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Anyone planned a wedding in 4 months???

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onedrop

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Is this even possible? I have a location....Key Largo and a site there. My dearest friend is working on those details for me. I am not having a wedding party to speak of so I don''t have to worry about ordering bridesmaids dresses or anything like that. And the location does the flowers, catering, entertainment, etc. All I am really worried about is the dress, invitations and take-away favors. Am I overlooking anything big? And do you think I am crazy??

Due to my not really wanting a big wedding, and details specific to our situation, I am working on short notice. I am one of those women that is lacking the bride gene, so I am thinking this is doable because I don''t care a whole lot about color schemes, type of flowers or whatever. Thoughts?????? Thanks in advance for any help.
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labbielove

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i think it will be great-
i would have preferred a shorter time span, but we had constraints with his grad school and me not wanting a summer wedding.

my sister and her hubby planned one in less than 3 months, all was gorgeous.

i think you have the right idea- divide and conquer.
delegate the major "to dos" to friends/relatives who can do research and present you with three or four options, then make a choice.

i think a shorter time span to plan is a great way to stay out of worrying about all the details!

as far as a dress for you, if you are a 10/12 you may be able to buy a sample, or go to davids and see if you can get one off the rack. many designers also have rushes, etc. or you can even order a bm gown in white/ivory

you can do it- can''t wait to hear details as they unfold.

p.s. invites can be done in a very quick timeframe if you just look around-
 

Maria D

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My husband and I planned ours in about 4 months back in 1989. This was before the days of things like David''s Bridal and desktop publishing so I think if it was doable then it should be even more doable now. Not having the bride gene will definitely work in your favor. I didn''t have it either and found planning pretty easy actually. No researching flower arrangements, centerpieces, color schemes .... just: this is the budget what can we get? OK, sounds good, next! I remember invitations having a 6 week lag time; I actually ordered them the moment we knew our date/venue. I would think it shouldn''t take this long now unless you were looking into engraved or letterpress. As for a dress, I had mine made by a local seamstress because this was actually a much quicker process than ordering one from a bridal store at the time. Do you think you can buy off the rack?

I can''t think of anything that you are missing; good luck!
 

anchor31

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I think jas planned hers in four months.
 

AceP

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a friend of mine easily planned her desination wedding - in cabo - in about four months. she didn''t sweat the details, and her dress was from jcrew''s wedding selection.

on another note - key largo is a great destination! love it there! where are you planning to hold the wedding/reception?
 

AceP

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also - on dresses - check nordstrom.com and bluefly. both have a nice selection of wedding-suitable dresses.
 

IrishAngel7982

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Disclaimer: I have not yet planned a wedding.

That being said, way to go for taking the wedding planning head on and getting it done! I hope to have a short engagement also, but we''ll see once the time comes. Jas pulled her off in a short time and it was beautiful. Given the fact that all you''re really concerned about is a dress, invites, and favors, it''s totally feasable. No, you''re not crazy. Good luck!
 

sunkist

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Hi One! I just planned my wedding in 3 months. It was 11 weeks! My wedding was simple, not big, although we did have about 150 guests at the reception throughout the night. The reception was at my parents house. I think it''s totally doable.
 

kcoursolle

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I think this is do-able...

You don''t have that many things you have to book, I think you''ll be okay. I would start putting together your invite list with addresses/names right away, because you are going to have to get those out pretty soon. Then you can focus on your dress and finding a photographer. If you need alterations, you should probably give 1-2 months ahead of time for that so you don''t have to pay rush fees, so that would mean you need to pick out your dress in the next 1-2 months. Definitely do-able, especially since you don''t seem super picky about details.

Good luck!
 

february2003bride

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I did! Engaged the end of Oct 02, married Feb 03! And in between that time we had originially decided on Dec 03 and then Aug 03 but decided we didn''t want to wait that long and bumped it up to Feb. So glad we did!

Anyway, the nice thing about planning a wedding quickly is you have to make quick decisions and not look back. Boom, boom, boom, next! So I''ve seen several friends who''s weddings were 12+ months out totally stressing out because they had too much time, too many choices!
 

diamondfan

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I found the reason you can have issues is that often times vendors are booked up when you call them. Of course some people want a long engagement because of being young or being unable to be together sooner (in the military or school, for example) but I also know that if you have your heart set on a location and it is not available, you might move the date to accomodate the place you want. To me, as long as you can get all the pieces put together on the day you want, it should not be that difficult. I might try to find a nice location that provides a few of your services to you under the same roof so you are not going from vendor to vendor trying to get it all worked out. A coordinator might not be a bad idea either, because they have all the resources.
 

onedrop

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Wow! Thanks ladies for all of the encouragement, tips, past experiences, etc. I need to read jas''s threads. Really I thought I was crazy but I actually like the fact that I don''t have time to hem and haw, I have got to make decisions. And having a destination wedding makes all of that a lot simpler. I will take all of your suggestions especially about the dress. I am close to a size 10 1/2 so maybe I can find something I like that can be done quickly. And I have already been looking at invites and that seems doable in a short time.

