Wedding To-do's:12 to 18 months before Wedding

This is an important phase if you have the luxury of time. Most of these tasks can be done during the 9-12 month phase also if the date you choose is closer to the engagement. However take your time with these tasks as this is the Ground work for the rest of the preparations.

To-Do's:

For the Groom to be, Select the engagement ring and propose. For Marriage Proposal Ideas.

Inform family members and friends of your happy news. Be prepared to be the center of attention and recount all the details of your engagement.

Announce your good news to the world. Many wedding related sites offer online space to place your personalized wedding page, We recommend theknot.com

Plan your engagement party, if there will be one. Traditionally, the bride's family hosts the engagement party, but the groom's family or others close to you may do so as well. Be sure to write thank you notes promptly for any engagement gifts received.

Select a wedding date and time, along with an alternate date to allow for greater flexibility in selecting ceremony and reception sites. This is the time to start thinking about, color scheme, formality, Size and scope of your Wedding.

Together with your parents or others helping to "foot the bill", determine your wedding budget and who will pay for what. Discuss which elements of the wedding are most important to you and your fiancé, and plan your budget accordingly. You may want to consider opening a checking account. Modern Wedding Advice does not recommend getting Credit Cards to finance your Wedding, or even to help keep track of payments. Most Banking Institutions will offer a Debit with Visa, which draws only money you have and not at high rates of interest.

Meet with your officiate and reserve your ceremony site.

Ask your nearest and dearest to be in the Bridal Party and send them to look at Bridal Part Duties. If your attendants will be expected to pay for their attire or other costs, let them know this upfront. You may need to have a few names as backups just in case.

Enlist the help of your honor attendants and families. Both the mother of the bride and the maid or matron of honor traditionally help the bride with a myriad of details. The groom can enlist the help of his best man and others in coordinating wedding details.

Secure your reception site as soon as possible. Many popular sites are booked as much as a year in advance, so you'll want to make sure that you contact them in plenty of time to reserve your wedding date. If you plan an outdoor wedding and/or reception, you'll want to make arrangements with a tent supplier at this time as well.

Start the Planning process even if you don't have the money for the budget, yet. It is quick to write checks later, but the planning can take a great deal of time. Research doesn't cost anything.

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