Wedding Checklist
Below is a general checklist for you to print and fill in as you organise your big day.
- Decide on a date for your wedding
- Put an announcement in the newspaper
- Choose your maid of honor, bridesmaids & best man
- Decide on what you can afford & set the budget
Have a look at this budget planner for help - Research and buy wedding insurance
- Start researching ideas & venues by talking to your friends and family, looking on the internet or going to wedding fairs
- Make a guest list for the ceremony and the evening reception
- Make sure you don't forget to book time off work
- Book the venue for your ceremony & for your reception if different
- Visit the registry office & sort out the paperwork required to get married and give your notice
- Book the catering for your wedding breakfast and evening buffet and the bar if your venue doesn't offer this
- Organise chair covers if your venue doesn't provide this
- Book your first night at a hotel and sort out hotels for your guests who are traveling
- Come up with ideas of themes and colour schemes & the general feel of your wedding
- Buy invitations for the whole day and just the evening and send them out in plenty of time
- Sort out table plan for reception
- Buy your wedding stationery ie table plan, place cards, order of service, thank you cards
Look here for bespoke stationary design - Choose your first dance song and entrance and exit music for you ceremony & evening reception
Look here for ideas - Choose readings & poems for your service
Look here for ideas - Prepare speeches for reception
the usual speeches are by
Father of the bride, or both the brides parents
Groom
Best man
Other speeches and readings can be done by
Maid of Honor, bridesmaids, brothers or sisters - Buy or hire your dress and get alterations done if needed
Look here for ideas - Buy or hire your veil, tiara, shoes & jewelry
- Hire suits for the groom, best man, ushers & fathers
Look here for ideas - Buy or hire dresses for the bridesmaids
Look here for ideas - Choose & buy your wedding rings
- Decide on order of service
- Order you wedding cake
- Reserve your photographer/video company
- Buy disposable cameras for guests tables
- Hire the wedding cars
- Make travel arrangements for you and your guests
- Choose a shop to have your wedding gift list and pick the items you would like
- Buy bridesmaid's best man and ushers gifts
- Buy gifts for both your mothers
- Book wedding entertainment, dj, magician, band, musician etc.
- Book hair appointments & experiment with styles
- Book make-up artist & experiment with styles
- Book florist for bride, groom, ushers, bridesmaids, family & the venue/s
- Buy favors to put on your guests tables
- Organise a hen and stag party
- Make sure your bridesmaids, best man & ushers know what they are expected to do on the day
- Confirm all arrangements with your venue, catering, entertainment, transport, hotel bookings
- Plan the honeymoon and book it
- Choose going away clothes
- Check both passports are valid and changed to your married name
- Organise inoculations if required
- Buy travel insurance
- Notify banks, doctors, dentists, the inland revenue, and other services about your change of surname
- Write thank you cards