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How long did you take to plan your wedding? Mine is the end of September, next year... I want to get excited about everything but then I wonder if I'm moving too quickly. What if my style ideas now are different a year from now? Even color scheme evades me... I don't want to send out Save the Dates or anything because it seems so far down the road at this point.
It took me 11 months but I honestly could've done it in 9 months. Actually around the 9 month mark I was finished with pretty much everything. I think a year is the perfect amount of time to plan your wedding! I would start looking for a dress in December or January. And don't worry so much about dress styles, they aren't going to change drastically from one year to the next. Also don't worry about color scheme or save the dates or anything yet. You still have a little ways for that! You send your STDs about 6-8 months before the wedding and by that time you might have a better idea about color or style. All of the other color choices and style choices really come later but can be based off the STD or don't even need to match it!
10 months for us. It probably could have taken a month or two less, but we had plenty of lulls in planning. At one point, it felt like it would take forever to get to October. I still look forward to October in general.
Less than 5 months, but everything was really done in about 4
13 months. He had about 4 months of busy season at his work followed by 4-6 months of busy season at mine. We realistically did most of our planning in about 4 months.
We were engaged for nine months and it's totally enough time if you don't have your heart set on the most popular venue/photographer in town.
We were engaged for about 9 months and didn't really start to do anything until we found our venue which was about 7 months before the wedding. The only thing I would make sure you have done is your venue since September is a very popular time to get married. I got married in December so it wasn't an issue.
I took a year but I wish I would have taken more time just researching and figuring out what I wanted. Right away I felt like I had to do everything, especially b/c I did a lot of DIY, and then after I did it I found something else I liked better.
17 months, but that was mostly because I was set on April or May and didn't want to plan in 5 months. I reserved our venue 13 months out and it was already booking up. I liked having my pick of vendors and being able to focus on making one choice at a time but I also was not worried about changing my mind at all. I bought my dress over a year out and never had dress regret. I would start planning the big stuff now if I were you (venue, caterer, photog).
We had about 11 months, and I finished most of the major vendor booking/planning with 9 months to go. It was good to be prepared, but having a lot of time can make you question your decisions a bit! With a year to go, it's good to book your major vendors (like the venue, photographer, etc) that can book up fast, but you have plenty of time to work on the smaller details.
We had 13 months and now that it's about a month out I'm DYING to just be married already, damn it! There were 2 or 3 months in the middle where I literally did not think about the wedding at all, not even a little bit, and I've still had plenty of time to finish everything.
We were engaged for 10 months and started planning immeadiately (all planning was completed long-distance too). But we had a couple few months in the middle where there was literally nothing wedding related to do.
I had 11 months from engagement to marriage. And it honestly took me every single bit. BUT if I had to I could have done 6-9...I just took my time! :) lol
It took more than a year. That was really only because I was excited and then lazy :) I really took my time with a lot of stuff. I really think I could have planned this wedding in less than a year, but I really like that I got to relax when I started getting overwhelmed.
We were engaged for 17 months. The wedding certainly could have been planned in less time, but the extra time allowed me to figure out what we both wanted for the wedding day. The wedding planning kind of went in waves, so there was plenty of time in that 17 months where I wasnt doing any actively with the wedding.
We were engaged for 15 months and while I can't say I was in full planning mode the entire time that time definitely allowed us to get 1-2 things accomplished a month so that we could actually enjoy the process.
We picked our church in the spring(April/May), But we kept it secret for awhile. Then, we searched for the venue and found it in early summer. I got my dress in the summer. BM dresses early fall. THen I planned my cake, DJ, flowers, last. We got married in December. So although the church was picked out and the date was set like 8 months in advance, the planning was mostly done in 6 mths or less! I liked that better;)
Took less then 6 months....Venue had the best all inclusive package so all we had to do was meet with the vendors and make the final decision...was the best part of the wedding planning process.
We started planning ours like over a yr in advance. I coudl ahve totally done it in less time, but I got my pick of vendors and I go tto REALLY take my mine. I was in school FT and working FT iso planning to early made it so I didn't have to stress as much.
I'll have been engaged 16 months by the time we get married and I could absolutely have done this in about 8 months' time.
We were engaged on November 14th, and got married Oct. 1st the following year, so a little under a year. We could have done it in a shorter amount of time, but we both work full time and have side jobs as well. It was easier to space it out, as well as save money as you go. We didn't have any "wedding" money saved when we got engaged so it was good for us to pay as we went.
by the time we picked a date we had 5 months to plan - it was either do it in february or wait till my brother got home from deployment (last week!) i'm glad we went ahead and planned and got married, i could not imagine still being unwed and planning haha - 5 months was just the right amount of time to get everything done - the pro to this was that i didnt have much time to dwell on things, i had to make decisions quick which was really a lot less stressful than i would have though the only con i found was that i didnt have the time to research as much as i would have liked (particularly for wedding dresses - i loved loved my dress but felt rushed in my purchase since most salons need at least 6 months to order and recieve a dress)
one year exactly, almost down to the day.
could not have done it in any less time, because i was working full time and in school full time. we also saved a lot of money over that time.
we were engaged about 9 months, but i would have liked to have longer because a lot of vendors--mostly venues and photographers--were already booked by the time we contacted them (which was basically right away). so it depends a little on your area and if you're getting married during a busy time.
