9 Months before:
• If you haven’t yet, you must organise your families to meet. Pick a nice restaurant that you both enjoy and take your parents for an enjoyable lunch or dinner.
• You can also start thinking of bridesmaids, groomsmen, flower girls and page boys.
• Discuss the type of wedding you want, if a big fat wedding with the whole family and friends or a romantic escape with a few close relatives and good friends. Include budget in the discussion, this way you also define what kind of celebration you will have.
• Start searching for the styles of dresses you like best. You can collect wedding magazines, cut out the frocks and make a visual collection.
• Organise your gift registry, this may be with a particular store or online.
6 Months before:
• Help your mother and mother-in-law with their outfits.
• Investigate accommodation options for out-of-town guests.
• Book in for a marriage preparation course if required.
• Start thinking of your honeymoon. What kind of trip you would like to take; the romantic package or unusual adventurous places. Research to find the best destination, use your budget as guidance (check travel at womanthismonth.com).
• Select the stationery for invitations, envelopes, thank you cards/notes and place name cards. Book a calligrapher if you want to use one.
• Start visiting venues and caterers to short-list the options and then decide on the venue. Having an idea of number of guests will help define your choice.
4 Months before:
• Discuss your beauty regime with your beauty therapist. Decide if you want to change the colour of your hair, let it grow longer or start any hair treatment well in advance. This way you get the best results when the big day comes.
• Decide if you want live music or a DJ to provide the entertainment at your the party. If you are going to invite kids, it would be a nice idea to provide some sort of distraction for them during the party.
• Choose and purchase your wedding rings. If you are going to have a special design, it is important to select it in advance so it is ready for the wedding day.
• Renew passports if necessary.
2 Months before:
• Send invitations to your guests and ask them to RSVP by a month before the ceremony. This way you can have an idea of the number of people attending in advance to then finalise the catering.
• Organise dancing lessons for the first dance, particularly if your partner has two left feet!
• Have your hair and make-up trials.
• Confirm: colours, florist and type of decoration, photographer, videographer and musician/DJ.
• Decide on your dress, so the tailor or store can start working on it.
• Organise any legal work such as pre-nuptial agreements.
• Order groom’s and groomsmen’s suits.
1 Month before:
• By this stage you will have the approximate number of guests attending your wedding. Decide on the menu. Don’t forget to consider all types of food restrictions such as vegans and also people with dairy and peanut allergies. Give at least one option for each of them.
• Apply for your marriage licence.
• Have a dress fitting including accessories. Take one of your bridesmaids and most probably your mum, so they will know exactly how to help you on the big day.
• Make sure the bridesmaids have their dresses, footwear and accessories.
• Confirm honeymoon accommodation and flight bookings.
• Start making your seating plan (this way you have time for disagreements).
2 Weeks before:
• Confirm with everyone that you booked if everything is all set. Give the contact of each company to one of your bridesmaids. Make sure that the venue, caterer, celebrant/minister, photographer, videographer, entertainment person, florist, cake maker, hairdresser and make-up artist have an emergency number to call.
• Make a list of everything that needs to be set up and/or taken to the ceremony and reception.
• Have bachelor and bachelorette nights.
• Go for your final dress fitting.
• Have your final haircut and colour before the wedding.
• Practise walking around in your wedding shoes.
1 Week before:
• Pick up your wedding dress and hang it in a safe place.
• Have your engagement ring cleaned.
• Pack an emergency kit for the day (Band-Aid, pain killers, antiseptic etc)
• Check on final arrangements such as who is taking the gifts home after the wedding? Who is dry-cleaning your dress the next day? Who is returning the suits?
• Finalise your wedding vows.
• Have your wedding rehearsal.
The day before:
• Relax and spend some quality time on your own, it will probably be last day of your life that you’ll be able to do so.
• Present each other with special gifts and remind each other why you decided to spend the rest of your lives together.
• Give your wedding bands to the best man and/or the bridesmaid to hold during the ceremony.
The Big Day:
Enjoy Yourself
