The time has come, I am officially planning my own wedding! I have, of course, been unofficially planning it for a couple years though (I'm not ashamed!). The greatest guy in the world got down on one knee on September 27, so I am about 7 weeks into our engagement.
There was very little I could do until we looked at venues, chose one, and picked a date. That could not happen until we were able to make it down to Santa Barbara, our destination of choice. And even THAT could not happen until I got back from my vacation in Japan, which was coincidentally timed for 2 weeks after our engagement. This drove the planner in me CRAZY! Hence, I survived.
So what have I done in the first 7 weeks?
We chose our wedding party!
We chose who we want by our sides on the most important and emotional day of our lives! I asked mine in a cute way- custom wine bottle labels and cutesie hair ties for the bridesmaids, and a sweet gift set for my maid of honor. Carson chose his, but will be asking them soon so I can't spill the beans! It's so important to choose these people wisely. They will have input on your wedding, will be there to help (hopefully!), and you'll want to look back 40 years from now and still love those people dearly. Plus, your maid of honor and best man have a lot of planning to do themselves for the bachelor/ette parties and showers! Choose wisely :)
We chose a venue!
We made it down to Santa Barbara the weekend after I returned from my trip. We saw 4 venues in one day (poor Carson must have been exhausted), and ultimately were deciding between two by the end of the day. I had made appointments at all the venues before I left on my trip. This is required/highly suggested so that you can meet with the point person at the venue, get all the details and specs on the site, and ask all your questions. You want to make sure the venue is a good fit for both your vision, as well as your necessities. Our vision involved glamour, a beach view, and an outdoor setting. Our necessities included wheelchair accessibility and availability in July or September. We placed some holds on both venues, but knew by the next day which one we wanted to go with. Here is our venue!
We booked a photographer!
Photos are everything to me. I take photos (probably too many) of everything. I stalk wedding blogs and gush over the photography in them. I have known for a while that I would love to book Michael and Anna Costa Photography for my wedding one day, so they were one of the first vendors I reached out to once I got engaged (before we even had a venue or a date!). Other than videography, how else will you remember all the smiles, outfits, facial expressions, and décor without beautiful pictures that you'll cherish forever? I reached out to Anna right away, booked my date as soon as I could, and scheduled our engagement photo shoot. I highly recommend doing your engagement shoot with the photographer you'll have at your wedding so that you can meet, and sort of "practice" for the big day! Having a rapport with the photographer will make you more comfortable in front of the camera, and he or she will learn what types of poses do and do not work for you and your honey. I also chatted with her about my outfit choices for the engagement shoot, and she some great recommendations! Maybe she is just an all-star though and not all will be so helpful ;)
We booked a florist!
Similar to our photographer, I've known for a few years after working in the biz (very technical term for the wedding industry) that I wanted (no, NEEDED) NLC Productions to do our flowers. Nico's work is stunning, ethereal, and makes me question reality with what he is able to do with floral design. Plus, he is a fun, bubbly, sassy man with amazing style and taste. I reached out to him, prematurely, as well, and secured him for our date as soon as I could. One simple phone call explaining my vision to him, he was able to put together a proposal for me and the descriptions paired with the images he sent blew me away! Needless to say, and I am SO excited to see the end result. With him, as well as other vendors who are important to you, I would recommend reaching out to them as soon as you know you might want them. They can get to work on your proposal before you even have a date, so that once you do, you can get your wedding on the books immediately before someone else snatches them up! Having a team you are STOKED about is a great way not to let stress happen or get to you!
I made wedding dress appointments!
Unfortunately, I made said appointments the weekend after Thanksgiving! Not my smartest move, but, hey, it was the only time my sister/maid of honor was in town so it had to be done. I am SO excited to try on dresses! Another thing I obsess over regularly is wedding fashion. While I adore the recent trend of non-white dresses, I myself am a white-dress type of bride and have dreamed of that dress my whole life! I'll be doing my shopping in San Francisco, and almost all of those dress shops require appointments. If you are limited on weekends like me, make those appointments early! I made mine about a month and a half beforehand so we have a great schedule allowing time for lunch, travel, etc. When searching for the right shops to go to, I simply Googled my favorite bridal designers and looked at their "locations" pages to find stores near me. Don't know what designers you like? Pinterest is your best friend. Start with a certain style, and when you see one you like, check out their website to see if you like more in the collection. It's also important to establish your budget before your appointments so you don't fall in love with something you simply cannot afford. Talk about heartbreak :(
What else? I have booked a couple other vendors and made some inquiries (musicians, hotel room blocks, babysitter, cake). We've got about 7 months to go, so I want to get as much done now as I can and hammer out those details in the months to come. I would definitely rather be stressed out now than a month before the wedding! We also chose a date for my bachelorette party and bridal shower which are going to be so AWESOME! This journey has just begun and I am loving every minute of it!
