Question for you brides...

[GoingCrazy29]

In your opinion, what is the minimum amount of time you NEED to plan a 250 person wedding?

My FF and I plan on getting engaged around January (he won''t tell me exactly when because its a surprise- I am hoping December, but January is likely). He is in round 2 for interviews for a job that would start in June and that would move us wherever they choose for us to go for one year and then they would move us to another place for one year before placing us permanently someplace else.

We have always discussed a September 2009 wedding, which would cause me not to have insurance if I went with him in June- or we could have a LDR for 3 months until we are married and I move where he is. The other problem is he will only get 5 days off work this first year, which would be all used up on our honeymoon and not holidays. We were thinking about possibly moving things up to get married in maybe April or May- which would only give me 3-4 months to plan this huge wedding, but would allow us to take the honeymoon before he starts work so the 5 days could be used for holidays. It also would allow me to join his insurance plan as soon as it starts. I already know what colors I want, what music I like, the favors, what I want centerpieces to look like, etc. My mom will be helping me with everything and I have TONS of help from friends too. The issue would be with venue booking. Anyway, is this doable from your opinion or am I crazy? Should I just suck it up and wait until September?? Thoughts please

 

[oobiecoo]

A cousin of mine planned her 75-100 guest wedding in about 3 months because she was pregnant. I planned my 100 guest wedding in 11 months but could have done it in 6 or so. I think pushing up the wedding date would probably work well for you... you may just have to be a BIT more flexible when it comes to choosing vendors because some may already be booked. Good Luck!


ETA: If I were you, I would NOT wait until he proposes to start planning... I would begin now. If you wait until January then your vendor choices and dress options would be fewer.

 

[mimzy]

i'm planning my 240 person wedding in 12 months BUT i'm also in grad school and am DIY'ing just about everything so i am needing this extra time.

however, when i started i *thought* i had everything already planned out (locations, budgets, vendors, etc) but that honestly all went out the window when we actually got engaged and set out with our actual budget and actual guestlist.

truthfully i wouldn't recommend it unless you have a huge budget and can pay for someone else (vendors or a planner) to do a lot of the work and you aren't particular AT ALL.

we had actually considered doing what you're considering - we got engaged in december and thought about getting married in march, which i really wanted to do for a number of reasons. but now that it's almost over i'm really glad that we've had the extra time and it isn't rushed. i actually get to enjoy the engagement and have had the necessary time to sort though a lot of the feelings and issues that come with getting married (that i didn't anticipate). i wouldn't have stood a chance emotionally if we did it that fast!

 

[fieryred33143]

It''s not about planning because technically, you can plan the whole wedding in a week.

What takes time are searching for the venue, searching for vendors, booking, finding a dress, making up the guest list, doing the invites, etc.

If you want to plan in 3-4 months time, then you will need to know what venue you want and contact them ASAP to make sure they are available. Most places that will hold that many people are usually booked way in advance so you may have to play with your dates a little.

Photographers and DJs are also booked way in advance and for a Spring wedding, the chances of having a lot that aren''t free are high. Invites are no problem. And with 250 people, I''m guessing that a dress from nordstrom won''t do. So you have to factor in the sometimes 20 weeks that it can take to get the dress shipped to the bridal store.

My suggestion to you would be start researching and contacting now. When you find vendors that you will like to use, ask them to hold on to your date as much as possible (they will because they want the business). If you have a dress in mind that is something that has to be ordered (like a Maggie, for example) then start getting your measurements now.

It can definitely be done in 3 months. My bf planned her Key West wedding in 3 months but it took round the clock research from the both of us to find a venue that was available and instead of an afternoon or even evening wedding, she had to do a brunch. Either way she''s getting married and did get her dream places. The good photographers were all taken and she ended up with a photographer that isn''t so great (Key West doesn''t really have that many photographers to begin with) and she''s paying a premium to have the only DJ available that afternoon come out to the wedding (and he''s stopping before the reception ends because he has another wedding to go to).

