We realize times have drastically changed for all of us and we’re forced to stay home most of the day. Things are tough and yes, in times like this it’s easy to gravitate to the couch, eat junk food (no judgement here), get lost in social media, and maybe dabble in some online shopping. Needless to say, we have A LOT of time on our hands so why not make the most of it and think of something positive by diving into your wedding planning? Whether your wedding is later this year, next year, or you’re just starting to plan – this is the best and most productive time than any to start crossing things off that wedding to-do list! Here are a few things you can start focusing on right now!
Your Venue
Depending on where you are in the planning process, if you are at the very beginning where you are still in search for your wedding venue. This is a great time to sit down and start researching vendors online. Create a list of the ones you want to visit, book site visits for a few months from now, and by the time your quarantine is over you’ll already have the venue tours on the books and ready to go! Most venue’s will also have pricing or basic venue information on them as well so you can get a good idea of what they provide before you arrive.
Be our guest!
The most time consuming project of wedding planning is the guest list. Start calling, texting or emailing those guests you don’t have addresses for and create a google doc to get you started. Having this done now will help you once you begin sending out save the dates, your invites, and also all those thank you note’s you’ll need to write after the wedding!
Find your vendors
More likely than not, you are on your computer or phone most of the day, so this is a a great opportunity to start searching for your wedding vendors. Instagram, The Knot and Pinterest are just a few platforms you can start with. If you do already have your venue; look at their preferred list as well as your planners. Look at reviews, styles, and photos to get an idea of what vendors you’ll want to hire for your wedding. In addition, because of the recent postponements a lot of available dates are becoming booked so the sooner you secure vendors the better and it’s greater chance of you getting your first choice out of the bunch!
Book your dream team
The benefit of being at home is you don’t need to book your vendors in-person! Signing contracts can be done online and right at your fingertips! Once you find your dream vendors, start signing contracts and securing your date. Knowing that you have all of these vendors locked in early will relieve a lot of anxiety later!
Your vision
If your wedding planner offers design services you’re already in such great hands as far as them assisting in creating and establishing your vision. If you are on your own as far as designing, start putting together photos or creating your own mood board. Pinterest is the perfect platform and a great starting point as they have SO many inspiration photos. Don’t think of this as a chore, this is the fun part! Enjoy every minute!
Let’s Shop!
Sometimes is hard for you and your significant other to find time to sit down and really go over wedding tasks, but now there’s no excuse! Being in the same vicinity makes it really easy to make decisions together and make then quick, or take this time to create your registry! Shop together online and start choosing items and stores that you want to register at. This is also a very time consuming task so what better time than now to get this done and out of the way!
Do now, adjust later
Some of these tasks typically get taken care of later, but it’s always good to start on them now to get a head start and you can always revise or edit later on. Your vows, seating chart, and music choices. Again, things you can start now and come back to as it get’s closer to your wedding and adjust where needed. It’s all about staying ahead of the game!
Staying home during wedding planning isn’t the most ideal, but the more you’re able to get done in this down time the easier and less stressful it will be later on. Don’t put your plans on hold just because of this pandemic and start looking toward something you’ll be looking forward to…you wedding! Happy planning!