I have a good friend in FL, so I may need to send her down to KL on a scouting mission. Another good friend is a travel agent so she can take care of that end for us. And my Mom is really good with details and logistics so I will be depending on her. Gratefully, I have other family and friends who will be attending that can handle the pre-departure and on-site little details.

AceP: We are looking at the Sheraton and Marriott in Key Largo with the Sheraton being the forerunner. My friend has already been in contact with them and they have dates availabe for us, so as soon as next week I hope to lock that down.

Sunkist: When I saw your post about your wedding, I thought, "wow that was quick, she just got engaged!" I will start reading your threads. Congratulations on your wedding and for such quick planning.
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Kcourselle: Thanks for the specific tips on the dress. BTW love your new wedding ring...it turned out beautifully!

Labbielove, Maria D, Anchor 1, IrishAngel, and February2003Bride: Thank you all for your tips, thoughts and encouragement. I will definitely keep you all posted on the developments.
 

TravelingGal

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Definitely possible as long as you don''t need to have everything bridal-mag perfect.

I had about 4 months. I checked out two venues, and quickly picked one. Then the photographer and found the dress nearly by accident. I did that all in about a week. Then about 3 months passed by and I planned the rest of the wedding in about 3 weeks. Oh, and there was about a week in between when I realized I had to get the invites out.

What really helped me was that I had a Friday wedding. Saturday weddings during peak seasons may be tougher because vendors are already booked. I got really lucky in that regard. Just get the big things out of the day and everything else is pretty easy.
 

monarch64

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I had nine months...I procrastinated about the whole thing (DH was prodding me but I just wasn''t into it for whatever reason, hee hee), and ended up planning the whole thing within four or five months. It''s definitley do-able! Especially since you''re not planning some huge 200+ guest list affair...you can do this, I promise!
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eks6426

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I got married in July 3, 05. We got engaged in mid March 05. I was actually very happy to have less time to plan because it was less time to stress about the planning. That being said, the most challenging part was finding vendors--especially photographers. We moved our wedding to a Sunday which helped a lot with the vendor issues. I did buy a dress off the rack and took it to an outside seamstress for alterations as the bridal store was too slow for me.
 

onedrop

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Once again, thanks ALL! I am pleased as punch to know I can do this. Hopefully by weeks end I will have the place settled and then next week the dress. After that I am really not worried too much. I''ve been scoping out invites and potential favors for our small guest list. And I am actually looking at having the wedding on a Sunday since we are doing a DW (hopefully). If we do the DW then I won''t need to worry so much about the vendors.

My biggest concern is the dress. Someone suggested David''s Bridal, which is great, but I strong aversion to that place. However...I might just have to suck it up. Depends on what the bridal salons I visit say about rush jobs.

Lastly, I am SO glad to know I am not the only procrastinating-lacking-the-bridal-gene-lady out there.
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gailrmv

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Just wanted to chime in and say that my good friend planned her wedding in a location about 4 hours away from where she was living, relying mostly on a wedding consultant, in ~4 months. There were a lot of things that she had her fingers crossed about on the wedding day (because she was not sure entirely how they would turn out). All in all, it was a beautiful wedding, one of the nicest ones I''ve been to (and definitely not the most expensive). It really reflected the tastes of the couple. Oh yeah, and both the bride and groom were in med school at the time! So if they could pull that off, I think you can too!
 

onedrop

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Good tip about the planner Gail. The more I think about it the more I am leaning toward doing that. But I will make that decision after contacting a few locations. It''s too much for me to organize at this point and I don''t have a lot of time.

Has anyone used the on-site planner at their destination wedding exclusively? If so, what was your experience and your suggestions? Or did you have a wedding planner in your town who then helped to coordinate the destination wedding long distance? Thanks!!
 

onedrop

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BUMP....

Since you all were kind enough to help get me started in this wedding planning thing, I thought I''d update my progress.

LOCATION: Though I am not picky on details, I knew for sure I wanted a destination wedding. So first I started looking in Florida. However, I don''t know Florida well, and I just got overwhelmed and couldn''t find the *right* location. Someone suggested the US Virign Islands and what a great decision that was! Decided on St. Croix (The Buccaneer Resort). It''s a beautiful location and they have the wedding package I wanted. I don''t have to do a thing except give them the money.
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I am most excited about the piece of the puzzle! One week with my friends/family and sun and fun!

DRESS: I went dress shopping for the first time last Friday. Went to 2 places and saw *the one* at the first salon. I think it was the 4th dress I tried on. It''s much less conservative than I ever thought I''d wear, but I honestly love the way it looks on me. And it fits my beach wedding theme. And I loved the customer service at this particular salon. I was encouraged by my mother to keep my other appointments and try on some other dresses. But I knew immediately which one I liked, and I quickly realized that not all bridal salons are created equally. Some of these salons give the hard sell, provide inadequate customer service or are just madhouses. I didn''t want that type of atmosphere. If anyone is in the DC/MD area and is looking for dresses, I can give a great recommendation!!!

