First 4 Things To Do After Getting Engaged

Wedding planning would be SO easy if there was a perfect formula for every step to do in order once you get engaged right? Unfortunately, there isn’t a foolproof method for wedding planning, but there are definitely some steps to accomplish amidst enjoying that shiny new object on your hand.

STEP 1: CREATE A NEW EMAIL

You will start getting a lot of emails as you inquire about vendors and plan your wedding. The last thing that you want is those emails getting lost amongst the spam in your day-to-day email inbox (even if you are really good about checking it)! Ideally, you should create a new email that represents your wedding or your future life together, i.e., the(insert your last names here)wedding@gmail.com or the(insert your new last name here) family@gmail.com. If you create the second option, you can even reuse the email as a family shared calendar after you’re married! The key is to create an email that you both have access to, and that is dedicated to wedding planning for the entirety of your engagement. Trust us, it will make a lot of the planning easier!

Step 2: Identify your budget

Your budget is what will determine every decision you make throughout the wedding planning process. From selecting your venue, picking each vendor, to deciding if you will have a late-night snack or party favors, your budget actually matters. If you start planning a wedding without a budget, it can become out of control QUICKLY. Identify a large big picture number - what is the top dollar that you are willing to spend, and set your limit under that number. There are going to be unexpected costs that come up that you’ll forget about: i.e., lighters for candles and pens for the guest book to tips for your vendors, and you will need the breathing room during those last few weeks.

Step 3: Determine your guest count, and then revisit your budget

Your guest count can quickly impact your budget in both positive and negative ways. We recommend opening an Excel/Google Sheets spreadsheet and creating 4 tabs: your family, your fiancés family, friends of all parents, and friends of you and your fiancé. Think of every single person that could possibly be invited - trust us on that. Think of your random Aunt Sally and give her and everyone else that would be invited a plus one. Save that as your “Guest List Version 1”. That number is the absolute max, and you know you won’t exceed that number.

Now for Guest List Version 2: start removing those plus ones that you gave to your Aunt Sally. You know Aunt Sally isn’t married and doesn’t have a plus one, so there’s no way you’ll have another member added to your family prior to your wedding. Keep doing this until you reach your target guest count. You’ve got this! You’re essentially working backwards to your goal guest count - which as we mentioned, can affect your budget positively or negatively. If you have too many guests, you will likely pay too much in catering or pay for a larger venue that you just don’t need. If you have the right number of guests, you are staying on track with your budget and choosing a venue that fits your day perfectly. Eventually your guest count plays into place settings, rentals, your bar, and so much more.

Finally, take a look at your budget again, and try to start outlining each category: catering and bar, venue, photographer, videographer, Photo Booth, rentals including linens and plateware/glassware, signage, and more.

Step 4: Rank months or times of the year for your wedding date

You and your fiancé should identify your preferred months of the year to get married! The fall months (i.e., September and October) almost always fill up first at venues, so if you are interested in a popular venue in your area, inquiring about their available dates sooner rather than later will be in your favor. It’s always good to have a realistic back-up or two months that you and your fiancé would still be okay with, in the case that your preferred month is already completely booked! Finally, be open to considering Fridays or Sundays if you are not flexible with alternate months.

Don’t forget to enjoy your engagement!

We sincerely encourage you to have fun through this process! We know that it’s stressful, believe me - we have been there! But it also can be really fun! We wish you the best of luck throughout this process and are so excited for you!

XO - Events by Madeleine