Wedding Planning: Where to Start
For most couples, planning a wedding will involve a series of firsts. Unless you have a foot in the events industry, it’s unlikely that you’ll have had to book a venue or a professional photographer before. You might have had to arrange a bouquet of flowers to be delivered for your mum’s birthday, but it’s a whole other task to arrange flowers for you, your bridesmaids, and your venue! If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the mere thought of planning your wedding, let alone actually arranging it, then let us guide you. Here’s where to start...
Start a wedding folder
Whether you opt for a digital Pinterest board, or a more traditional binder full of cut-outs and photographs, start flicking through bridal magazines and websites for inspiration. Keeping a record of the things that you like will help you focus on the kind of wedding you’d like to host, making it easier when it comes to actually making decisions. Having a visual reference point can also help when requesting a particular service from your suppliers!
Work out your budget
While browsing through wedding magazines will give you inspiration for the kind of wedding day you want, there’s no getting way from the fact that the depictions you’ll see are very much a fantasy version! It’s important to work out your budget quite quickly after getting engaged, to avoid later disappointment when you discover that particular item or feature you’ve set your heart on is significantly out of your price range later. We previously shared an infographic on Managing Your Wedding Budget that you might find useful!
Start the guest list
Who would you like to celebrate your wedding day with? As well as having a significant impact upon the kind of day you have, deciding who to invite to your wedding will impact your wedding planning too. Quite simply, the more guests you have, the more expensive your wedding will be! However, if there are people that you simply cannot imagine not having at your side as you get married, then it's important to factor this into your considerations early on. In time, you may not remember that you didn't have your dream starter at your wedding breakfast, but you may regret that you decided not to invite a particular friend or family member.
Reserve your date and venues
Once you have a fairly good idea about the size, style and likely spend for your wedding day, it'll give you good peace of mind to secure your date and venue early, especially if you've opted for a more popular summer date! Once you have these details confirmed, it will be easier to make decisions on other aspects of your day too: from getting bands to commit to your date to knowing which flowers will be in season. You can check out our blogs on The Big Five (part one and two) for further guidance on getting the key details you should confirm first. From here, you should be in a much better position to plan the remaining details of your day - and be able to enjoy the process!
If you'd like to find out more about getting married at The National Piping Centre, contact us on 0141 353 5551 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.