I could have purchased off-the-rack, but the designer had my size in stock so I decided to go ahead and purchase a new one. It should be here in two weeks!! Went back yesterday to try it on and place the order. Also got the veil and a "tiara" of sorts. I was talked into the veil, by Mom actually. Originally I wanted no veil...but I gave in and I think it was a good suggestion.

Save-the-dates: I decided to incorporate the St. Croix theme on the STDs. And I wanted to do postcards. So I found a nice little website that let me create my own. I used the same picture as in my avatar, and included some colorful writing as an overlay. Those should be here Friday.

That''s about it for now. Still looking haven''t made a final decision on the invites, but that should be done fairly soon. And the other little things I''ll handle along the way. If I run into problems PS will be my first stop! You ladies have a wealth of advice...better than The Knot I think!!!

Sorry for being so long-winded but I am so excited right now!!!
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It''s sort of relief to know that I can still have pretty much what I want even on short notice.
 

onedrop

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I am another PS Maggie Bride!! It''s much *softer* in person. Had I seen it on the website before I tried it on, I would not have liked it at all. But in person...it''s very feminine. Nothing like what I thought I''d wear, but you just never know until you try it on.


Here it is...it''s the Melinda:



mymag2.jpg
 

Tacori E-ring

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Of course it is possible. You may not get then venders of your choice but if you are flexible than go for it.

ETA: if you are only going to have a 4 month engagement I would not bother sending out STD.
 

Miranda

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Date: 1/10/2007 9:31:35 PM
Author: one

I am another PS Maggie Bride!! It''s much *softer* in person. Had I seen it on the website before I tried it on, I would not have liked it at all. But in person...it''s very feminine. Nothing like what I thought I''d wear, but you just never know until you try it on.



Here it is...it''s the Melinda:

Beautiful dress!!!! I can see how it would look so much softer with a veil. I don''t love the flower in the hair on the model with it. We planned our wedding in just under 3 mos. For me, I''d rather have 3 intense months and FORCE everything to work out rather than obsess for a year or two...Then again, I''m mildly OCD...hehe
 

onedrop

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Tacori: Acutally I am not worrying all that much about the vendors. I am going to rely on the vendors associated with the resort (we are having a destination wedding). And as far as the STDs, I know it''s a short time frame, but there are some people who don''t know the location or even that we are engaged. It''s probably not the right protocol, but we are going to send them anyway just to let folks know the situation. Also my parents are holding a reception for us after we return and that information is on the STD as well, for those who probably won''t be able to make the actual wedding.

Miranda: I was thinking the exact same thing! My personality does not mesh with having a lot of time to plan. It''s almost better for me to be forced to make a decision.
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NYCsparkle

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My sister-in-law planned hers in 3 weeks....flowers, dress and everything.....and it was a destination wedding
 

onedrop

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My goodness! Three weeks?? Though I could see doing that if it were just the two of us.
 

chickflick

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I haven''t read the otehr responses but we were engaged in April and married on August 6. Of course, we''re a little older and wanted a small wedding so we were married on a cruise ship with about 55 guests. The package wedding helped a lot with the planning and frankly, I coudn''t have done a longer engagement. We were just ready to be married. I still had a lot of fun with the planning, and I bought my dress at David''s Bridal with no problems whatsoever. For that kind of timeframe I would definitely look more into one location for the ceremony and reception and somewhere that you can just make choices based on what they offer.

Good luck!
 

jas

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Howdy, as mentioned, I did it in 4 months and to be honest would not have done it any other way. Let me know if I can be of specific assistance...or a sanity check!
 

ellaila

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A little late to chime in here, but ... definitely doable! We got engaged in April and started planning in May for our Sept. wedding. For me, that was the only way to go. I couldn''t imagine having a long engagement -- I personally would go nuts having *years* to plan a wedding! I tried on just a few dresses, found one I loved (which actually was the one I had seen online and knew I wanted!), and BAM, that was it! Of course, if I had more time I probably would''ve looked around more, but why drive myself crazy?? Same for florists (found one, liked her, booked her) and venues (checked out two). The photographer did take a bit more time to find though, and I definitely recommend getting on that ASAP.

I''m older (35) and didn''t want any type of fairy tale wedding, so perhaps that made it easier. We kept it small and simple, and I''ll toot my own horn here, it was truly lovely
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Best of luck, onedrop!!
 

onedrop

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Thanks for the latest replies! I am beginning to see that this is doable, and just the right decision for us.

Jas: I have been reading your threads and I saw your wedding pictures...beautiful! I am sure that I will need a sanity check as time gets closer.
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Like a couple of the other posters I am *older* (35) and we both prefer a smaller intimate ceremony which is why we chose the destination wedding route. I am really happy with our choice, and our friends and family seem very excited about the prospect of a tropical vacation!
 

AceP

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Hi Onedrop - I was just wondering how you decided on the Virgin Islands? Have you been there before?
 
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