Plan your Wedding by using these 3 Easy Steps
Hey guys, welcome back to episode 2 where we will be going over the first couple of steps you should be taking when getting involved in the wedding planning process. As a future bride or groom there’s lot to consider when arranging your perfect wedding day. If this is your first time here, my name is Armin Avila and I am a wedding photographer and videographer residing in the California / Monterey Bay Area.
I planned on revolving this episode on the questions you should be asking venues before reserving your date but I decided to start from the main essentials in case you need help with the beginning steps of planning your wedding. We will be going over venues in more detail on the next episode. I want to keep this as simple and concise as I can.
Let's say you are engaged, you have set your wedding date or at least have an idea of what time of the year you want to get married, so now what? What is the first step when you want to set the planning process in motion.
Step 1
- There are three ways to go about this. First, you can look for a wedding planner that is able to bring your vision of the perfect wedding and make it a reality. You tell them your ideas and they are the ones who bring it to life. They take care of finding venues that are available in your preferred location. They get all of the permits necessary. They find all of the additional vendors like the florists, catering, and other essentials for your wedding. They also help with giving you ideas of the different designs that your wedding can take in case you need any additional help with that. A wedding planner does help with releasing the stress of looking for each individual vendor and are usually one of the first investments brides should be looking for when thinking of the wedding planning process.
On the other hand, a wedding planner is not necessary if you want to be more involved in your wedding or there is just not enough room in the budget. Many brides don’t even involve a wedding planner and this is a step you can skip if you decide to do so.
Also, many wedding venues include a wedding coordinator which usually does a similar job to that of a wedding planner. They will guide you through the planning process specific to that venue. Most venues also offer some of the essential services like music, catering and design.
Step 2:
- So, option 2. Have a location in mind, search for a wedding venue in your preferred area, and make sure to do this with time in hand. Popular locations tend to have a minimum one year reservation notice in place. For example, most venues are at its busiest when it is summer season since this is the most popular time of year for couples getting married. Whereas, during the winter season in the months of November and December, venues tend to have a more open schedule. This will come into play when setting the date for your wedding if you have a specific venue in mind.
Step 3:
- Now, there’s a third option. What if you want to get married at a specific location like a national park or a wedding in the mountains. This is more typically known as an elopement. This usually involves a different process and are typically done with a small amount of guests since most of these locations wont allow a large group of people. We will go over the differences between an elopement and a more traditional wedding in a later episode. To give a brief explanation, an elopement involves permits and vendors willing to go on that adventure with you. Elopements are usually designed for couples who want a smaller and more intimate ceremony that still want to celebrate their wedding in a large fashion. It allows for unique scenery and are built for couples who would want to include a different kind of adventure to that of a traditional wedding venue.
So, in summary, set a date for your wedding. Start looking for a wedding planner. If you believe a wedding planner is not necessary, start of by looking for your preferred location. Search for venues around that area. With your date set, it will be easier for venues to let you know if your date is available. Just remember if it is during the summer time, make sure to leave some wiggle room which allows you more time to give notice and reserve your dream venue or location. If it is an elopement that you want, national parks like Yosemite require a 6 months in advance notice to get all of the permits and other information required to reserve a spot for your ceremony. Different national parks or locations have varying policies so just make sure to give them a call and ask them for information regarding specialized events.
Bonus Step:
- I want to go over one last bonus step, and this is for people who stick around and watch the full video. I always recommend brides to use Pinterest to their advantage. Create a Pinterest board that depicts how your ideal wedding would look. Everything from the small details, to locations and the different designs that you would like to implement. This can serve as a guide and great starting point for getting ideas when planning your wedding. You are able to show a visual representation to either your wedding planner or wedding coordinator and they will let you know if they can bring that vision to life. This will help in deciding if that venue or wedding planner is the right choice for you.
With all that said, hopefully I was able to give you a starting point with your wedding planning adventure. Once again, these are just my own recommendations and ideas but it is completely fine if you decide this is not the route for you. My goal is to help you through the process and just implement tips and ideas that might help and release some of that stress when it comes to planning a wedding.
Thank you guys for joining me on the second episode. On the next episode we will be going over the different questions you should be asking wedding venues before reserving your date. We went over it briefly today but we will be going over it in more detail on episode 3.
Thanks again for being here with me and I will see you guys on the next episode. Goodbye
