If you are new to wedding planning, first congratulations on your engagement! I am sure you are still reminiscing in getting engaged and you should take some time to savor that special moment. What a lot of couples are finding out -- don't take too long before starting to make wedding plans.
It is amazing at how times have changed in our short seven years of being married. We got engaged at the end of January and were married in August. Now, we see our dates booking 1.5-2 years out. That may seem surprising, but in order to get all your first choices, you might want to consider a longer engagement. For us at Eron's Event Barn, our fall seem to books first. So if you are set on that time frame you might have to push off your date for another year.
Most important items to get booked immediately:
Venue(s)
Caterer
DJ
Photographer
Depending where you are having your ceremony and reception, you may need to coordinate two different locations. Many of our renters choose to get married here for the convenience of having both events at the same place. Most venues and photographers can only schedule one wedding per day. Eron's Event Barn, LLC is very unique in that we rent out for the full weekend (Friday - Sunday) so that means only one wedding every weekend. We find that our brides are much less stressed knowing they have the extra time to make things just how they imagined. Often times everything is set up Friday less the cake/cupcakes and a few other normally catered-in wedding day things so you can relax and focus on getting married. Some will hire a wedding planner or decorator to help out, but often times, we see the help of family and friends come to set-up and decorate. There is something special about being able to help each wedding be so different from each other. Often venues will only have a daily rental. Most times, the renter will then need to hire a decorator and wedding planner simply because there is not enough time to do it themselves in one day.
Some DJ's and caterers can handle more that one event on the same day but in order to get your top pick, it is wise to book early. Most food vendors allow you to do a tasting. Be sure to do your research on DJ's as there are so many out there.
Jenny and Andy got married here on May 11. They planned their wedding in literally THREE MONTHS!!! So yes, a short engagement can be done. They hired wonderful wedding vendors and their wedding was beautiful.
So to answer the big question: How long does it take to plan a wedding? It really depends on how short or fast you want your engagement to be. Make the decision based on what YOU and YOUR FIANCE want. This is one of the biggest days of your life so make sure you have enough time to make it just how you imagined. Don't forget to take time to enjoy being engaged and getting to know each other. Sometimes the best/worst can come out during the planning so remember why you fell in love with each other and be sure to focus on preparing for the marriage itself not all the glitz and glam.
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