 

[sunnyd]

I''m with oobiecoo! Start planning now girl! It can be done, but you may not get the vendor choices you want.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

I agree that it can be done. I had a friend who got engaged on new years eve and they got married at the end of may that year. There was no real reason for them, they just wanted to do it right away

(rolly eyes because it doesnt give their guests much notice just because they felt like having it sooner) but i''ve seen it done and you know we''re all here to help you along the way good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[katamari]

Will your FF be able to help and contribute if you start planning pre-engagement? I would just think starting early would shut him out of the process, and it really is a celebration of your union together, so you should both be active in planning it. But, if it wouldn''t, then I don''t see a problem in going ahead.

 

[oobiecoo]

Date: 10/16/2008 11:23:32 PM
Author: katamari
Will your FF be able to help and contribute if you start planning pre-engagement? I would just think starting early would shut him out of the process, and it really is a celebration of your union together, so you should both be active in planning it. But, if it wouldn''t, then I don''t see a problem in going ahead.

Why would starting early shut him out of the process? I started planning before I was officially engaged and my hubby was able to help me with quite a lot.

 

[katamari]

Very good point, oobie. Well, it doesn''t necessarily have to. I guess I was making assumptions that GoingCrazy would have to keep it to herself since they weren''t engaged. Another lesson learned about assumptions.

 

[gtn]

I think 3 months is sufficient provided you have a venue and are willing to make concessions. I will warn you that you might end up spending more money if you have a shorter timeline. As someone mentioned, you might end up paying a premium for booking some vendors "last minute", but then again, you might luck out and get a great deal. I found my DJ 2 months before the wedding for a steal since he wasn''t booked that day. If I had booked him 6 months in advanced, I would have been charged more.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[sap483]

My cousin planned her 450 person wedding in 6 months. The planning can definitely be done, but I would book my vendors ASAP.

 

[Nocturnius]

The only thing that takes a lot of time is the bride''s dress. I planned my actual wedding in a month and a half, but I had ordered my dress three months before and had to pay a rush fee for it. Almost all bridal gowns require 6+ months to order, and some higher-end ones (like Amy Michelson) can take longer than that. You should start looking and get an idea of what you want, then inquire specifically about your gown''s designer and their time frame.

Also consider your date and if it''s a popular one or if it falls near a holiday. This could limit your vendor choices and also put a strain on how long you can wait to book things. For example, the only reason I was able to plan my wedding so quickly was because it happened to fall on a Wednesday in July; it was not a popular date. In contrast, there were weddings booked a year and a half in advance for July 4th (just five days earlier) and July 12th (three days later).

Aside from that, planning a wedding in nine months shouldn''t be an issue. But if you''re eyeing 09-09-09 for example, you mght need to jump on it in a hurry.

 

[blondebunny]

It seems you and your FF have discussed things, and it seems that you pretty much have come to the conclusion that it would be better to get married before the moving and everything, and I totally think you should do it before you move.. I mean you dont want to have to move and try to plan a wedding long distance (im sure that can be stressful) and if you didnt have insurance, that would be completely awful for something to happen to you, and to have extra expenses right before the wedding ya know?? If it was me, I''d play the safe card. I mean he obviously wants to marry you, so I dont see why you cant do some of the big things now.. Like find a dress, book a venue, photog, and DJ and stuff.. Once you have the big things done, everything else seems pretty simple as long as you know what you want.. Alot of couples it seems have been planning (booking venues and what not) before they were actually officially engaged.. I mean its only a technicality at this point right??

I say talk to him and see if he is for the April/May wedding... and if he is... START PLANNING!

Just make a pro/con list of things and show him..

 

[elrohwen]

I think it depends on where you live whether places will be booked or not. I know people who have planned weddings in that amount of time, but I also know that in my area a lot of places we looked at were booked more than a year in advance. We would''ve struggled to find a venue in only a few months, though I suppose it could''ve been done if we were flexible about the location and price.

I agree with the others that booking places now is probably your best bet. Also remember to be flexible because you might not get your first choices, but you''ll hopefully still find something wonderful.

 

[Gwyn]

If you have the time do DIY alot or the money to just buy and are pretty knowlegeable about what you want and decisive about things you dont, I dont see why you cant plan a wedding in 3-4 months for that many people. its not the planning that will get you its waiting and organizing the responses from all those people. I recommend getting those invites out ASAP