Wedding Planner

If you're planning to organise your wedding yourself, you'll find this checklist useful. It's a month by month countdown to your wedding.

You can see at a glance the tasks you'll need to complete:

• 6 months or more before the wedding
• 3 to 6 months before
• 1 to 3 months before
• 2 to 4 weeks before
• 1 to 2 weeks before
• the day before
• on the wedding day
• and after the wedding.
  

6 months or more before the wedding

The big picture

• Set wedding budget
• Agree on style and theme of wedding
• Decide on ideal wedding date and time
• Decide between and religious or civil ceremony
• Agree on style and theme of reception
• Purchase wedding insurance
• Consider pre-nuptial agreement
• Hire a wedding planner to take on some or all of the arrangements

The ceremony

• Choose your church or civil ceremony venue
• Arrange to book service with officiant
• Arrange for special licence if necessary
• Provisionally book civil ceremony with the registrar
• Choose witnesses

The reception

• Book the reception venue
• Make catering arrangements
• Book reception entertainment

The honeymoon

• Decide on honeymoon

The suppliers

• Book transport for wedding day and going away
• Book dressmaker choose fabric and patterns
• Book florist
• Book photographer and/or videographer

The people

• Choose bridesmaids and page boys
• Choose best man and ushers
• Advise attendants of their duties
• Arrange attire for bride and groom and attendants
• Draft guest list for ceremony, reception and evening

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3 – 6 months before the wedding

The big picture

• Finalise and register wedding list

The ceremony

• Discuss church ceremony and order of service
• Discuss music options with the organist etc
• Check dates for publishing banns, if you’re having a church wedding
• Notify appropriate register office of marriage

The reception

• Advise reception venue of guest numbers and food and drink requirements
• Book reception staff if required
• Order or make wedding cake

The honeymoon

• Confirm passports are up to date, change to married name if appropriate
• Obtain travel visas if required

The suppliers

• Book musicians and singers for ceremony
• Order wedding stationery
• Hire and purchase clothes for the groom and male wedding party
• Buy dresses and outfits if not being made
• Buy the wedding rings and arrange insurance cover

The people

• Plan a health and beauty regime

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1 – 3 months before the wedding

The big picture

• Prepare map for invitations

The honeymoon

• Check honeymoon arrangements and tickets
• Arrange any necessary inoculations and medicines

The suppliers

• Book accommodation for your wedding night
• Choose and buy your shoes and accessories

The people

• Finalise your guest list
• Send out invitations and record acceptances/refusals
• Purchase gifts for groom, bridesmaids and pageboys
• Purchase gifts for bride, best man and ushers
• Agree with attendants where they will dress on your wedding day
• Arrange final fitting of wedding dress
• Arrange final fitting of bridesmaids’ and pageboys' outfits
• Book a practice session and appointment with your hairdresser
• Practise wedding day makeup
• Ensure all attendants know their duties, timing and venues
• Arrange hospitality and transport for out of town guests
• Confirm wedding rehearsal with all involved
• Arrange hen and stag nights
• Wear in and scuff soles of shoes

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2 – 4 weeks before the wedding

The reception

• Inform the reception venue and caterers of final numbers

The suppliers

• Advise florist of the final number of buttonholes

The people

• Prepare speech for reception
• Check bride's father and best man have prepared their speeches
• Take engagement ring to jewellers to be cleaned

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1 – 2 weeks before the wedding

The ceremony

• Collect banns certificate
• Deliver order of service sheets to church for officiants, choir and organist

The reception

• Check reception details, confirm final numbers and special dietary requirements
• Decorate wedding cake

The honeymoon

• Final check on all honeymoon plans

The suppliers

• Final check on arrangements for flowers, transportation, venue and entertainment
• Arrange for hired items to be returned after wedding

The people

• Ensure all attendants know their duties
• Enjoy Hen night!
• Enjoy Stag night!
• Final fitting with attendants
• Practice with hairdresser
• Final check on all clothing
• Wrap gifts for attendants, parents and groom
• Hold wedding rehearsal
• Advise chief usher of seating plan

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The day before the wedding

The reception

• Deliver your cake to the venue and arrange to have it assembled
• Arrange for a safe place for gifts brought to the reception to be stored

The honeymoon

• Pack for honeymoon: clothes, tickets, passports. Leave luggage in convenient place

The people

• Check that the going away car will be in the right place, at the right time
• Give gifts to the best man and attendants
• Pack going away clothes and have suitcase taken to reception
• Lay out wedding dress, accessories and jewellery

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On the wedding day

• Attendants arrive at bride's house
• Bride and attendants have hair and make-up done and get dressed
• Photographer and/or videographer arrives at bride's home
• Chief usher arrives to collect buttonholes and order of service sheets
• Best man collects honeymoon luggage, documents and any messages to be read out
• Groom goes to meet the best man
• Best man checks he has rings and fees
• Transport arrives to take bride and father to wedding venue
• Rest of wedding party arrives at venue 20 minutes before ceremony
• Wedding ceremony
• Photographs
• Reception receiving line
• Wedding breakfast
• Speeches
• Cake cutting
• Evening reception
• Couple change into going away outfits
• Couple leave for overnight stay or honeymoon

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After the wedding

• Thank both sets of parents
• Write thank you letters
• View and order wedding photographs and/or video
• Take photocopies of your marriage certificate and advise changes of name/address
• Send pieces of cake to people who could not attend the wedding

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