Lurker with a question...

starryeyed2011

So I was on another board, and the gals over there are convinced that I can't plan my wedding in a few months. Just because I don't have my venue booked yet. I've been lurking on these boards for awhile, and I swear I've heard of people doing what I am planning to do!!! Has anyone else taken less then a year to plan there wedding? Please help, I'm starting to stress out!

Mrs.B6302007

We had a 4 month engagement so yep, it's possible.  And we were married in June, one of the most popular wedding months.  You just have to be very open-minded and not necessarily have your heart set on certain venues or vendors in case they're already booked.

starryeyed2011

Whew! Thank you MrsB632007. I feel like I could be flexible with the vendors, I just want my date

twinkie757

I'm sure it can be done in less than a year. You just won't be able to be as picky about  things. Don't stress out too much. Get a few dates that are available from your dream venue and then start seeing when photographers and other vendors are available...a certain that has the most of your top choices available wins & that's your wedding date.

I just looked at your signature and it says your wedding is not for over a year....why the question about planning a wedding in months then?

PharmacyBride

8 months for me.. 6 months for 2 different sets of friends.

Book the things that determine date first.. venues (ceremony and reception).  You may have more luck if your guest list is smaller (larger venues may be harder to find) It also helps if you get married at a unique time of year (winter) or not on a Saturday.  Flexibility will be your friend!

Catholics have rules about how long you are engaged.  If you will have a religious ceremony- consider their rules.

Dresses also take very long.  Many boutiques have dresses you can buy off the rack, especially if they have an in-house designer.  Get your dress squared away right away.  BM dresses don't take as long as the wedding dress.. but they still take a long time.  Get those squared away sooner than later.  Consider stores with shorter delivery dates or off the rack dresses.  Don't consider off the rack bad, either- the dresses still need to be altered.  I am waiting months for my generic size to come in.. and then I need to get it altered.  Lots of waiting!!!

Figure out your guest list right away.  This determines budget and venue size!

Tackle those things right away and you can definitely plan a wedding in months!

Mrs.B6302007

You have 13 months - more than enough time.  DOn't let it stress you out.  Use a checklist if you need to help you see the progress you've made.

LesPaul

Less than a year?  Sure.  I booked the venue first, 9 months out (and that could have been done later).  The caterer, florist, cake, and photographer weren't finalized until about 3 months out.  You have plenty of time.

playtntsbpg30

I think it's very possible a friend of mine had a date 6 months out and ended up getting married within a month or two of engagement because she rushed her plans due to wanting her grandmother there and she was very ill. She had a beautiful wedding gown and BM dresses. She was sorta in luck working at a Fire Hall but that is where she got married and had the reception. But like others said tackle the most important things first and then add on the little pieces in between. Don't set your standards so high and you will be just fine.

starryeyed2011

THANK YOU LADIES. This is totally what I thought, but nobody agreed with me. They were telling me my date was "common" even though it's a year out and nobody lives near me! Umm hello? I didn't realize people here were psychic too LOL!

This has made my stress level go down quite a lot!! Thank you

J&K10910

Starry, I think you got a little confused.  We said it's definitely possible to plan your wedding in a few months but you have to be able to be flexible with dates.  Having your heart set on a date (especially 9-10-11) means you should probably get the date determining stuff (like venues) done a little further in advance.

Birdie1483

Starry, my friend is planning a wedding in 5 months. It can be done.

However, with your date of 9/10/11, if you haven't already booked a venue I would do it ASAP. I can't tell you how many girls on my wedding month board already have 11/11/11 booked. Like, a CRAZY amount. I was surprised.

I wouldn't be surprised if you find it more difficult to find venues open for that date if you aren't flexible. Depending on the venue, it could already be booked up for well past that date. I had to go with 11/5/11 because my venue was literally booked up every Saturday until then.

kikibaby

So... are you just going to hang out and not start planning until next May?  'Cause it looks like you've got over a year, not 4 months.

red1115

If you're flexible, and easy-going, you should be able to do it in a couple of hours - LOL.  (Just ask any military bride!)

