by Diana Warner | Apr 25, 2017 | Wedding Planning Tips
This is the first post of many in a new series of blogs I will be writing. Each blog will contain tips for planning your wedding, and each will be based on a certain topic: venue hunting, making your budget or general decor decisions. Just to name a few that I have floating in my head. I hope that you find this new series beneficial to your wedding planning needs and that it can help guide you in some way.
So let’s start it off at the beginning. You just got engaged, so what do you do? Well of course celebrate, but I mean after that.
Topics to discuss with each other before you begin planning your wedding.
1). What do you see on your wedding day? Talk about the overall vision you have in your head for your wedding day. You should both be represented in your wedding. You should both have ownership of what your guests will experience. It may be something you’ve seen at another wedding, something you’ve envisioned since you were little or a fun, quirky idea that you think would set your wedding apart from every other wedding you’ve been to.
2). What is important to have happen that day? What are some things that are important to the both of you to have for your wedding day. A certain flower in your arrangements or a special meal to be served. These are your priorities for the wedding day and it will help you to know what you need to budget for. Not only are these things important to you both, but they also tend to be those things that really connect your guests to you on your wedding day.
3). When would you like to get married? A lot of couples have a date or season that is very important to them and so it’s easy to pick a wedding date. But you also need to stay flexible in your wedding planning. Sometimes the venue you want isn’t available and so you’ll have to adjust your date. Also holidays and weekends are appealing to a lot of couples planning their wedding because it’s easy for out of town guests to fly in. But also keep in mind that there are certain holidays where people want to stay home. Also, the discounts people say you get aren’t always true and sometimes holiday weddings are harder to plan because either everyone has picked that date or no one wants to work it. Also keep in mind the length of time you will have for wedding planning. The more time you have, the easier it will be on you.
4). Who must you invite? Maybe you want a small intimate wedding or maybe you have 13 cousins and their family that you just have to invite. Talk about who needs to be invited and who would be a bonus. Make a preliminary guest list now. It will set the stage for your budget and venues for your wedding day.
5). What do you want to spend? Are you paying for everything yourselves or are family members contributing? What can you honestly afford to spend? This is a great time to start doing some research on what a wedding actually costs. Some people are very surprised when they start to see those numbers. Talk to some recently married couples or join some local social media groups and see what people from your area are spending.
Wedding planning can be overwhelming at times, so take the time to plan it well. The more organized you are from the beginning the easier your wedding planning will be over time. And if you want the extra help, then contact me for a consultation and I will help with your wedding planning needs to make your day just perfect.
by Diana Warner | Apr 25, 2017 | Wedding Planning Tips
So first things first. The production triangle is not my idea and it is something used across many industries for production management. My husband was the first one to introduce me to the production triangle. In his day job as a machinist and engineer, his company uses it every day to get their projects done on time. And we’ve also used it to explain processes to clients in our other business when they don’t understand why some of the props we make take so long. But it was another wedding planner who brought it to my attention that it can also be applied to wedding planning; Rhonda from Precisely as Planned. I can’t seem to find the blog that started it all, but I did find this one by Jennifer at Alter Ego Weddings. Her blog is more eloquently written then mine, and frankly goes into a lot more detail then I will.
Now onto the topic at hand. The production triangle is just that; a triangle. Each side or corner represents a different aspect of your project. They generally are listed as Scope, Cost and Time. But you can find it recreated for many purposes. Each corner of the triangle directly effects the other corners. The idea behind it is that you choose two corners and that will show you how it will effect the last one. For example, in the triangle below you see the basic project management triangle. Here is how the corners effect one another:
You have a large SCOPE and a large COST you may have to extend your SCHEDULE.
You have a large COST and long SCHEDULE then your SCOPE can also be large.
Your have short SCHEDULE and large SCOPE then you will need to increase the COST.
The best and easiest way I have seen it explained was a sign at a mechanics shop that said:
GOOD service CHEAP won’t be FAST
GOOD service FAST won’t be CHEAP
FAST service CHEAP won’t be GOOD
So how does this apply to wedding planning? Let’s take a look at the wedding planning triangle.
In simplest terms it would work something like this:
A high GUEST COUNT and a small BUDGET means you will have to compromise on some of your PERSONAL STYLE options
A higher cost of PERSONAL STYLE and a small BUDGET means you will have to make you GUEST COUNT lower.
A large BUDGET and a small GUEST COUNT means you can indulge in your PERSONAL STYLE choices.
Now why is this so important to keep in mind when you are planning your wedding? A lot of brides that I talk to love a lot of images they see on Pinterest or in wedding blogs. I mean, who doesn’t? But what they don’t see if the cost of those items and what it takes to pull that off. So then they don’t understand why they can’t have their ceilings draped and an off season flower in their bouquets with their budget or in the short time they have to plan. They just saw and wanted. So this can kind of help put things in perspective for you when wedding planning. Knowing that your guest count and your budget will effect how much you can spend on flowers and decor and food. That the bigger your budget or the smaller your guest list, the more fun you can have.
Now of course this isn’t to say you can’t have a beautiful wedding without all the glorious decor you want, but by keeping the wedding planning triangle in your back pocket you can revisit it and remind yourself on what really would be the best decision to make for your wedding day. In the end it all comes down to what is important to you. Is it important to you to have every one of your family and friends with you to celebrate your day, but you’re not worried about having your entire wedding covered in flowers as far as you can see? Then you adjust that to make your wedding budget fit exactly what you want. At least this can help you understand how it all works together.
I can help walk you through your decisions and why you can do some things and not others. That’s what I’m here for. So if you’d like more information please send me a message and lets set up a consultation today!
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