The average American engagement lasts 16 months. No matter how long or short your engagement, you’ll find that planning always comes in two big spurts: the beginning and the end. The longer your engagement, the more time you’ll have in between. But, length of engagement shouldn’t make a difference in how fabulous your wedding turns out to be, as long as you know when to book your wedding vendors.
Longer engagements normally get the choice vendors. After all, the best people and places book first, so the longer your engagement, the more likely you’ll be able to book your first choices. And once you reserve, you’ll have some downtime in between.
Shorter engagements don’t mean you won’t have a fabulous wedding. You just might have to be a little more flexible in your choices. Since you don’t have as much time, focus on the bigger items that matter the most: location, dress, food, photography and decor. Don’t get distracted by the smaller items that can detract you from the main focal points of your wedding.
No matter how long your engagement, don’t overwhelm yourself with choices. Schedule appointments, but do research before you go. When making appointments with vendors, try and schedule the same type of vendors within a close period of time to make it easier to remember what you liked and disliked from each so you can compare easier. For example, focus on making appointments with only photographers for a couple of weeks. This way, all of the details about each photographer will be fresh in your mind. Additionally, if you wait too long between appointments, you may miss time sensitive deals that vendors sometimes offer or they may even book another wedding.
There are all kinds of tools and checklists available to help you plan your wedding. But the recommendations for when to book venues or hire vendors can vary drastically. So how do you know when you should start reserving for your date? Just follow this rule of thumb, “If it requires a specific person, vendor or venue, do it as soon as possible.”
Certain wedding vendors such as the florist, baker, invitation designer and event supply stores can do multiple events at the same time, so you have a little more leeway. Yet things that are finite in supply, such as Venues, Photographers, DJs, Wedding Planners, etc., need to be booked as soon as possible. The best ones book quickly, so start reserving these as soon as you can.
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About the Author:
Lauren LaBelle – Wedding Planning Expert
Over the past 10 years, Lauren has successfully planned hundreds of beautiful weddings from small and intimate to large and grand at a variety of venues..private homes, hotels, wineries and more. She is thrilled to be able to share her expertise and passion for planning with helpful articles for brides.