You want a specific date - you'll need to do a little bit more planning, but it's entirely possible.  Like the other ladies have said, secure what is important to you, (venues/photographer etyc.) and keep an open-mind about everything else.

starryeyed2011

Kikibaby, I'd like to hang out here more, yes LOL! Its very entertaining when I have lots of time and nothing to do. I guess you could say I've been "planning" by wedding since before I got engaged. Pretty much ever since I met my fiance. I love to look at different ideas and ways to be more fabulous. I love seeing all the details people are doing for their own weddings. I want my wedding to be unforgettable for everyone there. I just don't want to have to make final decisions about it this far ahead, and being told I have to just makes me mad.

Thank you to all the people who helped that did NOT follow me from my other post.

qwerty777

I think it is possible to do it in just a few months, except with the date you picked it will be much more difficult. Like PP said, dates such as 11-11-11 and 7-7-7 etc. get picked up really fast, like 2-3 years in advance. 9-10-11 will fall under this same category I'm sure, just like 8-9-10 this year. I would at least keep an eye on the venues in your area and book the big stuff ASAP, then wait on everything else until you're closer.

J&K10910

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_lurker-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:2ddff028-43bb-4b1a-ab1c-94de3722a78bPost:9598b547-0621-4c9a-b74a-f5cfff6e6e32">Re: Lurker with a question...</a>:
[QUOTE]Kikibaby, I'd like to hang out here more, yes LOL! Its very entertaining when I have lots of time and nothing to do. I guess you could say I've been "planning" by wedding since before I got engaged. Pretty much ever since I met my fiance. I love to look at different ideas and ways to be more fabulous. I love seeing all the details people are doing for their own weddings. I want my wedding to be unforgettable for everyone there. I just don't want to have to make final decisions about it this far ahead, and being told I have to just makes me mad. <strong>Thank you to all the people who helped that did NOT follow me from my other post.</strong>
Posted by starryeyed2011[/QUOTE]

For the record, I lurk and sometimes post on E and have for a long time.  So I'm not stalking you.  I just find it interesting that you came and sucked up to us, we were nice and gave you good advice, and you came over here to bitch about it.  It's cool if you don't like SB (you're not alone), but there's no need to be all fake about it.

kikibaby

Um, I didn't really mean are you going to hang out on these boards.  I meant, why aren't you making plans yet?  If you want a specific date, and you know about it over a year out, you should start planning.  That date is going to be very popular, so venues and vendors will get booked- most people do plan a year or so out, so if you wait to talk to anyone, you're going to have trouble getting what you want. 

You should at least book your venue ASAP, unless you don't mind getting married in your backyard.

lisalou402

All the PP's are right.  You can EASILY do it. I got engaged in March, started planning in April and am getting married in December.  Honestly, so much is done i'm a little bored right now!  

But the date thing is spot on...book your venue ASAP.

I think the only reason i got the date I wanted was because it was in December!

starryeyed2011

J&K: I am sorry if I offended you, but I was hoping to get different answers from a differnt group of people, so I did not appreicate you coming into this thread after I already heard your opinion. But I still like you and and Snarky Brides board and think your dress is pretty!

J&K10910

Oh, you surely didn't offend me, it just seemed like you came in and took only what you wanted to hear out of our advice, which wasn't what we said at all, and then brought it over here to whine about it. 

How was lunch, by the way?

SarahPLiz

I'm not following you either, but all of these posters told you essentially the same things we did. Your date is going to be popular. You will want to at least book your venue to secure your date. I remember you saying you wanted a fabulous venue, so you might want to go ahead and find it before another 9-10-11 bride does. 

We didn't tell you that planning it in a few months was impossible. We told you that you wouldn't get your 1st choice venue and vendors if you waited. There are plenty of brides from your area on these boards, and I have heard many of them talk about how things book up years in advance. 

We weren't trying to discourage you, we just didn't want to see you not get the venue you wanted because you waited too late. 

We are all here to help each other, even if its not what you wanted to hear. Thanks for calling us all unhelpful, though. We really appreciate that. Remember that first impressions count. 

