Planning a wedding is exciting until you realize there are about 200 things to organize and nobody gave you a manual. This month-by-month checklist keeps you on track without losing your mind.
12 Months Before
- Set a budget (the real number, not the dream number)
- Choose a wedding date (check with key guests first)
- Book the venue (the best ones go fast)
- Start the guest list (it will change 47 times, that is normal)
- Get a wedding planner or decide to DIY
- Start a wedding planner journal and use wedding stickers to organize sections
10-11 Months Before
- Book photographer and videographer
- Book caterer or choose the venue is menu
- Start dress shopping (say yes to the dress takes longer than TV shows suggest)
- Choose your wedding party (bridesmaids, groomsmen)
- Book the band or DJ
- Research florists
8-9 Months Before
- Send save-the-dates
- Book florist
- Order wedding cake (tastings are the best part of planning)
- Plan the honeymoon
- Start premarital counseling if desired
- Book hair and makeup artists
6-7 Months Before
- Choose and order invitations
- Register for gifts
- Book officiant
- Plan ceremony details (readings, vows, music)
- Arrange transportation for the wedding day
- Start tracking RSVPs in your planner with wedding stickers to mark confirmed guests
4-5 Months Before
- Send invitations
- Final dress fitting
- Order suits or tuxedos
- Plan rehearsal dinner
- Buy wedding bands
- Finalize playlist with DJ or band
- Book wedding night hotel room
2-3 Months Before
- Confirm all vendors
- Apply for marriage license
- Write your vows
- Plan seating chart (the hardest part of the entire wedding)
- Break in your wedding shoes at home
- Plan bachelor and bachelorette parties
1 Month Before
- Final dress fitting
- Confirm guest count with caterer
- Create day-of timeline
- Prepare tips and payments for vendors
- Delegate day-of tasks to wedding party
- Practice first dance
1 Week Before
- Confirm everything one more time (venue, flowers, cake, music, photo)
- Pack for the honeymoon
- Prepare an emergency kit (sewing kit, painkillers, stain remover, snacks)
- Rehearsal and rehearsal dinner
- Give gifts to wedding party
- Try to sleep (you will not, but try)
Day Of
- Eat breakfast (seriously, brides forget to eat)
- Take a quiet moment with your partner before the chaos starts
- Trust your vendors, they do this every week
- Something will go wrong. Nobody will notice except you. Let it go.
- Dance. Eat cake. Hug everyone. This is your day.
After the Wedding
- Send thank you cards within 3 months
- Create a wedding scrapbook with your favorite photos and wedding stickers
- Change your name (if applicable)
- Update your address and documents
- Look at your photos and cry happy tears
A wedding planner decorated with wedding stickers turns a stressful to-do list into something you actually want to open. Mark your milestones, track your budget and organize every detail in one beautiful place.