Hello all! Kathryn the “pretend” wedding planner here!
If you know me at all – I am not a professional planner. Nor do I want to be! There are a ton of fabulous planners around. Today I did want to chat about the 3 next steps while you plan after you book a venue.
- Create a rough guest list/ layout. Hopefully you already know the guests you wish to invite. Creating a guest list will help you understand what your abilities and limitations are with décor. Some venues only have round, circular tables while others only have rectangular. Maybe you want to have your ceremony also inside. How will that look? How your layout impacts the amount of plates you need, or chairs, or floral elements. I am not saying you have to have it all set-into-stone, but if you are able to have a round idea, that really helps step 3.
- Start designing. Yay! You have a venue and hopefully have a rough outline of your layout. Now let’s chat about designs! There are a couple of ways to find inspiration. This may be old school, but Pinterest is such a great idea. I love that you can save all of the pins that look great for your wedding. Second, I think it’s great to be looking through Instagram. Especially look out for inspiration on the vendors’ Instagram. They have already recreated those looks so they will be able to do them again.
- Reach out to your vendors. Last but certainly not least, reach out to your vendors! Reach out to the vendors that book fast first. For example, photographers, florists, and DJ (in my experience) book out the quickest. Make sure that when you reach out you give the first two question’s answers within that inquiry form/ email. The more details – the better.
There are other “next steps” but these are 3 of the most common that you take after finding the right venue.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
-Kathryn