Mrs.B6302007

Star - there's a lot of us who post on multiple boards so you're bound to run into us at every turn

FWIW - your date isn't truly set until at least the venue is booked.  I hope you get your date that you want and as many of your preferred vendors as possible but if you have your heart set on that date, I just don't know.  It is cutting it close with a popular date. 

SarahPLiz

Oh, and all of us venture over to other boards. Its not an uncommon occurrence. 

Birdie1483

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_lurker-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:2ddff028-43bb-4b1a-ab1c-94de3722a78bPost:9598b547-0621-4c9a-b74a-f5cfff6e6e32">Re: Lurker with a question...</a>:
[QUOTE]Kikibaby, I'd like to hang out here more, yes LOL! Its very entertaining when I have lots of time and nothing to do. I guess you could say I've been "planning" by wedding since before I got engaged. Pretty much ever since I met my fiance. I love to look at different ideas and ways to be more fabulous. I love seeing all the details people are doing for their own weddings. <strong>I want my wedding to be unforgettable for everyone there</strong>. <strong>I just don't want to have to make final decisions about it this far ahead</strong>, and being told I have to just makes me mad. Thank you to all the people who helped that did NOT follow me from my other post.
Posted by starryeyed2011[/QUOTE]


I'm going to try to ignore the "be more fabulous" remark, but if you want your wedding to be "unforgettable" on 9/10/11 you should start making hard plans now. The girls on the previous board and here are only trying to help you and give advice so you won't be disappointed 6 months from now when everything is booked and you cant have the fabulous wedding that you dreamed of.  I would hate for you to wait and then find that everything is booked and then regret not making plans sooner. You don't have to do EVERYTHING now, but it would be in your best interest to book a venue and photographer/videographer as soon as you can.

Also, you will find that a lot of people post on multiple boards. Just because you get answers by the same person on multiple boards, doesn't mean they're following you or out to get you.

starryeyed2011

Kikibaby, like I said, I am thinking and dreaming about I want my wedding to be like, I just don't want to make any final plans until I have to. What can I say, I change my mind alot haha!

J&K, my fiance is taking me to lunch, just later on this afternoon. And I don't think I am whining, I am just asking for advice from different people. I thought that was the whole point of having many boards. I like to hear different opinions, and apparently some people don't.

J&K10910

I'm really trying hard to not come off as bitchy, but I know I am because I'm getting frustrated.

The point is, you're NOT getting different opinions.  We told you it's completely possible to plan your wedding in a few months but you might want to get date sensitive things done sooner, especially because your date will be popular.  That is the same thing the lovely ladies on E are telling you.  That's all. 

starryeyed2011

Okay, okay I see I'm offending a lot of people here. For those who were helpful, thank you very much. I really do have to go have lunch with my fiance now, believe it or not.

Mrs.B6302007

No one's offended Star.

They're just dizzy from going around in circles with you.

red1115

Just a thought - I looked at the calendar - do you realize that 9/10/11 is the day before the 10th annv of the terrorist attacks?!?

God - I hope that doesn't affect your planning- esp being in New Hampshire...so close to New York...Are you planning on having a bunch of people fly in for the wedding?  If so, give them a ton of notice as I'm sure there'll be lots of extra security at the airports...

cupcakesfrosting

I'm confused.

Is your wedding in a few months, or is it a little over a year away? Are you already engaged, or are you "Almost" Engaged?

kikibaby

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_lurker-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:2ddff028-43bb-4b1a-ab1c-94de3722a78bPost:89f6e993-e4b7-4513-a4be-0274348ee0d0">Re: Lurker with a question...</a>:
[QUOTE]Just a thought - I looked at the calendar - do you realize that 9/10/11 is the day before the 10th annv of the terrorist attacks?!? God - I hope that doesn't affect your planning- esp being in New Hampshire...so close to New York...Are you planning on having a bunch of people fly in for the wedding?  If so, give them a ton of notice as I'm sure there'll be lots of extra security at the airports...
Posted by red1115[/QUOTE]

<img src="http://cdn.cl9.vanillaforums.com/downloaded/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-undecided.gif" border="0" alt="Undecided" title="Undecided" />