Stay On Time On the Big Day...Planning Your Wedding Reception Timeline

So you've set the date, bought the dress, ordered the flowers, booked the DJ and planned your little heart out. Your wedding date is almost here and the last minute details need taken care of. Your wedding reception is a time to relax and bask in the joy of your new marriage with friends and family. A carefree time right? Well it should be and will if you plan and layout your wedding reception timeline in advance. This should be an hour by hour breakdown of the events for the evening, taking into account things like the toasts, dancing, dinner, and cake cutting. Make these plans before hand and put someone else in charge of keeping to the schedule on the big day. Give your schedule to your wedding planner, DJ or Emcee for the night to keep things on time. This way you can relax and enjoy yourself!

The average length of a wedding reception is between 3 and 5 hours long. Here is a sample layout for a 4 to 5 hour long reception, start to finish!

Oh and by the way, don't stress if you don't stay on your schedule to the minute. Remember, ultimately a reception is a party and certain aspects of the evening may run longer or shorter than planned. Don't worry, your schedule can always be adjusted. Be flexible and have fun!

Bride: Wedding Planning Guide [INFOGRAPHIC]

12-Month Wedding Plan Checklist

THE MOST HELPFUL WEDDING PLANNING TIMELINE AND CHECKLIST FOR NEW BRIDES

So you’re trying to plan a wedding huh? Don’t get too overwhelmed by crazy checklists and spreadsheets! We’ve found this amazingly easy-to-digest infographic by The DIY Bride that helps break down the planning process into the 3 things you should focus on each month. Too good to be true, huh?

It starts at 12 months, but I’m sure you can adjust it based on where you are in your own wedding planning process! We want to know: Where are you in the wedding planning process? How do you stay organized?

A Sample 12 Month Wedding Plan Timeline

Wedding Planning Timeline - 8 Months or Less

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR ENGAGEMENT!  This is a very exciting (and stressful!) time for you!  I’m sure that at this point you have been looking around at all that you have to do, and you may be overwhelmed.  I’m not gonna lie, you have a right to be!  But have no fear because a lot of us have been there before (my husband and I were married in March of this year), and we are here to help!

Something that I noticed when I was planning my wedding, and now that one of my besties is planning hers, is that all of the guidelines and timelines are geared towards people who are going to be engaged for a year to sixteen months.  However, my friends and I are in our late twenties and early thirties and quite frankly, we don’t want to wait that long once that ring is on our finger!  When I was planning my wedding, I looked at several timelines, checklists, guidelines, and I printed out a calendar for each month of the engagement and made up my own timeline to fit my crunched time period.  I may have overlooked some things and left some things out, but our wedding was great, if I do say so myself!  (Shameless plug, this is primarily due to the awesomeness of Jennifer at Tybee Island Wedding – you should check it out!)

I would like to share that timeline with you now, in case you’re in the same boat as I was.  Please note–this is a GENERAL guideline ONLY.  There are a million more details that I could have included, and I may have left some big things out, so I encourage you to check out places like theknot.com and Real Simple Weddings and do your own comparison.  However, if you have any questions in the meantime, please do not hesitate to ask–like I said, I just did this myself, so I am (currently) a wealth of knowledge and recent experience!   If you see something really big that I’m missing, let me know!  I’ll be glad to add it and repost this timeline/checklist at a future date.

You can also download a PDF version (best printed on legal sized paper, probably) here:

Wedding planning checklist! Wow this would make me feel so much better

The perfect wedding plan... in just 12 months Infographic

Lots Of Advice On Getting Your Ideal Wedding

The wedding of your dreams need only have yourself and your partner, an officiant and love. Everything else that people say must be included in your wedding is all just one big stressful distraction. This article provides valuable advice that will help make your wedding planning more manageable, so that you can focus on the things that truly make your wedding important.

Before the wedding practice walking down the aisle. Do it at your actual wedding site to test out its floor with your chosen shoes. This makes sure you're comfortable during the big day.

Make use of a family member's or friend's property for your venue. Having your wedding in someone's yard or even farm can reduce wedding costs. Try paying someone to come out in advance and after your event to clean the place for the only location-based cost.

The pictures you will have taken on your wedding day are meant to be a memento of your happy day for a lifetime. Hire a professional. Don't be shy on spending money in this area as they can document this magical day to perfection from idress.co.nz.

Ask anyone who is giving a toast to share his speech with you ahead of time to ensure that the comments are appropriate. Some material, especially jokes, may fall flat or offend some of your guests, so you want to correct these problems ahead of time. Certain jokes or comments might not sit well with certain age groups.

