Wedding planning isn’t just about choosing flowers and trying cake (though that part is fun!). It’s a busy mix of emails, brainstorming ideas, making budgets, and dealing with lots of opinions—so many opinions! Keeping everything in a balanced perspective can be made easy if one knows the things that one needs to stay calm and in control, like knowing what to keep and where.
Here is a simple guide to help you set up a workable plan. This blog will unfold step by step, providing you with real-world guidance on staying organized and managing all of the tasks involved without feeling overwhelmed (and we can give you some behind-the-scenes secrets along the way!). We’ll start by setting up your wedding planning “home base,” a central hub where everything can come together. The goal is to implement a structured approach that makes your tasks easier to manage and ensures nothing important falls through the cracks.
1. Set Up a Wedding Planning Space at Home
Pick a spot in your home to keep all your wedding stuff together. It could be a drawer, a shelf, a filing cabinet section, or even a shoebox. If you like being really organized, a wedding binder or a folder system works great! Want easy access? Try using a magnetic board on your fridge to pin important papers. We even created our own Wedding Planning Workbook to help with this!Pro Tip: Add a few dividers or compartments to keep things like contracts, fabric samples, save-the-date drafts, and inspiration pictures neatly organized. This will help you find everything quickly when you need it!
Remember to keep it simple and easily reachable, so you can always stay on track with your plans.
2. Create a Wedding Email Address
Make a separate email account just for wedding planning, like [YourLastNameWedding@gmail.com]. Share it with your fiancé and close helpers, such as your maid of honour or a parent. This way, all wedding-related emails—like RSVPs, vendor quotes, and ideas—stay in one place, separate from your personal inbox. Pro Tip: Give the email address (not login access) to vendors, family, or anyone sharing links or details. This keeps everything organized. You can also create folders in the email account for things like “Vendors,” “Guest List,” or “Ideas” to make finding messages quick and easy.3. Choose How You’ll Stay Organized
Find a way to keep every detail of your wedding organized. Do you like keeping everything digital or using the old-fashioned pen and paper? Here are some simple options:
- Digital Tools: Create a folder in Google Drive with subfolders for things like vendors, guest lists, and contracts.
- Spreadsheets: Use a Google Sheet with tabs for your budget, timeline, and RSVPs. (We even have one you can download!)
- Paper Planners: If you like to write out everything, then a marriage planning workbook or binder works for you.
Already have our Wedding Planning Membership? Awesome! It might contain pre-set tools to help at this stage. Just rush through whatever system you want to, but use whatever that is to get through all the little details!
4. Set Specific Times for Wedding Planning
Planning a wedding can get overwhelming, so it’s important to schedule when you’ll work on it and when you won’t. Create a simple plan to stay organized and avoid stress. For example:- Wedding Planning Time: Wednesday evenings and Sunday afternoons.
- No-Wedding Zone: Friday date nights or Sunday family dinners.
Setting boundaries helps you stay focused during planning time while still enjoying your regular life. It also gives you and your partner time to relax and connect, which is just as important as planning the big day! Try sticking to your schedule to make the process feel fun and balanced.
5. Pick a Communication Hub
Choose one place to keep all wedding-related conversations organized. This will save you from losing ideas or links scattered across tons of group chats. Here are two easy options:
- Create a group text with key people like your fiancé, maid of honour, or others helping you plan.
- If you like tech, try using a free app like Slack, where you can set up different topics for things like venues, dresses, or decorations.
Keeping everything in one spot helps avoid confusion like Aunt Linda emailing Pinterest boards to vendors while your mom texts dress ideas. Plus, it makes it easier to look back and find important info when you need it.
6. Plan Things to Look Forward To – Make Your Own Special Moments
Being engaged is a new move from just dating into serious preparation for one of the biggest events in life. But often, the preparation of the wedding feels like more waiting and to-doing. To keep things fun and exciting, create small milestones to look forward to along the way.
- Plan a wedding-related event like an engagement party or a wine-tasting trip for the big day.
- Take time for just the two of you! Go on a fun trip, have regular date nights, or even explore new hobbies together.
- Don’t forget the honeymoon! Set aside time to plan it separately so you can enjoy dreaming about your post-wedding adventure.
- Adding these moments will keep you excited and motivated as you move closer to your big day. It’s not just about the destination—it’s about enjoying the journey together!
7. Set Reminders and Stay on Track
After setting up your organization system, make sure it’s easy to follow every day!
- Use Calendar Alerts: Add reminders to your phone or computer calendar so you remember to check your plan every week.
- Install reminders: Place sticky notes, posters, or cool signs wherever you will see them–over the fridge, on your desk, or in your mirror.
You can totally make a checklist to check off stuff as you get it done. This will help you stay motivated and see your progress. Remember, staying consistent is key to making your system work!
Quick Recap
- Get Organized: Organize by having a specified area to keep everything wedding-related in one place.
- Go Digital: Use a dedicated email and an online tool to keep track of plans.
- Set Time Limits: Determine when to work on wedding-related activities and when to take a break.
- Streamline communication: Use one place to communicate, for example, a shared app or group chat so all are in the know.
- Add Fun: Plan little moments of joy to make the process enjoyable, like a date night or cake tasting.
Wedding planning is not about perfection; it’s about finding a system that works for you and keeps you calm. Here are the steps in which you will stress less and enjoy more while planning your special day.
Need extra support? Join our Wedding Planning Membership for expert tools, tips, and a step-by-step guide to make planning your dream wedding simple and stress-free!
