Maine

You can never start too early...

To all the brides still in the planning process:I was just reading a few posts (some older, some newer) and was thinking about how glad I was that I got a lot of things done WAY earlier than "experts" on various sites and venues said I needed to...ESPECIALLY my dresses. People thought I was CRAZY to start harassing my bridesmaid's early about this stuff, but if you read people's posts about nightmare dress fittings and dresses coming in 2-3 weeks later than quoted/expected-- my getting my BMs in there earlier than most seemed like a stroke of brilliance! LOL Every one of them was worried about buying too early because they were all "losing weight." But I knew-- like we all do-- that there is only so much you can lose in a certain amount of time (and quite frankly, I knew one or two of them weren't going to make a ton of progress, if any-- they never do!)... My extra time allowed for a number of multiple alterations plus a week's late delivery time, etc. And so the dresses have really been one of the least stressful parts of the process.The same applies to my wedding invites, which I made by hand (although, in hindsight, I could have sent them out a couple weeks later than I did, but I wanted them OUT!). And my cake. And my flowers.So, a little advice from someone who's hoping to be done with most of her wedding planning a full week before the wedding date (in 11 days), despite all the DIY projects involved: If anyone gives you guff about starting too early, tell 'em THEY'RE the ones who are crazy. You're just being existential and taking charge of Fate so that you can handle all its curveballs.I think it's the only reason I've managed to stay even remotely sane (despite my mom's best attempts to thwart my sanity)...Good luck and happy planning!:-)
"Once the realization is accepted that even between the closest human beings infinite distances continue, a wonderful living side by side can grow, if they succeed in loving the distance between them which makes it possible for each to see the other whole against the sky." -- Ranier Maria Rilke BabyFruit Ticker image Me:37 MH:38 TTC since Oct 2011 BFP/Beta#1: 13 6/20/12; Beta#2: 20 6/22/12; MC/Beta#3: 9 6/27/12 BFP#2/Beta#1: 9/21/12 S/PAIFW

Re: You can never start too early...

  • edited December 2011
    I have to agree.  I had to do a lot of my planning and buying early on, since I work 2 jobs in the summer.  It has been a blessing, as it's helped me spread out my budget, I had received some discounts for booking vendors so early, and it's saved my sanity so far.  I am getting down to the wire, and I'm obviously stressed about it, but not as much as I've seen other brides be.  Early is good.  :)  It's nice to be able to enjoy this time in our lives too, and not be so consumed by the stress of it all. 
  • Torir911Torir911 member
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I'm an avid planner-- I love lists, budgets, reviews, etc... and I know me enough to know I rarely go with my first choice (although I did with my photogr. My fiance and I were engaged at the end of May. But mid-June we had a date set & were looking at venues. We had a venue picked out a month later. The next month I found my dress. The month after that we found our photographer. We're hoping to figure out a DJ. Now I'm shopping sales and using my 50% off Michaels coupons to get my vases & other centerpiece things I really want. I figure a little work here and a little there will reduce my chances of getting stressed out the weeks/days before my wedding. At first my mother was telling me to "Enjoy your engagement..." but I think I finally got her to see the light :) Oh & I read the cutest thing today. I was reading through my fiance's texts with his friend (my FI was sitting right next to me, he couldn't remember what time we had to be at his friend's house on Saturday so I found the text). At one point my FI congratulated his friend for getting married and his friend wrote, "Thanks! You're next!" and he wrote back, "I know it can't come soon enough!" :) So it's nice to see he's just as excited as me... even though he doesn't get as pumped about $5 vases that hold our pillar candles perfectly!!
  • edited December 2011
    I also agree--especially about bridesmaid dresses!  My sister's came in a month later than she expected but because she bought it 5.5 months ahead of time she still had plenty of time for alterations.  Also, start any DIY projects early--stuff comes up and it's better to do things when you can than end up staying up late to get it done because you're running late.  In the two months before we sent out the invitations, if we had an evening at home, we spent at least 30-60 minutes working on them.  It felt like we were working on them forever but we got them done on time and still had time for other things.  Also, no matter how you plan it, the couple of weeks before the wedding will be busy.  I pushed myself pretty hard one to two weeks out because I wanted EVERYTHING to be done 72 hours before the wedding.  But I'm glad I did because it gave me three days to have fun with my family and friends and get excited for the wedding itself!
  • edited December 2011
    Oh yes, totally agree! People started commenting back in June how nuts I was for looking at photographers a year in advance, and now I'm getting it for looking at cake bakers 9 months out. But people who have never planned a wedding don't understand how fast popular people book up, or how long it takes to do all the research and find "the one." And I just smile and nod whenever people say anything derogatory about my big red planner full of pictures, ideas and notes!I haven't had to deal with dress alterations yet, but I can imagine being prepared really helps with anything that comes up in that regard.
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  • edited December 2011
    I can relate to all of you i am planning my wedding a year and a half in advance i couldn't imagine waiting to do everything last minute i need something to do everyday so i know it will be done especially since i am the one doing it. Good luck to all you future brides!
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