12+ Months Before The Wedding Day
- Announce your engagement
- Arrange for parents to meet and chat
- Decide on a date
- Choose members of the bridal party
- Discuss budget with all those who will be contributing
- Discuss with your fiancé about what both of you want and don’t want for the wedding
- Visit different ceremony sites and meet with the officiant
- Visit various reception sites and discuss plans with manager. Begin search for caterer, if catering onsite is unavailable
- Interview wedding consultants if you plan to use one
- Think about guest list to get preliminary head count
- Decide with your fiancé ways to deal with stress from the wedding planning process
9 – 12 Months Before The Wedding Day
- Decide on a ceremony site. Reserve the date
- Decide on the reception site. Reserve the date. Decide on a caterer if catering onsite is unavailable
- Begin shopping for your gown. Order the gown in the size that fits you now
- Start shopping for bridesmaid gowns
- If using a wedding consultant, meet and provide her/him with your vision of the wedding day
- Begin search for wedding bands
- Hire florist
- Hire photographer and a videographer
- Look into wedding day transportation. Do you want a limo, horse and carriage, limo bus?
- Continue to refine your refine your preliminary guest list
- Decide with your fiancé ways to deal with stress from the wedding planning process
6 – 9 Months Before The Wedding Day
- Discuss menu plan with caterer
- Decide on wedding day transportation
- Book musicians or DJ service
- Purchase wedding bands and engrave a special saying
- Complete your bridal registry
- Attend pre-marriage courses, if applicable
- Take mothers to go shopping for gowns
- Purchase accessories, shoes, and undergarments for first fitting
- Ask friends to be key players. Key players are trustworthy pals you can rely on for crucial tasks. The key players are not part of the immediate wedding party since they will be mostly involved in photo shoots
- Fine tune guest list
- Compile addresses of guests. Mail save-the-date cards to out-of-town guests
- Search for wedding favours
4 – 6 Months Before The Wedding Day
- Begin search for hair and makeup artist
- Complete and finalize the guest list
- Order wedding invitations, envelopes, and other stationary
- Book wedding day transportation
- Consider honeymoon spots. Call travel agencies for best packages. Book the honeymoon
- Book hotel for wedding night, if applicable
- Continue to compile list of duties for key players
- Mail out hotel and city information to out-of-town guests
- Complete insurance issues, as needed (e.g. for the rings)
- Remind your fiancé to order tuxedo
- Let DJ/live band know of special songs you would like played at the ceremony/reception
2 – 4 months before the wedding day
- 3 months before the wedding: get your marriage license application.
- Write invitations. Mail out at 8 – 10 weeks.
- Gather all necessary travel documents (e.g. passports, visas, etc.) and immunization for honeymoon.
- Finalize menu items for reception.
- Finalize ceremony and reception music.
- Finalize favours or create your own.
- Buy thank you gifts for wedding party and key players.
- Book your hair and makeup artists.
- Book times for fittings. Bring your accessories. Aim to schedule hair and makeup trial on the same day to get a look at the complete package.
- Write thank you notes for any gifts received.
- Begin finalizing seating arrangements.
- Begin to plan receiving line, timeline, and itinerary of the day.
- Purchase guest book, cake knife, champagne glasses, garters, etc.
4 – 8 Weeks Before The Wedding Day
- 3 months before the wedding: get your marriage license application.
- Write invitations. Mail out at 8 – 10 weeks.
- Gather all necessary travel documents (e.g. passports, visas, etc.) and immunization for honeymoon.
- Finalize menu items for reception.
- Finalize ceremony and reception music.
- Finalize favours or create your own.
- Buy thank you gifts for wedding party and key players.
- Book your hair and makeup artists.
- Book times for fittings. Bring your accessories. Aim to schedule hair and makeup trial on the same day to get a look at the complete package.
- Write thank you notes for any gifts received.
- Begin finalizing seating arrangements.
- Begin to plan receiving line, timeline, and itinerary of the day.
- Purchase guest book, cake knife, champagne glasses, garters, etc.
2 – 3 weeks before the wedding day
- Finalize seating plan. Call guests who have not returned RSVPs
- Have your final dress fitting
- Pick up gown and hang in cool dry place, avoiding sunlight
- Confirm details with all vendors
- Arrange times for key players to pick up items they are responsible for (e.g. who will bring the wine, the favours, etc.)
- Confirm date for rehearsal dinner with the key players and bridal party. Write your toast for the rehearsal dinner
- Write a special thank you for the reception, if you desire
- Begin packing for the honeymoon
- Leave honeymoon itinerary with someone in case of emergency
1 Week Before The Wedding Day
- Place the fees due on the wedding day into envelopes. Give to the key players
- Have your final dress fitting
- Complete packing for the wedding
- Complete packing for the honeymoon
- Remind groom to pick up the tux
- Finalize details of rehearsal dinner
- Go to the rehearsal at the ceremony site
- Enjoy the rehearsal dinner!
The Day Before the Wedding
- Your key players have all their tasks and contact numbers
- Each person knows where they will need to be the next day
- Double check that you have packed your clothes and other personal items for the next day
- De-stress your body. Consider deep breathing and other relaxation exercises such as yoga
- Make time to spend alone with your fiancé. Soak up the moment together
Day of The Wedding
- Enjoy every moment!
- Your wedding party and your key players are there to support you. Rely on them and let the day happen.
- Smile and remember this day as your fiancé and you become husband and wife. You will both complement and complete each other, making each other stronger, loving individuals.