YAY! Finally, you got engaged! Now what? Planning a wedding can be super overwhelming. But once you get these 6 major things out of the way, you will be on the path to build the wedding of your dreams!

It's time to Celebrate!

First things first, it's time to announce it to the world. After you spread the word it's only right to celebrate. Gather your friends & family and go have a fun night out or have a date night with your soon to- be. Remember you deserve this!! ENJOY the moment because after this there's a long journey of wedding planning ahead.

Deciding What Kind Of Wedding To Have

This subject takes a lot of research. You can start by asking your partner what they envision. Start looking at Pinterest and Instagram for inspiration. Questions for you and your partner to consider: Formal or Casual? Indoor or Outdoor? Narrowing down the basics will make every little decision after that much easier to resolve. Aren't you finding exactly what you're looking for? Try researching themes and decorations for other occasions or eras. Inspiration can be found anywhere! The most important thing is making your wedding your OWN. Do you want a blow-up bounce house for the end of the night? then you go and book yourself that bounce house.

"Ooh Yeah, A Budget."

Weddings are all of the wonderful things you can think of, they're special, beautiful, magical occasions. They can also be very expensive! Planning a wedding can come with many unforeseen expenses so setting a budget is important. Wedding debt is directly linked to an increase in divorce risk. You're starting a wonderful union with your partner, setting a budget from the beginning and figuring out where the money is coming from will set you on the right course for marital bliss! Do your research on vendors to ensure that you're getting quality for the price-point you're looking for. Know what you're willing to splurge on.

Determine Your Wedding Size

When it comes to the guest list just remember it's going to change a 1000x times.

Sit down with your partner and start making a guest list. We suggest starting with your immediate family & friends and see where you guys end up. Once you've narrowed down your initial list, you guys can roughly determine how many additional guests you can accommodate. Categorizing your guests into ranking categories can also help you with deciding on your final number: Must Haves, Standard Guest-fair, and Maybes. This will relieve stress and will be important when looking at venues.

Pick Your Wedding Date

Family, family, family. Setting a date really depends on what time or season of the year works for both families. If you're planning on getting married in a year or two, start thinking about a date asap. Ask important members of both families is they have any date restrictions. This will prevent future stress. After, consider what is your and your partner's favorite season. Once you've firmed up a date range start doing research on venues to find your favorite. Having a date range is helpful when picking a venue because Wedding venues book out years in advance and you want to make sure you're ahead of the ball. Scheduling tours will help you make an informed decision and is also a fun and romantic thing to plan to do with your partner. This is something to relish and enjoy!

Start Booking Your Vendors

VENDORS! The most important part of planning a wedding. Who's going to make the cake? What venue? Where will you get your flowers? And even more importantly, who is going to make sure you look you're absolute best with hair and makeup on your very special day? Now, this is just a small list of things you will need to find vendors for, it will be a stressful task doing this research. If it fits into your budget we highly suggest a wedding planner. A wedding planner is like a golden egg. They will fight to ensure that your wedding happens the way you envision and they will keep everything on track for you. Having a wedding planner also gives you a leg up in negotiating, they have years and years of experience with where and how to get the best price. Vendors to prioritize: Photographers/ Videographers, Bands/Music, Catering, and Hair and Make-up artists. Obviously you're going to want your hair & makeup to look the best, so make sure to book Curled +Contoured for your / your parties' glam needs.

We hope this helps give you the confidence to start planning.

:)

C+C