheet. This is a great way to keep track of addresses, invites, RSVPs, and gifts received. If you buy invitations online choose a place that allows you to upload your guest list. This will save you time! You need all your time when planning weddings.
As a vendor, I use Honeybook to communicate with clients. If you work with a vendor that uses this then yay! It will make your life easier because you will be able to pay them with a credit card. It also streamlines the process and keeps all communication in one place.
For vendor payments, make sure to have alerts so you don’t miss the 2nd and 3rd payments for anyone. You don't want someone chasing you the day of your wedding to get paid.
Save the Dates are fun but can be sent through email. Photo by LA Love Weddings
FLEXIBILITY
This is number one when planning your wedding at the last minute. You will need to be flexible in your ideas. You are competing with the people that have been planning their wedding a year in advance. There are more than enough vendors for everyone. Even if planning last minute. But it comes down to being open-minded and creative. You have to look deeper than the sources all the brides are using. Go past the first few pages of The Knot and Wedding Wire. Here are some more ways to be flexible:
Getting married on a weekday or Sunday if you love the venue but all Saturdays aren't available. Plus sometimes it's a bit cheaper.
Don't send Save the Dates in the Mail. You can often send emails and they work great.
Photo by LA Love Weddings
GET THE VENUE FIRST
If you want to have a sigh of relief get your Wedding venue out of the way fast. Be picky but go in it knowing how many venues you can see within your timeframe. Take a month and see as many venues as you can early in your wedding planning journey. Research them ahead of time to make sure:
They fit your style
They are within budget
What they offer that you need
To see if a venue is a good fit always ask to see a pricing guide before visiting a venue. If they don't offer one scratch them from your list. You don't have a lot of time so it's best to have a process of elimination.
White Floral Design. Photo by LA Love Weddings
White Floral Design. Photo by LA Love Weddings
VENDORS
When it comes to vendors they tell you to book them early or you will miss out on your favorites. I wouldn't let that scare you there are a lot of wonderful vendors out there. You will find someone available on your date. But coming from a wedding vendor background here is our two cents:
If you vibe with someone and like their work regardless of how many reviews they have. You should book them. There are only so many weekends in a year for weddings and there is a good chance they will get snatched up. If you like them then other couples like them too.
All vendors with excellent quality of work will be around the same costs. There aren't a lot of price differences when you are looking for professional vendors. Again remember there are only so many weekends in a year for weddings. Trust me they at least have 1-2 other couples that are going to ask for the same weekend as you. So don't try to negotiate too much on the pricing. It's okay to ask but understand where they are coming from as well.
Focus on which vendors are the most important for you and go from there.
Men’s Custom Suit. Photo by LA Love Weddings
Smiling Bride. Photo by LA Love Weddings
DRESS OR CUSTOM SUIT
Wedding dresses take a long time. If you want to get a wedding dress that is fit for your body then you need to make this a priority. It can take months for a custom wedding dress to be complete. Plus you have to have time for alterations as well. This is the same for custom suits.
You don't need to take the traditional route when getting a dress or suit. But if you need to have something unique then take care of this around the same time as the venue.
If you would like LA Love Weddings to be part of your special day check out our videography and photography packages here. We would love to capture your wedding!
