How do you plan a wedding?!?!?!
 

Ok - I was SO excited to get engaged this weekend. I have been with my boyfriend (oops! - my FIANCE) Scott for almost 9 years, and I have been waiting for this day since I was about 5 years old. BUT...I don't know the first thing about planning a wedding!!!! We've only been engaged for 6 days and we are already being bombarded from family & friends with "do this" "do that" "don't do this" "don't do that" "make sure you invite so and so" "you better not invite so and so" AAAAHHHHH!!! It's only been 6 days!!!!! I'm already stressed out! :shocked7q

just want to congradulate you on your engagement... one thing, dont let it
stress you out... when i was getting married, my ex husband did everthing,
i really couldnt be bothered. it was toooooooooo much for me to handle .
i had invited 400 people to my wedding and 300 people came to it...
i had a big italian wedding.. i have a big family and so did my ex....i just want to tell you this.. just make sure you have great music , thats what really counts...

I love what you said about the music! I will definitely make that a priority!

CONGRATULATIONS AND yes - the music IS important - For the Wedding AND the reception - We spent a TON of time on music for my son's wedding....GOOD LUCK girl - and I'm very happy for you

I bet you were easier to deal with than my future mother-in-law!! She already has a list of 40 "must invites"!!!! 30 of them I have never met!!

and one more thing i need to tell you about getting married, if you have a
load of people like i did... dont bother going up to every single person
and saying hello to them. i missed so much of my day you cant even believe.
it took me forever and i didnt enjoy myself at all. i think i saw myself like
3 times on the dance floor... before i knew it, it was over...

Congrats!! i'm sorry i can't offer any advice!! I haven't made it that far in life yet!

I do event planning as part of my design business...holler for whatever you need help with.
here's my get started list.
Set a general date, but be flexible until you contact locations and find the one you like the best.
Start scouting locations.
Decide on # of people and stick firmly to the amount, politely let your mil to be know it's up to you to decide what's feasible. choose wedding party.
Choose time of day for wedding/reception...this helps narrow down meal decisions/ brunch, formal dinner etc..and clothing options.
Decide what style suits you best...traditional,formal, lavish, elegant, simple, festive, unique.
Music is key. It's okay to combine styles for different times during the day. Check availability of musicians/dj's etc.
Line up a photographer...check out a few.
Start thinking about colors/theme. Keep in mind that although fuschia may be your fave, many people don't like (or look good) wearing it...use it as an accent.
Caterers and Cake, who doesn't like thinking about cake.
Gorge yourself on bridal magazines. Create a file with tear sheets of what you love.
Relax, the details will somehow miraculously fall into place and the oopses are great memories to cherish.
best wishes

WOW jessica CONgRATS!!
totally agree with everyones advice .. make sure you pick great bride maids to help you out w/ur planning ..
reception is very important...
your dress..
the DATE! when are you planning for the big event?
color theme for your wedding
OH BUDGET!! how much are u willing and have to spend...
PHOtographer!
omgsh .. imma bm (bridesmaid) in my friends wedding coming up next year so im kinda in that mode rite now lol
if you have more questions ask away.. :) congrats again and wow after 9 years ur getting married!! IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!

Thanks so much - this is really helpful. I am thinking about October of next year, so that'll give me a year to plan. Thank God Scott is so good. He can put up with all my craziness!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Listen kindly to others & then do what YOU want - it's your day!!! You won't be able to please everyone & everyone has their own ideas about what you should do - some ideas you might like, some will be ridiculous! :rolleyes: Have you set a date yet? There are tons of sites online that will help you with a list of things to do & the order things should be done like reserving a church, choosing dress, ordering invitations, registering, etc. It can become overwhelming, but DON'T LET IT! - take one day at a time! Again, congrats! ((I'm about to become a mother-in-law myself in January!)

Thanks & congrats on becoming a mother-in-law! You better be nice ;)

Congratulations! I am no help in this department as I have never even been close to marriage but it looks like you got good advice and direction! I'm so happy for you! Simon and Hallie say you better make sure you have wedding doggie treats for Biddy and Tucker and they think that is important ;)

CONGRATS!!

I have to say though that if I had waited a whole year just to get married ... I wouldn't be :rolleyes:

Congratulations on your engagement! Trust me, enjoy every second of the planning, no matter how stressful it may seem. This is one of the best times of your life. My husband and I planned our whole wedding in less than 3 months and it was very stressful but we made the best of it and picked almost everything out together from the flowers to food. Remember what's most important is the end product which is the fact that you and your husband will be married and building a life together.

