You’re Engaged Now What?

Chances are that if you are reading this or watching our Bigler Bridal Tips, you either recently got engaged or you have a good friend or family member that did. CONGRATS! Planning a wedding should be a super fun time in your life filled with excitement and anticipation of the “happily ever after” that awaits! So who are we and why should you keep reading? We are Dave, owner of and Lead Photographer at Dave Bigler Wedding Photos and Films and Laura, our GM and Bridal Liaison! We have a few tips for you (or your friend/family member) to make the wedding planning process fun and enjoyable.

This is YOUR day!

You are going to get a ton of advice; from all sorts of people friends, family, that co-worker that you don’t really know but she thinks she had the most AMAZING wedding ever and thinks that if you don’t do exactly what she did the rest of your life is going to be horrid! You are also going to get advice from bridal guides, TV shows, blogs and from know-it-all photographers in bridal magazines that think their opinion is worth reading! 🙂 Through all of this remember that this is your day and in the history of the world no two people exactly like you two have gotten married, so take all the advice (including mine) with a grain of salt. At the end of the day this is YOUR wedding, so while you are weighing all your decisions remember that you have to live with the memory of your day the rest of your life. Quick Tip: if you get a persistent family member that is adamant that you must do such and such, ask them to pay for it; they will either say yes and you get some extra cash for the wedding budget or they will stop bugging you about whatever it is.

Start with what is most important (to you)

There are lots of details that need to be planned; vendors that need to be booked, decisions that need to be made etc. Focus your early attention on the things that are most important to you first. I often recommend starting with the reception venue as this will not only solidify the date but will also impact the theme and decor. However, if there is something that you absolutely have your heart set on (such as a band or photographer) I suggest you reach out to them while you are searching for venues. This way you can find a date that works for both those key vendors and the venue you want. Quick Tip: if you are on the fence for what venue to use meet with a photographer who has been in the area for a while, they will be able to show you behind the scenes photo (maybe even video) of each of the venues you are looking at as well as give you insider advice on who has the best customer service. After you have locked in the date, the venue and the photographer other elements will fall in place.

Ask your Vendors’ Opinions.

There are lots of decisions that you have to make, so in seeking advice I suggest that you start with people who do this every weekend, such as your venue coordinator and/or your photographer. Photographers, for example, are with couples from the start of the day all the way to the inebriated dancing at the end of the night; they see everything. So if you are trying to find a good Hair and Makeup company, ask your photographer, you can trust their recommendation to be someone that not only does a good job but is conscious of the timeline of the day. You can seek advice from friends who have been in a few weddings, and you can look at wedding websites where whoever pays the most gets the highest spot, but I suggest you start by asking those vendors you have already booked.

Remember the process of planning your wedding should be fun; so if it starts to get too stressful, take a step back, breathe, and remember why you are doing all this! This is your day, have fun with it. Start with planning the things that are most important to you and then get the advice of those vendors you trust to help put everything else in place. Once again congratulations on your engagement!