The First Steps for Planning Your Dream Wedding

2020 is almost here, and it’s almost time to “ring” in the new year! While most people will be celebrating with party poppers and champagne, some lucky lovebirds will be showing off a DIFFERENT kind of ring this NYE — an engagement ring!

WeddingWire reports that a whopping 40% of couples get engaged between Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day each year, with 18% of proposals happening in December alone. This means that many couples start the new year with a wedding to plan and a LOT of questions.

A wedding is such a big, important occasion, one that many folks have been dreaming about all their lives. How do you even begin planning something so monumental? Here’s how you can put your best foot forward as you start the wedding planning process.

Step One: Set a Timeline

Let’s be real: planning a wedding is definitely a lot of work. There’s just so much to decide — which venue to use, what dress you want to wear, what food and drinks to serve, the list goes on. But luckily, there’s no hard and fast rule about how long your engagement should be (though the average is 13 months), so you can make a plan that suits your schedule.

Talk honestly with your fiance and set a timeline that works for you. Make sure there’s time to plan, go to work, and have time to unwind in between!

Step Two: Get Inspired

You’ve probably been dreaming about your wedding since you were a little girl. However, if that’s true (and if you’re the average age of a bride in the U.S. — 27), your initial bridal fantasies were likely steeped in 90s-inspired fashion. Times have changed, and it’s time your dream wedding did, too!

Visit wedding blogs online or pick up a few bridal magazines to check out the look of today’s weddings. Simply perusing a few photo albums will certainly get you in the planning mood!

Step Three: Enjoy Being Engaged

This step is probably the most important. Too many couples dive headlong into the wedding planning process as quickly as possible, which means they miss out on their engagement. This is a fun, exciting time in your relationship, so don’t be afraid to take a beat and revel in it!

Go out for romantic date nights. Show off the ring as often as you’d like. Drop the phrase “my fiance” in conversation so often that everyone else gets a toothache! Take time to enjoy this special phase in your love story — you both deserve it.