Too many flower arrangements on the guest tables at your reception are usually an interference and an extra unnecessary expense. The majority of the times, the flowers just get in the way. Also, some of your guests may have allergies to the flowers. In order to provide a romantic look, you can place unscented candles centered on the table.

The venue you pick needs to have enough room for dancing. Nothing is worse than everyone being crammed together during a dance, so move things out of the way to help create extra space.

Try to practice walking down your aisle before a mirror that is full-length to see what you're doing, especially if you plan on wearing heels. If you have difficulty walking in heels, opt for a pair of ballerina flats. No one can see your shoes under your gown anyway, but if you fall on your rear end, they'll see a lot more than shoes.

Avoid having guests wait while taking the photos. These pictures should be done beforehand. This means that your guests won't have to wait as long at the reception for you to get there.

If it is within your budget, you might want to take a wedding cruise with just your closest friends and family. This will allow you to get your honeymoon started when you're done with the ceremony. Some of these cruise companies have special prices for weddings and honeymoons on the ship.

Silk flowers make great alternatives to various other flowers for your wedding. This not only saves you money, but it also ensures that there isn't a given time when you need to start collecting these flowers and they will stay fresh forever.

If the couple like travel, try to find wedding decorations that appeal to this hobby. Save-the-date notices and invitations could be created to resemble tickets, boarding passes, or vintage postcards. Vintage luggage, post cards and vacation photos can be part of your wedding decor.

As the start of the article said, any successful wedding means a lot of pieces must work together. There are lots of details to attend to when planning a wedding. A professional wedding plan can be a great investment. This article has many tips to help you plan your wedding.

idress.co.nz/flower-girl-dresses

Planning A Wedding? Tips And Advice To Make The Process Easier

Is planning your wedding starting to stress you out? Has the thought of eloping crossed your mind? While weddings are stressful to plan, there are many ideas that will help to make things a lot easier for you. This article will give you some tips that will help take the frustration out of wedding planning.

It is likely that religious matters will come up from time to time during the course of your marriage. Discuss religion with both your future spouse and their family members so that you can develop a strong understanding of their beliefs from idress.co.nz.

There's nothing more important in a wedding than the person who you are marrying. This is a huge commitment, and rushing into things for the sake of being married may be catastrophic. Think hard about this person and what things in your life you can't do without, as well as the things that will drive you up the wall.

Your wedding photos are important as they will be the memories you carry with you for the years to come. It would be wise to spend a few more dollars and employ a professional photographer to perfectly capture these once-in-a-lifetime images.

Don't use an overabundance of flowers as table centerpieces for your reception. If you have too many flowers, they can actually become a hindrance to your guests. Additionally, many people are allergic to flowers. One classy alternative to flowers is unscented candles.

Think about your guests when planning flower arrangements for the reception. The majority of the time, these flowers are in the guests' way. Excessive flowers can also be inconvenient for any allergy sufferers who are attending your wedding. To give the tables a romantic look, consider using non-scented candles as a centerpiece.

Practice walking towards a full length mirror to ensure you know how to do it, especially if you are not used to heels. If you're afraid of twisting your ankle, wear cute flats instead. Losing the allure of heels will pay off if it saves you from taking a nasty spill.

When choosing the location for your reception, make sure you have enough room for a dance floor. It's very uncomfortable to have your guests crowded onto a dance floor that is too small. Move unneeded furniture out of the way so that everyone can dance comfortably.

If the culture of the bride's and groom's family are very different, plan the wedding ceremony in the tradition of one side and follow the traditions of the other side at the reception. This will help create a festive atmosphere and help make the event enjoyable for both families.

Be sure to have a place for your guests to wait and mingle while you are taking your photographs. Pictures of the bride, groom, bridesmaids and groomsmen can be snapped in advance. Even pictures with parents can be shot in advance, reducing the time that guests must wait for you to arrive at your reception.

Ensure that all guests understand the scheduling of events by emailing everyone involved an itinerary of events; include maps for those who may be unfamiliar with the area. Inform people of events, like rehearsals, that they are required to attend, so they will be where they are supposed to be at the scheduled time.

Knowing some basic techniques for planning a wedding should help you create a memorable event. Taking all the hassle and stress out of this special day will help create the ultimate experience for the bride and groom.

idress.co.nz/flower-girl-dresses

Information About How To Throw A Great Wedding

Fortunately the information and tips contained in this article are designed to help you make the wedding a happy and stress free event.