Congratulation!!!:) I was just married a little over a year ago so I totally feel for you. It can be very stressful, Have you thought about hiring a wedding planner? We ended up having a wedding in San Diego and then 2 receptions in 2 different states including indiana where I am from. :eek: but it was all worth it! Anyways get lots and lots of books and its a good idea to get all the information you can from experienced event planner.. I used this site alot when I was planning... www.theknot.com. It was soo much help.


good luck and take care

Brianna

That's so funny - I registered on theknot.com yesterday! That site is awesome! Thanks again everybody :)

I married 2 years ago and I can give you one VERY good piece of advice:
Do what YOU 2 think is right and ONLY that! Screw what the rest of the family thinks, if they don't like it they can stay away.
This is YOUR big day and you should remember this as the perfect day, just as you dreamed it. So DON'T listen to suggestions for guest lists or the such - invite who YOU want to share the most beautiful day of your life!

And congratulations - getting married is awesome :)

(Remember to walk slowly down the isle to really feel the guests stare at your beauty - grrrreat feeling!)

Yayayay!!! Congrats!!!!! I am soooo happy for you!!!!!!!
I love the Knot!!! I too was on there!!!!! They give you sooo much info, its sooo crazy!!!! Getting married is sooo much fun, but along the way, try to keep the main reason you are getting married in perspective---staring a life together and having a wonderful marriage! It can get sooo crazy--just keep that in mind all the time!!! :)

My 1st ainniv is next month--and the Knot will keep up to date with you!!! It iss soo cool-- after 1 month of being married, they send you a Happy 1 month Anniv, and so on and so on!!!! It is really neat!!!!!



Another thing I would suggest to you is get a binder, and along the way, if you see apic in a magazine of something you like, such as a dress, or flowers or anything to do with the wedding itself, tear the page out, and put it in a binder!!!!! So you have all your ideas in 1 place!!! Then get a 2nd binder, and only put the pages in there of the things you really, really like!!!! Then when you go to meet people pertaining to the wedding--you have pics of everything you like!!!! And they can go from there!!!!!


Have fun with this and enjoy it!!!!! It goes by soo fast!!!! But the best part is when its all said and done-- you have a wonderful Husband and the 2 of you can start your wedded life together!!! That is the greatest feeling!!!!

-Best wishes to you!!!
Mandy

Congratulations! I don't have any great advice but here are a few things that were really helpful to me:

Ultimate Wedding.com - They used to have a great forum there but it looks like it's been removed but the site itself is really great.

Wedding Channel.com - This site also has great info and has a message board.

Bridesave.com - This is a really great site for wedding dresses. I actually bought my dress off the rack at their store in Midland, TX. Their prices usually are tons better than a lot of fancy bridal salons and their customer service is fantastic. And even if you don't use it to buy a dress at, it's awesome to be able to look at so many dresses on one site.

Bridal Bargains: Secrets to Throwing a Fantastic Wedding on a Realistic Budget by Denise Fields & Alan Fields - This is by far the best wedding book ever. It was my wedding bible. Even if you aren't planning a wedding on a budget, this book is indispensable with all the helpful tips it has.

Cyberbride: The Complete Online Guide to Planning Your Wedding by Denise & Alan Fields - Another great book by the same authors. I did a HUGE amount of wedding stuff online and this was a great resource.

I think both of the books are out of print but you should be able to get them easily used on eBay or Amazon. I bought tons of books and tons of magazines and those two books were the only ones I kept returning to and they were worn to bits by the time my wedding was over.

Congratulations! I would strongly suggest buying a wedding planner book and a wedding etiquette book. They will save you time, money and embarassment!

Thank you all so much - this is really great advice!!! Luckily - I have a friend whois trying to start her own bakery and is trying to get practice making wedding cakes. Check out these 2 that she made recently. Not bad, huh?

I agree!! The knot is great! It helped me alot in getting ideas about dresses, flowers, centerpieces, and everything including ideas on how to do a bilingual reception. I just got married 1yr and 5 months ago, so it's pretty recent for me too! Keep notes so you can remember what reception sites you liked best and cakes and everything. Kewtee is right, do what makes you happy. Those cakes look great by the way! Good luck and keep us posted. You're going to have such a blast! :)

A bilingual reception?! I bet that was interesting!

Hey Jessica. Join http://www.theknot.com . You can find a lot of tips there. Also, don't listen to what anyone tells you to do! Invite who you want and most importantly who you can afford to invite. Everyone will understand and have a good time no matter what!!!!

Congrats!
 

Congrats.....and take some time to enjoy your engagement! This next year will bring lots of excitement!! My son married this past January and we have lots of good memories! (They used theknot.com also and it was very helpful to them and to others who could follow their progress.)

CONGRATULATIONS! Personally, I'd hire a wedding coordinator. Or, there is a wedding planning book. can't remember the exact title or who wrote it but it is large and covers EVERYTHING. Check out Hastings.

Congratulations.. I wish you both the best. Can't help you with wedding plans, I am the most unorganized people when it comes to planning an event, and my wedding reflected that !! Best Advise I can give you is get a wedding planner..

omg CONGRATS!!!! I'm planning too, and I'd be SO lost without www.theknot.com. It will become your new best friend, it will even count down days til your wedding :D :D :D