Did you recently get engaged? If so, congratulations! I’m sure there are plenty of ideas swirling through your head when it comes to the actual wedding planning. However, don’t get stressed out with all of the decisions you’ll need to make leading up to the big day! Not everything has to be completed right away. By making sure to prioritize the essentials first, it’ll surely provide a sigh of relief and allow you to enjoy the experience. The current moment is all about celebrating your engagement, sharing the exciting news with all of your friends and family, and of course, snapping a few ring selfies for Instagram!
If this is your first time stopping by our blog, welcome! Madera Estates is a Spanish and European inspired luxury wedding venue based out of Conroe, TX. We offer everything from all-inclusive wedding packages to venue-only rentals. Here at Madera, our goal is to make dream weddings come to life, all while doing so in a stress-free manner. We understand how exciting of a time this is for our couples and want to make sure you’re truly able to enjoy every last moment of it. Having said that, this week’s blog is going to take a deeper look into what wedding planning tasks you can save for later on in the planning process. Remember, it’s all about enjoying the entire process!
Buying Your Wedding Gown
We know you’ve been waiting for this moment for awhile, but the truth is picking out your wedding gown doesn’t have to be the first thing you do! When planning a wedding in 2021, you have plenty of options to choose from. Whether that be styles, colors or accessories of the actual gown, you’ll want to make sure you get something that fully matches your vision! With that in mind, take your time looking around Pinterest, Instagram, wedding magazines, designer galleries and so on before making your final decision. As a side note, this should also not be the last thing you do either! The ordering and tailoring process can take a little bit of time in itself, so shoot for getting it purchased at least 6 months before the special day!
Making Honeymoon Plans
Honeymoons and weddings have gone hand-in-hand together for centuries! After all, who wouldn’t want a dream getaway with their new spouse after tying the knot? However, keep in mind that this is another perfect example of something you don’t have to finalize right after getting engaged. A good rule of thumb is to start planning the travel logistics about six months out. That’ll give you more than enough time to book flights, hire a travel agent (if needed), brainstorm destination ideas, set a budget and anything else needed for the trip.
One other question you’ll want to ask yourself and your fiancé is whether you want to go on the honeymoon immediately after your wedding or wait a few days/weeks. From personal experience in the wedding industry, we’ve seen plenty of couples on both sides of this question. Work schedules, prior commitments and even if the location isn’t the best for that particular time of the year are all things to consider!
If you’re looking for an easy-to-follow honeymoon planning timeline, check out this one from The Knot. It breaks down everything you should be considering in the months leading up to your big day!
Changing Your Name
As you’d likely guess, there are plenty of legal tasks associated with getting married as well! Tax forms, combining bank accounts, changing your last name, the list goes on. Luckily, you don’t need to worry about all of this legal paperwork right away either. Save all of this for after you get back from your honeymoon. It might even be best to just take a day off work to knock it out all at once!
Finalizing a Seating Chart
Deciding on a wedding seating chart is one of those tasks that’s easier said than done! However, it’s also something that certainly isn’t urgent in the early stages of wedding planning. In the early going, you’re going to want to focus more on the overall guest list/count. This is the number you’re going to need when it comes time to book your venue, which should be a priority item early on considering it affects so many other decisions. Nonetheless, worry about the overall guest list first and finalize the actual seating chart after all of the RSVPs have arrived.
Ordering and Sending Invitations
Remember, when it comes to wedding planning, you have a “Save the Date” and the actual invitation. A “Save the Date” is intended for just what it sounds like, saving the date. As such, these can go out 6 months before the wedding date or even earlier than that! On the other hand, you have plenty of time to wait before hiring a calligrapher (if you opt to), ordering invitations and sending them out! Consider starting the process for these at least 3 months before the big day. We say this just so you have enough time to allow for proofing everything and fixing any mistakes. It’s better to be safe than sorry!
Setting Up a Gift Registry
From personal experience, I doubt most guests start purchasing gifts until the wedding date gets at least a few months away! So, if this isn’t on the top of your to-do list right away, that’s perfectly fine! Rather than rushing a gift registry, take some time with your fiancé to figure out what you’ll really need as you start your lives together as Mr. and Mrs. Another piece of advice on this topic is to make sure to link your gift registry (when you do set it up) with your wedding website. Since it’s not always the best etiquette to directly mention the registry on “Save the Dates” or invitations themselves, this is an ideal way to still spread the word.
Wedding Planning Made Easy!
As mentioned in the introduction, our goal here at Madera is to make the entire wedding planning process as seamless as possible. Finalizing your dream wedding venue and selecting the actual date are terrific steps to knock out early on in the planning process. These will help simplify so many decisions moving forward and put you in great shape to not get stressed out leading up to your wedding. To add to it, most all-inclusive venues will be able to recommend vendors, such as caterers, photographers and so on, which will make it that much easier.
At Madera Estates, we recommend starting out by touring venues and seeing if they match the vision you had in mind. To book a free tour of our venue, click here to see our scheduling calendar. If you have any questions, you’re more than welcome to call our team directly at (936) 441-9337 or fill out the contact form on our website. We hope this blog helped relieve some concerns of what can wait in terms of wedding planning and why it’s important to enjoy the overall experience! Happy wedding planning!
Want to see some photos or videos from real wedding weddings at Madera Estates? Be sure to follow us on Facebook or Instagram. Additionally, check out our other wedding blog posts for photo albums from weddings at our venue!