The exchange of vows between the bride and groom during the ceremony is one of…
How to organize a wedding step by step
Probably you are recently engaged and now is the time to start thinking and organizing the wedding. So exciting! But maybe you don’t know where to start, you have a thousand doubts, and you are overwhelmed in seeing the amount of things you have to think about…
Relax, we would like to help you in this process, and we explain you how to organize a wedding step by step. The steps to have it all organized and up-to-date, not stress and to make sure everything goes as planned the day of the wedding.
Steps to organize a wedding:
- Decide what kind of wedding you want
- Guest list
- Choosing the perfect place for your wedding
- Choosing the date of the wedding
- Legal procedures and preparation of the ceremony
- Define the general timing
- Send the invitations
- Find the perfect wedding dress and accessories
- Hire the photographer and/or videographer
- Hire major services
- Choose the wedding menu
- Choice of the wedding cake
- Choose wedding decoration
- Wedding rings
- Organization of the day and final timing
- Selection of the wedding music
- Gifts for the guests
- Sitting plan
- Final preparations
- Big day!
1. Decide what kind of wedding you want
The first step will defining in what wedding you dream of. Would you like to organize a big wedding with ceremony, aperitif, banquet and party, or do you prefer to make an intimate wedding in a small farmhouse with the closest relatives? Or maybe a totally different casual wedding with friends on the beach? Would you like to do a civil ceremony on the same wedding venue or do you want to do a ceremony in the church?
Knowing what type of wedding would you like will be key for deciding and organizing the rest of things.
2. List of guests
Having clear the provisional guest list will be important to know approximately the “size of the wedding” so you can start looking for the ideal venue for your wedding. A place for 200 guests is not the same as for 50 guests.
We recommend you to start the guest list by the closest family and friends and expanding the circle.
3. Choose the perfect place for your wedding
Certainly, one of the most important decisions is to decide where to celebrate the wedding. In a farmhouse in the mountains, a wedding venue surrounded by vineyards, a castle…? Near where you live or perhaps a destination wedding in another country? That the venue already has its own catering and all the necessary services, or do you prefer to organize everyone on your own?
It will also be important to see if the venue where you want to organize the wedding has all the necessary services and a wedding coordination service, or maybe do you need to hire a Wedding Planner or organize everything yourself.
Choosing the perfect wedding venue can be complicated, we recommend you read on the blog, our tips on how to choose the perfect wedding venue.
4. Choosing the wedding date
The wedding date is a very important date. There are couples who want a specific date and on that it depends on the wedding place.
To choose the date of the wedding it will be important to know if you want to celebrate a summer wedding, a winter wedding, would you like a month in particular, etc. Also, if you want a Saturday, a Friday, a special holiday…
Depending on the chosen wedding place or kind of wedding, the date of the wedding can also depend on. Like if for example, you choose a summer place where the banquet is outside.
5. Legal procedures and preparation of the ceremony
Once you decided the wedding place and the date, it will be time to start all the legal procedures to officiate the marriage. Either if it is a civil wedding in the Town Hall, at the same wedding venue or a religious wedding in the church.
It will also be necessary to start preparing the ceremony: decide who will be the officiant, how do you want the ceremony to be, if you want to do the vows, some special ritual, etc.
6. Defining the general timing of the wedding
Once you have decided how, when and where the wedding is going to be, it will be important to define a general timing so you can start preparing the invitations and organize the big day.
At the wedding venues they can help you defining the perfect timing and help you in how to organize a wedding.
7. Send the invitations
When should invitations be sent? This is one of the questions we receive most from our couples. We recommend sending the invitations between 6 and 3 months before the wedding. Even so, if there are people who come from abroad or you need confirmation in advance, you can send a save the date a few months earlier.
For the design of the invitations, you can let your imagination fly: tell your love story, be inspired by your travels or hobbies, put some photograph or illustration of you, etc. The invitations can be on paper and send them by traditional mail post, or digital and send them by email, WhatsApp or even in video format. You can also create a wedding website with all the information about the engagement.
8. Find the perfect wedding dress and accessories
Choosing the wedding dress is one of the most exciting and special steps when organizing a wedding. It is recommended to start the search of the wedding dress between 12 and 6 months before the wedding. Even so, it will depend on the atelier or brand you choose.
Our recommendation is to start the search of the wedding dress with time to find your perfect wedding dress.
Once chosen the wedding dress you can start choosing the ideal accessories and think about the hairstyle and makeup.
For the groom we recommend starting the search of the groom suit between 6 and 4 months before the wedding.
9. Hire the photographer and/or videographer
The photos and videos of your wedding will be one of the most special wedding memories and will be for life. Choosing the photographer you like and fits your style will be a very important step.
In addition, it will be a key figure during the wedding day, as it will always accompany you: preparation, ceremony, report of boyfriends, aperitif, party… and you can even do a pre-wedding report.
We recommend you start searching and ask for information and budgets from several photographers in advance, so you can choose the photographer that best fits your personality and budget.
