What Order should you book your wedding suppliers in?
So you’ve just got engaged and are faced with this enormous task or planning the best day of your lives!! Stressful is probably an understatement! At the beginning of your planning journey, thinking about everything that has to be planned can be a massively overwhelming feeling. We are here to help… you really don’t need to feel like you have to do everything at once. Breaking down your planning into manageable chunks is definitely the best way forward. This will make sure you stay focused, your allocating your budget sensibly and it will keep you moving forward and making progress.
With a wedding market full to the brim with helpful suppliers it can also be confusing to focus in on what you actually need. Instagram, Pinterest and the internet is crammed with ideas and ‘must have’s ‘ which can easily de-focus you and lead you down a rabbit-hole – before you know it you’ve bought your place cards for your guests when you haven’t even booked your venue. Because there are so many choices to make as well it’s really easy to focus on the details and get excited about those parts, leading you to miss important big decisions or overspend on the smaller, less important parts of your day. This is your definitive Wedding Planning Timeline.
Where should you start with Planning your wedding
Before you do anything, book anything, decide anything you really need to have a think about these key aspects of your wedding:
1. Budget!
How is this being paid for? Do you need to ask parents for help? What are you able to save each month to put towards your wedding fund? Get comfortable with this figure and be really honest with each other.
2. Date.
Now, what you’ve decided you can save each month may dictate when you get married. Having an idea of the year, the season you wish to get married in and if there is a special date you want to have your wedding on may all be factors in this decision.
3. Guest Numbers
You may not have an exact list of names but it’s really important to have an idea of how many people you would like to invite. This will have a massive impact on the venue you select and the way you host your guests.
For example falling in love with an industrial warehouse style venue for only 50 guests could mean you need to spend more budget on making the larger space feel more intimate for those numbers. Or, you have your heart set on a beautiful country house but need to fit 200 guests in – how could that work, would you need more budget for a marquee. Providing food and drink for all your guests will also be a huge part of your budget so consider this very carefully. A plated 3-course meal is likely to cost more than a BBQ or afternoon tea, multiply that by 100 guests and it soon makes a big difference to your budget.
4.The Legal Bit
Would you be looking at having a legal ceremony as part of your wedding day, would you want this to have a religious context? The answers to these questions will help you decide and shortlist your venues.
Now you have some of the key bits of information you can begin your research.
Picking your Wedding Venue
Definitely top of the list in order of your planning should be your venue. This is going to establish your date, what else you also need to book for your day, it’ll guide you to the suppliers who you need to book – especially if the venue runs a preferred supplier list. You can book this pretty much as early as you can.
Top tip here- don’t scrimp on the research. Get as much information before you do any venue visits as possible. Don’t go and visit loads and loads because it will be confusing and overwhelming. We did a huge live on this a couple of weeks ago so we have posted some of the key tips on our grid if you head there for more details.
If you aren’t booking a ‘venue’ and you are celebrating at home or at a dry hire venue then this is also the time to book the marquee structure you would need.
Book your wedding ceremony
Alongside your venue you will need to also secure your ceremony. If this is a registrar led ceremony at your venue then it is your responsibility to contact them yourselves and book this in. I would advise NOT getting a deposit paid to your venue until you have contacted the registrars and booked your ceremony in this instance. A lot of venues who are able to host legal registrar ceremonies will give you a grace period to hold your date and give you some time to get your legal ceremony confirmed – always double check and ask the question of your venue if this is a possibility.
If you’re having a religious ceremony then it’s still a good idea to get this booked in so you know that the time you want and the date also fits with your venue choice.
Once you have your ceremony you will also be able to start to get a better idea of some of the key timings for your day – this will be needed when you start booking some of the other suppliers.
Send your Save the Dates
Now is also the time to send out your Save the Dates if your wedding is more than a year away.
More than a Year to Go!
Assuming your venue doesn’t include catering then this would be the next thing on the list to secure.
The next suppliers to get secured are your photographer and make up artist/hair stylist. These suppliers get booked up really early on (sometimes 2 years in advance if they are good!). So do your research and shortlist your top 5 to then contact.
All of these big expenses are ones that you can do as soon as you’re able. If you’re planning more than 2 years in advance then I would say you can have a little rest from booking anything else now, if your wedding date is earlier then the next batch of suppliers would be the next level down in terms of expense.
One Year to Go!
THE DRESS! – dress shopping is bound to be one of the highlights so start this process in plenty of time to give you the best options. Some dresses can take 8 months if they are from overseas designers, then you need to allow time for final alterations.
Music – whether this is for your ceremony/reception or the evening party, again good local bands get booked well in advance so if you find one you like then don’t wait, secure them. The musicians you book will likely ask for some of your timings to gauge the hours they need to quote to you. So this is also the time to get an idea from your venue or caterers how long food service might take, the length of time they recommend for the drinks reception etc.
Videographer – often a bit of a later addition when couples find they have some spare budget, or change their minds and decide that they absolutely have to include a videographer. Again, like any of the suppliers, the great ones do get booked early.
Florist – Now’s the time to think about the pretty bit of your day! Get some mood boards from Pinterest, lots of inspiration photos.
Cake – if you’ve decided a cake is going to be part of your wedding day then get this booked 12-6months before your wedding date.
More than 6 months to go!
Bar/drinks – this will depend on the style of venue you have picked. So you will know if you require an outside bar company.
Hire equipment – if you have a dry hire venue then at least 8 months before your wedding you will need to arrange the hire of all the bits and pieces you need to make your day actually work! So, for example tables/chairs/catering gear, linens, tableware etc.
Decor – now you know more about how far your budget has stretched, what your day is going to look like, how the day is going to flow, you are well-informed to pick out some key decor pieces to personalise your day. Things like lighting, hiring in plants, vessels for florals, signage, candlesticks and other table decor are all finishing touches which can be confirmed 8 months or so before your big day.
Invites – I would start work on these about 5months before your wedding, with the aim to send these out about 3 months before. The reason for this is guests will often loose them and then if they have them for a long time before the RSVP date they put off sending their RSVP so you will have more chasing to do. Your RSVP date will need to be inline with when your caterers need their final numbers and dietaries. So give plenty of time to chase any stragglers and for you to then create your table plan.
Final 3 months.
At this point you will be speaking to the suppliers you have already booked. Checking the details with them, making sure what you booked is still relevant. Confirming final details and preparing the finishing touches. Creating your table plan, collecting any last minute RSVP’s and confirming final numbers to your venue are all key things at this point. Also, be prepared for all those final invoices from your wedding suppliers.