I'm not done planning but if I didn't have this entire year I would have lost my marbles. Having a long (year and a half) engagement was nice- we could take breaks when it gets to be too much.
We booked our venue 15 months ahead of time and it was the last free weekend our month (and August was totally booked already by then). I think it depends a lot on place. Some parts of Northern California or NY (according to friends who got married there), fill up WAY in advance. We talked to a photographer 13 months ahead of time who was already booked for our date. I think more than 18 months is probably a little too early, unless you're looking somewhere really in demand.
We planned our wedding in 3.5 months, from 2000 miles away. It was enough time, though we (mostly I) were working on wedding stuff pretty much every weekend and some friends and family weren't able to make it. I liked planning it that way though... I was forced to make decisions rather than waiver back and forth forever (as I like to do). It was a little stressful the last few weeks. You won't have that issue though, since you have plenty of time. You're less than a year out, so I think now is a good time to start looking for venue, photographer, dj/band, etc. Once you know your venue, you can choose a dress, hairstyle, etc. You can probably wait awhile to choose colors, save the dates, etc. if you think your vision might change a bit. Good luck!
Engaged 7 months, but we didn't set a date until a month in - so planning was about 6 months. I wouldn't have survived if it had been any longer... between a new job, wedding planning, and buying a house at the same time, I was just ready for everything to be over so we could have a normal life.
Congrats! My wedding is a week prior to yours (Sept 22, 2012) and I'm feeling the same way. We've been engaged since April 21, 2011 and I started coming up with ideas around that time, but hadn't acted on most of the bigger stuff. However, September was the first start to officially booking anything (venue). I picked over a year because we will have been engaged for 17 months almost to the day when we get married. I just purchased my dress yesterday (YAY). In the few months before September, I worked on easing the stress behind the big stuff so I researched places, came up with our colors, selected our wedding party, etc. I'll leave the next 10-11 months to actually booking and purchasing. Its ok to be excited. I know I have the same fear of changing my mind on the dress, colors, etc. I know that for sure my main color is deep red (my fave color) and this dress I just picked, I've been eyeing for months and scared to try it on for fear I would love it and buy a dress at month 11, but I can't picture myself in anything BUT this dress. Things you second guess, give it time. You'll know whats right when it feels right. Trust your gut. Good luck!
If you want popular or well known vendors and are planning during a peak time (e.g. Saturdays, late spring and early-to-mid- fall), planning as far in advance as possible is a good idea. One, you can lock in their rates for this year, before they go up for 2012. Two, you have more vendor options to choose from, so you are more likely to get one of your top choices. And three, crossing stuff off of the "to-do" list feels good! But for a lot of the other stuff, 6-9 months is plenty of time.
I started planning my wedding over a year and a half in advance (I know, I'm crazy!). I'm thankful I did though because I had issues with the venue that I FIRST chose and they waited 6 months to tell me and I ended up having to leave that venue and find a new one because everything we agreed to they could no longer do. Had I been planning my wedding a year in advance...I would only have 6 months left and there would be have been no wedding. My wedding is also in a very big destination wedding area, so venues fill up VERY quickly. I sent my save the dates 14 months in advance. Typically I would not have done save the dates, but since it was far away for guests (over 800 miles for some) I had no other choice. I had my wedding colors picked out prior to the engagement. I don't think everything is too far away for you to decide. I book vendors and venues ASAP because those fill up. you can ALWAYS order a dress, but you can't get your favorite DJ or Photographer if he has it already booked.
It is NEVER too early to plan. I planned over the course of a year, but I'd say I really got down to business at about the 13 month mark.
My friend had a long engagement due to different reasons, and one year before her wedding she had almost every single detail ordered/done/finalized. She is so happy and is enjoying this last year of getting ready for the wedding.
It's never too early, but it's easy for things to be already booked if you wait too long.
Our engagement was 18 months because we wanted a summer wedding. Could it have been planned in less? No, because we weren't living locally so it took us almost 9 months to find the perfect venue since it had to revolve around visits home.
If you're in a big city I would honestly try to have your venue booked by one year out. The best ones fill up really fast.
@MrsReidizzle: I haven't been on this site for a bit and noticed your reply-- we are getting married about the same time, and get this... my color is going to be Black, Grey, White and touches of dark red. Yep. Sounds like we think alike. I also just purchased my dress this week. It was the 2nd dress I tried on during the first week of my engagement... and as you, even as I was trying on other dresses, I was comparing them all to the one I chose. Galina Signature SWG9902. I fell in love with it when I put it on and even though I am afraid I may have jumped too soon... I just felt like nothing else would have suited me better. Its shipping today so I'll have it by the weekend. Now I just need to figure out what kind of alterations (and bustle) can be created. I got it "new to me" so I saved a bunch. I can't wait to see my dress and begin dreaming of what else... Congrats on your wedding!
@kimberlyn001: Oh-- and we've reserved the venue for the dinner, reserved the chapel, reserved the reception space, and spoken to a photographer that I believe will be "the one"... we're well on our way now! Ack-- bridesmaids dresses.. sheesh! I actually used to like shopping... not so much these days! LOL
Okay, I don't think I really answered the poll correctly. We planned ours in 4 months. But with that said-a minimum of a year is much better. It did work out fine for us-except one of our parents didn't end up making it. :(
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