You can practice walking down your aisle days before the actual wedding. Do it at the venue in which you are getting married, and wear the footwear you're going to wear on the big day. By doing this, you will not have any issues with obstructions in the floor or nervousness from those watching you during the big moment.

In your wedding plans, make sure you consider what types of alcohol you wish to serve, and which ones are most cost effective. An open bar is very costly and can become extremely expensive if open for long periods of time. Ask about the different serving options your venue offers regarding alcohol.

Do not starve yourself just to fit into the wedding dress you want. Starving yourself will just dehydrate you and make you feel sick. You definitely don't want to end up fainting on your big day. Instead, choose a dress that has a corset back that can be taken in and out as needed on the big day.

Buying wedding gowns online can save you hundreds of dollars, but be sure to do it very early to allow you time to get your gown altered when you receive it. You may only spend $100 on the gown when buying it online, but it may cost another $200 for the alterations. Be sure to work the additional cost for alterations into your overall budget.

Wedding pictures are very important, you can look back at them whenever you want. Hire a professional. Don't be shy on spending money in this area as they can document this magical day to perfection.

If possible, see if your reception venue offers lighting choices. While this may appear trivial, you want to have this option, perhaps for your first dance, then brighter for the remainder of your ceremony. Before committing to the venue, ask them about this.

When planning table seating arrangements, try to assign your guests so that there are an even number at each table. Facilitate conversation by making table arrangements according to age groups.

Do not allow your guests to get bored or restless between the courses of your meal. Think about sugar roses that enhance your wedding colors.

Perhaps you would consider a cruise ship wedding, with only a few close friends and family. Then, your honeymoon and wedding are all rolled into one and the cruise ship does most of the planning and supplying of everything. A lot of cruise companies will give you a great rate if you're getting married and want to have a honeymoon on the ship.

If the future newlyweds enjoy traveling, display decorations that portray a sense of wanderlust. You could fashion your invitations to resemble boarding passes or vintage postcards. Prop open a vintage suitcase and display photos, programs, or favors in it.

If the couple likes to travel, find decorative elements that incorporate their love for it. Use a little artistic skill to get your invitations appearing like aged postcards from a far-away land. Design your wedding program and guest favors to match too.

Since you have gained some great inside information about planning a wedding and preparing for it, you should feel confident with your ability to prepare a day that you will always remember.

Plan Your Wedding With These Amazing Tips

Use these tips to make it all go more smoothly.

Practice how you're going to walk the aisle a lot before your wedding date arrives. Get acquainted with the floor you will be walking on and do this with the same shoes you plan on wearing. This allows you to have confidence in every step on the big day.

The right wedding dress can be quite expensive. When you are browsing through dress shops, remember to look a dresses that are not officially categorized as wedding dresses. A bridesmaid dress could be perfect and not as costly as a wedding dress. Even with some alterations to complete your vision for the dress, it could be less expensive in the end.

Do not go on a crash diet to fit in the dress. You will want to look nourished and hydrated on your wedding day. The last thing you need is to pass out as the vows are being given. Instead, choose a dress that has a corset back that can be taken in and out as needed on the big day.

Keep the wedding in line with how you are personally. Make sure it reflects your spouse as well. Select a theme that represents the time that you have spent with each other.

Your wedding should be as unique as your relationship is, so add a few touches specific to your personalities or relationship. Pick out a theme that reflects your time together.

Tall flower arrangements can be the perfect idea for round tables at the wedding reception so guests are able to see and speak to each other. The majority of the times, the flowers just get in the way. Not only that, but you may have some guests who are allergic to flowers. As an alternative to flowers, place non-scented candles on the tables. This will also help to create a romantic ambiance.

Avoid cluttering tables with too many flowers at your reception. The majority of the times, the flowers just get in the way. There are some guests that have allergies to flowers, as well. Consider placing non scented candles on the table for a romantic look.

Instead of spending a bundle on a monolith wedding cake, consider a multi-tier design with mini-tarts or cupcakes. These arrangements are convenient and affordable. Those who were invited will grab them at will and consume them rather quickly as opposed to wrapping the pieces they grab in a napkin and forgetting it.

For help with your wedding, you can find local vendors on Craigslist. Be certain to take the time to meet them and interview them before making any agreements or giving them money.

If a bride and groom are from a different culture, be sure that you have both of the traditions represented in the wedding. Then try to get a reception set up that shows the other side of the marriage if possible. This will create an intriguing and memorable contrast that will satisfy both sides of the family.

Use the information and tips from this article to take control of your wedding planning and to help you focus on the happiness of the occasion. If you plan far enough ahead of time, your wedding will be the perfect beginning to a life with the one you love.