advice!

jdv7700

we are getting married in january 2011 and I just wanted advice as to what exactly I should be doing right now.  We have booked the church, venue, and a photographer.  We are taking engagement pictures in March, we just decided our bridal party, and I have started doing little projects like a card box and unity candle.  I just want to know what's next?  What should I be doing or planning?  I know its too early for invitations/cake/dj so should I just focus on a wedding dress, bridesmaid dresses, and save the dates?

linzlars

First off, congrats! )

You have gotten a lot of the initial big stuff done, which is great. If food isn't included in the venue, I would recommend looking for a caterer now.  The dress is definitely an important one to try to get done as soon as you can, just to make sure you don't run into any ordering/shipping problems.  I ordered my BM dresses through Alfred Angelo and they only took about 10 weeks to come in (I think it would be similar for David's Bridal), so you probably don't need to stress about those quite yet, but you can certainly start looking if you want to.

I know it seems very early for everything (which you do still have LOTS of time and don't need to panic yet), but my recommendation is actually to just get anything done now that you can. Some people, like maybe friends and family, will think you're going too crazy with the planning by booking stuff early, but honestly it can save you lots of headaches and stress later if you get things done early, or at least spread it out throughout your engagement.  If you're not feeling tired of planning yet and have time now, go ahead and work on the cake and DJ and other DIY projects. I think the only reason to wait on anything is if you haven't finalized your "look" and are worried it might change in a few months (which if that happens, don't feel bad. A lot of girls go through many themes/colors).  I can tell you that all of the stuff I took care of 6+ months ahead of time reeeeaally helped me when I was down to 2-3 months and starting to stress. There were many DIY projects I actually could have done like 5 months out and didn't because I was lazy, haha, and when it was 1 month before the wedding I really wished I had taken care of that a long time back.

Then again, if you have other things you need to take care of (work, school, life) and want a break from planning, you have plenty of time left to just relax for now. I ended up using the Knot checklist for most of my timeline stuff, and just looked up or asked on here for everything else.

Anyway, hope that helped some and good luck planning!