Almost there- only 5 months before your wedding!
Let’s recap everything you’ve accomplished so far with only 5 months before your wedding. You have scouted and booked your venue(s), set your budget, finalized your guest list, and sent your Save the Date cards. You created your wedding website, set up your registries, booked your wedding vendors, and reserved room blocks. You ordered your wedding gown, searched, tasted and ordered your wedding cake, finalized your florals.
You’ve taken your engagement photo, found your hair and make up artists and booked your trials, and selected your bridesmaid’s dresses and partner’s attire. You bought your wedding day accessories, made your wedding night accommodations, and booked your honeymoon. You have searched for and ordered invitations and stationary, finalized your menu, gotten bridesmaids’ accessories, and chosen groomsmen and ring bearer attire. You bought wedding rings, updated your registry, and started searching for favors.
Looks like you’re right on track!
Here’s what you’ll need to do 5 Months Before Your Wedding:
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Showers, Bachelor, and Bachelorette Parties
Bachelor and bachelorette parties, or Stag and Hen as they say across the pond. Your one last chance to party it up with your attendants and friends before you’re officially an old married couple. This is where your Best Man and Maid of Honor begin to take a more active planning role. He and she are responsible for taking you each out on the town to celebrate your last night as single people.
Your bachelor/bachelorette party doesn’t need to be the night before your wedding, but it should be close to your wedding date. Confirm your preferences and plans for parties, as well as any showers, with your Maid of Honor and Best Man.
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IDs, Please!
Leaving the country for your honeymoon? 5 months before your wedding is the time to make sure your paperwork is in order and your shots are up to date. Visit the State Department website for a list of documents, vaccines, and travel warnings and alerts. The State Department also recommends that you carry contact details for the nearest U.S. embassy or U.S. consulate with you, in English and the local language, just in case.
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Select Your Ceremony Readings
Begin a search for readings and discuss with your officiant when to work them in. Select readers to be a part of your ceremony. Your officiant is, by definition, one of the readers, but you can get quirky or wax poetic depending on whom you to choose in addition.
A Practical Wedding has a great list of places within your ceremony timeline where selected readings can be used. Your selected readings, as well as your chosen readers, will help make your wedding unique. You may even notice a few tears or giggles from your guests depending on the tone you set.
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Schedule gown fittings.
Your first appointment should be directly after you receive the gown; the last one should fall no later than three weeks before the wedding. If you are handling the bridesmaid dress order, confirm the delivery date. If your bridesmaids are ordering individually, you may want to assign your Maid of Honor the task of making sure everyone is scheduled for their fittings.
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Party Guest Lists!
Provide guest lists to your Maid of Honor and Best Man for your shower, bachelorette party, and bachelor party, as well as any other social events.
- Bus, Limo, or Bicycle Built for Two?
Search for a transportation vendor for guests to get from the ceremony to the reception. You may also want to arrange transportation for out of town guests from the hotel(s) to the ceremony. Book your transportation vendor(s) 5 months before your wedding.
Click to see what you’ll be doing 4 months before your wedding.