10. Hire important services for the wedding
Little by little you will decide all the things. To have everything organized and not stress or go at the last minute, we recommend you to book or contact the important services for the wedding in advance. As could they be:
- Make-up and hairdressing
- Accommodations
- Transport: bus, taxis, etc.
- Catering (if the wedding venue does not have its own catering)
- DJ (if the venue does not have its own DJ)
- Music group: if you want to have life music
- Babysitting service or children’s entertainment
- Some additional service you would like: photobooth, photocall, etc
11. Choose the wedding menu
The wedding menu is one of the most important decisions and there are a thousand doubts about it: which dishes to choose, will everyone like, is better a long cocktail and then a main dish or is better to do first and second course…?
Our recommendation is that you let yourself be advised by the venue or catering where you organize the wedding and do menu tasting of the cuisine offered. Don’t miss our blog post with our tips for choosing the perfect wedding menu.
In our wedding venues we offer a wide range of gastronomy, and our couples enjoy a menu tasting to choose their perfect wedding menu. In addition, we organize a day where they also taste most of the appetizers and buffets.
12. Choice of wedding cake
We can not forget the special wedding cake! A long-awaited moment for all guests. Here you must decide if you want to do the cake cut, if you want to have a big real cake, what flavor to choose… Do not miss our blog post with the guide to choose the perfect wedding cake.
13. Choice of decoration
The wedding decoration is very special. It should reflect your style and personality. For this step it will be necessary to have clear the style that you would like: elegant, romantic, boho, minimal, a certain color palette, etc. And from here decide the decoration of the ceremony, the floral centers, the tableware, etc.
It will also be time to think about the extras you would like to have: maybe a floral welcome corner, a candy bar, a wedding photocall, etc.
In our wedding spaces we have a wide range of decoration and extras so you can choose the perfect decoration for your wedding. In addition, we organize a day so you can see the decoration options that we offer live and imagine the day of your wedding.
14. Wedding rings
You have it all almost ready, but we can’t forget something as important as wedding rings. It is recommended to order the rings about 3 months before the wedding, although it is a good idea to start looking earlier.
You must also decide which inscription to engrave inside: the names of the couple, the date of the wedding, the initials, some special phrase…
15. Organization of the day and final timing
Between 1 and 2 months before the wedding, it will be time to define all the details of the wedding. How will be the ceremony (entrances, who brings the rings, readings of relatives, vows of the bride and groom, etc.), special moments (some speech, gifts for the guests, some game, etc.) decide if you want to first dance, if the bride throw the bouquet, etc.
It is necessary to report every detail to the coordinator/organizer of your wedding so that everything goes perfect on the wedding day.
16. Selection of the wedding music
Surely you already have in mind a lot of songs that you would like to play during the wedding or at some special time.
Between 1 and 2 months before the wedding it will be the time to create the final list of songs and decide the music with the DJ. As the songs for the ceremony entrances, cocktail, cake cut, first dance… Many songs, we know! But surely the DJ or person in charge of the music of your wedding can help you in this step.
17. Gifts for the guests
Another thing to think about will be the gifts for the guests. Small gifts or presents that are usually placed in the dining room (next to the plate of each guest), to take it as a souvenir of the wedding. It can be a keychain, a magnet with the name of each guest, some present to collaborate with charity, a cookie with your initials…
You will also have to decide if you want to give a special gift to a particular guest (usually during the banquet): parents, grandmothers, siblings, maybe the bridal bouquet to your best friend, etc. For these moments it is nice to choose a special song.
18. Sitting plan
One month before the wedding it will be the time to create the sitting plan: the final guest list and the Distribution of tables (who sits in each table).
It will also be important to know if there are people with allergies, food intolerances or vegetarians to inform the wedding venue or catering of it.
There are couples who decide to create a form so that guests can indicate if they have any allergies or need a special menu. Otherwise, they can inform you directly.
19. Final preparations
The last weeks before the wedding will be the busiest. It will be necessary to make the last fitting of the wedding dress or suit, last tests of hairstyle and makeup, beauty appointments, specify the final number of wedding guests and prepare the last details.
The days before the wedding, the venue where you organize the wedding, will prepare all the space for the big day so that everything is perfect: assembly of tables, tableware, cutlery, printing the minutes, etc.
20. Big day
Welcome to the wedding day! It will be a day full of nerves, but we recommend you to relax and enjoy every moment.
For the bride, it is recommended to start the preparation about 3-4 hours before the ceremony for hairdressing, makeup, put on the dress and so that the photographers can take some take pictures of the getting ready. If you can prepare yourself at the same place of the wedding it will be great.
The groom usually doesn’t need that much time. But it is recommended that you start the preparation about 2 hours before the ceremony so that, 1 hour before the arrival of the guests, you can be ready to receive them.
It will also be important not to forget anything at home. For this we recommend you prepare it the day before and make a list: dress, rings, accessories, shoes, bouquet, etc.
Oh, and above all, despite the nerves, rest the night before as it will be an intense day full of things and emotions!
We hope to have been able to help you with this step by step in how to organize a wedding. We know that there are many things to consider and decide, but sure that everything goes perfect.
If you want to know our wedding venues and all the services we offer, do not hesitate to contact us.
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