Part II: Design Details and Day-of-Timelines
Now that you’ve booked your venue, wedding date and most of your vendors, it’s time for design and details! After all, what’s a wedding day without pretty design and a little organization!
Venue aesthetics: When thinking about wedding design, be sure to lean into the existing aesthetic of your venue. If you’ve chosen a rustic wedding venue, for example, use wild flowers instead of sleek or modern floral arrangements. If you’re chosen an elegant country club, think about having more traditional decor and flowers. Overall, don’t compete with your venue’s natural aesthetics.
Colors: Choosing colors for your wedding palette can be difficult. To make the process easier, consider the time of year. Lighter colors are typically suited for spring or summer weddings, while dark colors and jewel tones are better for fall and winter weddings. From there, start with your bridesmaid dress color. The dresses will be in a majority of your photos from the day, and should complement the overall decor.
Make it pretty without breaking the bank: These tips will help brides of any budget make the most of their wedding day decor!
Bridesmaid bouquets - How to repurpose: Reusing bridesmaid bouquets is an age-old trick to save a little dough when it comes to your wedding flowers. Be sure to use an opaque (i.e. NOT clear glass) vase to hide the stems. If the stems are shown, it’s very obvious that it’s a bouquet being reused.
Focus on one large table: If you’re planning a wedding, you’ve probably done your fair share of searching for design inspiration! It can be discouraging to see beautiful image after beautiful image and wonder how the heck you will make your wedding even half as pretty! The trick? Create a large bridal party table and go all out! Use the most elaborate flowers and linens at this table and it will be the showpiece of your reception. The remaining guest tables can be simpler in design.
Use what’s in season: Every season has beautiful flowers, and using what is grown in season will be the most affordable option. If you have to have a certain kind of flower that isn’t in season, use it in your bouquet where it will be photographed the most frequently. Otherwise, stick with what’s seasonal to keep costs low!
Linens: If your venue comes with standard linens, try to use as many of them as you can. Rent different napkins and use upgraded linens for a few specialty tables such as cake and your bridal party table. Once the flowers and place settings are on the tables, no one will notice that you’ve used a basic linen!
How to build a Day-of-timeline: A good timeline ensures that all vendors know where they need to be and when, and has the schedule of the day clearly drawn out. Here are tips for creating the best wedding day timeline:
Contact information: Be sure to include contact information for all vendors. If there are any issues or questions on the day of, vendors can easily get ahold of each other! Include the name, phone numbers and email of each vendor.
Start time for the day: If you are having a large bridal party, the hair and makeup will take several hours. Discuss the number of bridesmaids receiving services with your hair/makeup artist so they can tell you what time the hair and makeup needs to begin.
Photography timeline: Make a detailed list of photos you want taken on that day. Include family and friends on the list. Decide if you are doing a first Look (which means you will take photos with your fiancé before the wedding), as this will determine when your photos will begin. Send this info to your photographer and they can determine how long photos will take.
When should the timeline preparations begin? As you can see, there are a lot of details that make up a wedding day timeline, so you don’t want to wait until the week of the wedding to figure things out! You should have a loose timeline of the day at the beginning of your planning that includes the ceremony and reception timeframes. About three months prior to your wedding day, start figuring out your photography and hair/makeup details, and then you can fill in the rest of the pieces. Be sure that all vendors have a timeline one month before the wedding so they can weigh in if they have any concerns. It’s a team effort, and we want everyone to be on the same page!
At the end of the day, just remember that the wedding will be beautiful, and everything will go (mostly!) as planned. Enjoy being engaged and don’t sweat the small stuff!