SCENARIO: Your future spouse serves in the U. S. Armed Forces and will be deployed in eight months. You don’t want to wait for the tour to be over; you want to say, “I Do” within six months. Is planning a short engagement wedding possible? The good news is the answer is yes! Here are five tips for planning a wedding in less than six months.
Decide the Basics
Organization is key to planning a wedding whether you have a long engagement or a short engagement; so is communication. Both become even more critical when your wedding is just months away. You and your future spouse need to answer several key questions and be firm in your decisions.
The first is to determine your budget. Who will pay for what? Will your family help? Do you have enough in savings to pay for your wedding? Are you willing to assume debt to pay for your dream wedding?
The second big decision is to determine which elements of a traditional wedding are important to you. How many guests will you invite? The more guests you invite, the more expensive your wedding will be. Smaller weddings usually mean less expense and less stress. Who will be in your wedding party? More attendants, more expense, more stress. Many couples opt to have no attendants or only two or three. Where do you want to be married? Do you want a religious service or a civil service in a park, your backyard, or your local winery? Write your answers in a journal.
Develop a checklist and a bookkeeping system to ensure you meet your timeline and stay within your budget. Download a sample checklist here.
Hire a Wedding Planner
Your third decision is deciding who will help you. Unless Aunt Sue or Cousin Yolanda are wedding professionals, I strongly urge you to hire a wedding planner. I recommend wedding planners even for long engagements, but they are a must for short engagements even if you are a super organized person. Wedding planners know people. They have the connections and the expertise to keep wedding planning on track and within budget. Working with a wedding planner doesn’t mean Aunt Sue and Cousin Yolanda can’t help. There are lots of tasks where friends and family members can pitch in. Be sure to match the tasks to each person’s strengths.
Be Flexible
Venues and vendors often book a year or two in advance, so you may need to consider alternatives to your dream venue and the perfect wedding gown. Men’s wedding attire usually is available readily. Women’s attire, especially gowns, not as easy to find. Check consignment shops, boutiques that sell last year’s gowns, Facebook Marketplace, and pop-up resale events. One colleague, Tammy Mills with Simply Grand Events, holds pop-up resale events and sells new and used gowns for as little as $20. Even if the gown isn’t a perfect fit or the perfect style, an experienced seamstress can work magic. A local seamstress, Juanita Brooks, specializes in transforming used gowns into stunning one-of-a-kind creations.
If your venue isn’t available for a Saturday wedding, consider a weekday ceremony and reception. As does Caret Cellars, many venues offer significant discounts for weekday weddings. You could consider live streaming the wedding so those who can’t attend in person can watch the festivities from the comforts of their homes no matter where in the world they live.
Communicate
Maintain good communication with your wedding planner, your vendors, and your wedding party. Confirm all details and make sure everyone knows their roles and the wedding day timeline. Don’t forget the importance of open communication with your future spouse. Wedding planning can be stressful even with the help of an experienced wedding planner; plan times to update each other on your progress and address your concerns. Plan outings where wedding planning isn’t discussed.
Caret Cellars has developed two inclusive micro wedding packages designed to ease much of wedding planning stress. Once you decide your wedding date, menu options and color scheme, we take over. You then are free to enjoy your engagement with minimal stress.
Enjoy the Moment
You will feel as if you are living in a whirlwind, and you are. Your engagement is an incredibly special time. Savor it. Enjoy the process and look forward to your wedding day and life as a married couple.
The experienced team at Caret Cellars is available to help you plan your dream wedding. We specialize in elopements and intimate weddings for the couple and up to 40 guests. We offer two DIY packages, two inclusive packages and one elopement special. To learn more, contact Carolyn Berry at carolyn@caretcellars.com or call/text 804.750.4796.
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