So you're engaged. . . 5 things you need to do right now

Congratulations! You're engaged! Once you're ready to get started planning, here are the first steps:

1.  DREAM.  I have a love/hate relationship with Pinterest, so I'm laughing at myself for adding this to the list. But, I suggest you get online and start pinning designs and ideas that exemplify your wedding style and what you think you want. I tend to find inspiration in many other places, outside the internet, and load pictures into Pinterest, so it's all stored there as a "hub" of inspiration. Just take the first month or so to dream about what you want, and idea dump! Not every idea will stick in the end results, or be affordable, but it's fun to dream, and start firming up the event style.

2.  SET A SPENDING LIMIT.  Everyone has SOME sort of a personal wedding budget, whether it's $3 million or $300. You'll want to sit down and pencil out how much you comfortably want to spend, and if anyone else is wanting or willing to pitch in. You don't have to know what wedding vendors cost right at the beginning. The most important thing is to come up with a budget that is comfortable to you. No wedding should put you in debt. EVER. It's a goal of mine to make a blog post about what various budgets of weddings look like, so you can see exactly what your price point will get you. But in the meantime, what you can comfortably afford will be divided by your guest count in step #3, and determine a lot of what your wedding will look like.

3.  GUEST LIST.  Formulate a "dream" guest list. Sit down with your fiance, and each side of the family, and get separate lists of guests they would like to invite - the lists are not guaranteed invitations, but you need to start somewhere. Only once you decide how many people you can accommodate, per your budget, you are ok to verbally tell people they'll be receiving an invitation. But until then, tell your family to keep it under wraps! Guest count is the #1 reason for blowing a budget, and it's easier to just not invite people than it is to go back and tell them they're un-invited! The average guest count in the US is about 110 guests, and the average expenditure per guest is about $330 (if you add ALL your wedding costs together).

4.  HIRE A PLANNER + BEGIN BUDGETING.  The rumors are true - as a planner, I usually end up saving my clients time + money. But I need to be on board before the first dollar is spent, or the first vendor is booked. That's when I'm most effective - a pro will assist you in booking the right vendors for the job, and making the smart decisions upfront. I IMMEDIATELY get to work on budget, and I take a lot of communication time off your plate. I'm also with you from the day you hire me, throughout the entire wedding day + cleanup. My services become an investment towards a smooth + successful event. But it all begins with the budget!

If you can't afford the luxury of hiring a full service planner, your job in task #4 becomes pricing out all your dream vendors on your own. Now that you know what you like (from Pinterest), begin researching vendors, and find out what their services will cost. This is a research phase only. DO NOT begin booking vendors yet. Compile that information to see what your wedding total is expected to be. I call this "pricing out the dream." If this final number exceeds the budget limits you set task #2 (it often does):

• Cut back on services or activities

• Pivot with your design plans

• Reduce your guest count

• Find alternative vendors who are not in the same price range

When you hire a pro planner, we do this off the top of our heads, because we work with vendor pricing daily, so it makes this task quick + easy. But my biggest piece of advice is do not book a SINGLE vendor before budgeting for the entire wedding and everything you dreamed you wanted. Gather all the information!

5.  BOOK YOUR VENDORS.  Only AFTER you've completed numbers 1-4 are you ready to book your vendors. I've had lots of clients who come to me with a venue or photographer pre-booked, because they were afraid to lose their dream date, but it blew their budget without them realizing it. I get it. You're excited and nervous! But if you take a tactical approach to planning, you'll be more logical + responsible about who you're booking. The most important vendors to book right away (when it's time to book them) are any vendors who are a single person, and can't accommodate more than one wedding in a day or a weekend.

Money is often a sensitive subject in any relationship.  My method of planning makes you talk about those not-so-fun activities right away (such as budget + guest list) to help avoid the issue of over-spending later on.  Entering into a marriage without personal debt is always my goal, and I've been very successful using this method.  I hope you find it helpful as well!