Santa Barbara Wedding Planning Checklist
Planning a wedding is a part-time job. Newly engaged couples are overwhelmed when they realize just how much needs to happen for their dream wedding. Simply getting started can be a challenge. I’m here to help you navigate these steps.
This is a complete wedding checklist aimed at helping you keep track of not just what you need, but ideally when it should happen. But don’t worry, if you are ahead or behind on something, the timing on things can shift, and you’ll still be able to have your happily ever after.
Timing the Wedding Planning
12+ Months Before The Wedding
Set A Budget Range: Rather than a set number, consider a range so that you could give yourself some flexibility and treat it like a sliding scale. Discuss if any friends or family members are expected to contribute to this range.
Book A Venue: If you’re reading this and still on the hunt for a venue, I encourage you to visit my Santa Barbara Wedding Venues page. It includes prices, photos and more. Consider what experience you want your guests to have. Is it a beach resort? Is it a grand ballroom? Is it an elegant garden? Is it awe-inspiring architecture? Once you tour some venues, and you decide on the one you want, try to lock in the date as venues can book up quickly!
Hire A Wedding Planner: I cannot stress enough how much weight a wedding planner will remove from your shoulders. Planners take the time to understand your vision and work tirelessly to make it come to life. They have connections with other professionals in the wedding industry who can help bring your wedding dream a reality. Want a list of my favorite wedding planners? Reach out to me and let’s chat about it.
9-12 Months Before The Wedding
Hire Your Key Vendors: A photographer, caterer, DJ/band, and florist are all considered pillar vendors for your wedding day. It’s important to reserve them during this window because if you wait much longer then ones that you are most interested in may have already been booked by another couple.
Create a Guest List: This will be determined but also help determine your budget range and your venue. I’m going to warn you, this is going to be hard if there are a lot of family members and friends on each side. Everyone has their own criteria for wedding guests and decisions about children, and plus ones.. Set boundaries with any family members who may want to pressure you into inviting guests who don’t hold a special place in your relationship.
Select Your Bridal Party: When considering who you want in your bridal party, reflect on who’s been a source of support in your life and relationship. Will these people still be in your life five, ten years after the wedding?
Shop For Your Wedding Look: Find the wedding dress that you love! Make it a fun and more special day by including some of your family and/or bridal party. For the gentlemen, find a good shop for tuxedos/suits for you and your groomsmen.
Book Hotel Room Blocks: Especially if a lot of your guests will be from out of town, you want to get an early idea of how much space you’ll have allocated. If your venue is not a hotel, consider distance from reception to hotel room blocks at the end of the night.
6-9 Months Before Wedding
Hire Additional Vendors: Hair and Makeup, Stationery, Officiant, Rentals, Transportation, Honeymoon travel agent, Cake/Dessert, lighting technician. There should be plenty of research here and perhaps some driving around. If you have a wedding planner, this portion is much easier as they’ll curate a small list for you to consider.
Take Engagement Photos: Your wedding photographer should be the one taking these images because it gives him or her a chance to get to know you, understand your most flattering angles and overall form a connection! If you’re curious how my couples look during their engagement session, you can see them here.
Schedule Hair and Makeup Trial: This can usually wait until the 4-6 month range, however I always recommend having your trial done the same day as you do your engagement session. That way you can really test out how your hair and makeup will look in photos.
Send Save The Dates: Now that you have some beautiful engagement photos, you’re ready to send these out! If a large portion of your wedding guests are from out of town, you can even consider doing this in the 8-10 month range.
Create a Gift Registry: This can also go hand in hand with a wedding website.
4-6 Months Before Wedding
Order Your Invitations To Your Home: Be sure your invitations include RSVP information as well as any additional info you’d like guests to know such as dress code. Hiring a stationary vendor ensures you get a bespoke invitation that’ll help set the tone for your guests for what to expect!
Plan The Honeymoon: Some couples like to see this as their “reward” for all the wedding planning, so indulge and have fun as you envision the honeymoon of your dreams. Often times, after I select a destination, I go to a site like Trip Advisor and see the top things to do to start whittling down my interests.
Finalize Catering and Dessert: After doing your tastings, lock in what culinary experience you and your guests will enjoy.
Finalize Wedding Attire: Make sure the dress fitting goes well and that the entire bridal party is set with their attire.
Buy Wedding Bands: Just a few more months until those left ring fingers feel a little different!
2-4 Months Before Wedding
Mail Wedding and Rehearsal Dinner Invitations
Write Your Vows: Don’t wait until the night before your wedding because you’re not going to have a truly clear mind to write down your thoughts. Consider writing lines little by little over the next few weeks.
Buy Wedding Party Gifts: I’m always a fan of gifts that have some personal meaning behind them. Consider what hobbies or interests you share with your wedding party, and center your gifts around that.
Pick Up Marriage License: Pretty self explanatory.
Select Playlist for Band/DJ: From your processional, to your dinner music to your First Dance, there’s a lot to consider here beyond the party time vibes. Your musician should usually have a form for you to fill out to help guide you.
Meet With Officiant: Your officiant will want to share some personal stories about you during the ceremony and this is where he or she gets that intel. If there is a religious or cultural components to the ceremony, discuss any readings or traditions here too.
DIY Work: If you know you want to wow your guests with custom table numbers, table card installations, or wedding guest favors, now’s the time to map it out and begin working on it.
1 Month Before Wedding
Pay Vendors: Most vendors prefer their final payments to be at this point. If your vendor requires several touch points for payments, make sure you add a reminder on your calendar.
Have Final Dress Fitting: Bring shoes and accessories to this to get a complete idea of the final look.
Confirm Your RSVPs: If anyone hasn’t responded yet, now’s the time to politely ask for a definitive answer.
Create Seating Chart: Usually you keep families together and friends in another area. For friends, sometimes splitting them up by work/college/sports/fraternities is a good choice. And if you don’t have those built-in divisions, feel free to just mix and match. They’re all here to celebrate you!
Order Escort and Place Cards: This can be something you’ve already planned with a stationery vendor or a DIY project.
Venue Walk-through: This is something you can do with your planner and afterwards you’re free to share any pics or ideas you have with your photographer and videographer.
1 Week Before Wedding
Prepare Emergency Kit: This one is more optional as a good planner and vendor team should have answers to most emergencies, but if you want to designate this to a member of your bridal party, consider gathering safety pins, a sewing kit, Tide pen, Liquid IV, pain relievers and anything else you may need.
Pack For The Honeymoon: If your honeymoon is immediately after the wedding, be sure you’re all ready to go! Check the weather forecast to get a clearer idea on rain/cold/heat.
Give Final Headcount
Final Payments for Vendors and/or Tips: If you plan to tip your vendors, set aside envelopes with the vendor name and hand them off to the planner or a trusted bridal party member.
Conduct Rehearsal Ceremony and Dinner: This is a fun night and the festivities have officially begun!
And there you have it! I know it’s a lot, but hopefully by piecing it out like this you’ll feel like it’s much more manageable. Remember that all of this responsibility isn’t just on you as a couple. Your vendors want to help and are usually happy to offer advice or assistance. Client experience is top of mind for me and I love it when couples ask for my opinion on vendors or wedding day decisions.If you want to see the imagery I curate for my clients, you’re welcome to view them here.
Contact
In order for me to give all of my clients the attention they deserve, I take a limited number of weddings every year.
I want the fairytale.
