Wedding Planning: Where to Start

Happy Wedding Wednesday!

Today I'm excited to be giving another tip on the first steps of wedding planning. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the very first step you should take, which is figuring out your wedding budget. Setting your budget lays the foundation for the rest of your wedding planning.

Next, you'll write out your guest list. Keep in mind that the more wedding guests you have, the more spending you will do. Think of invitation suites and save the dates, as well as postage for each piece of mail. All of your guests are served a meal, and usually a wedding favor is given (though not always). More guests also means more tables... which means more centerpieces. If you need to rent ceremony chairs, think about the style of chair you want, and their price tags. Additionally, you'll have to consider the size, style and ingredients of your desired wedding cake based on the number of people you invite. Are you having a calligrapher write out all of the escort cards? There are plenty of factors to consider, but these are always the first that come to mind for me when planning a guest list!

Now, I am in no way intending to scare you about inviting many people to your wedding! It's a day that you do want to celebrate with everyone you know! Believe me, I totally understand; my husband and I both come from big families, but also have many friends who we love and cherish that we wanted present as well to celebrate our big day. As hard as it is to hear (I've been there too, darling), if you are trying to watch your wedding budget, the first way to cut down on your spending is by revising your guest list.

How many guests are you inviting to your wedding?