There are few things that can feel as stressful and demanding as planning a wedding. If you don’t have a planner taking care of the whole occasion for you, it can be difficult to make sure that you don’t overlook anything. Especially if you have set a date and you’re already counting the days. To that end, here, we’re going to look at a wedding planning pipeline you can follow, and what you should be focused on at different points during the lead-up.

12+ Months Out: The Big Picture

First and foremost, get the big details nailed down. This includes your guest count, budget, and a vision for what kind of wedding you want. Create a shared document or use a planning app that both you and your future spouse can use. Start browsing the venue listings right now. Most popular spaces book a year or more in advance to start searching and lock your venue in, even if the date is flexible.

9-12 Months: The Essentials

This is when you start to lock down the vendors that really make the day. This includes your photographer, caterer, and any officiants you need. These are the other roles that tend to book well in advance, so start reaching out to a few highly reviewed options in your area. Check to see if your venue has a preferred vendor list to streamline things, but be mindful of your budget.

6-9 Months: Building The Experience

When you have ensured that your guests have a place to go and food to eat, this is when you start fully customising the experience to suit your needs. This includes things like booking your entertainment, be it a DJ, band, or otherwise, as well as finding the perfect florist for the event. Double-check your venue’s policies for any third-party services you bring in, just to avoid any crossed wires that can lead to last-minute delays.

3-6 Months: Getting Dolled Up

Aside from the logistics tasks, such as designing and sending invitations, and confirming any rental needs, this is when you ensure that you have the look well and truly nailed down. If you haven’t picked your wedding outfits yet, now is the time. It’s also the right time to schedule hair and makeup trials. You should also be able to try menu tastings now to finalise your food choices for the day.

The Last 8 Weeks: The Final Touches

If everything else has gone well, all you need to do is start confirming everything. Send out formal invites, finalise your seating chart, build a wedding-day timeline, and confirm vendor arrival times. Everything should feel like box-checking, rather than trying to get things in place. As you’re leading up to the wedding, you want a little more time to enjoy the anticipation, so don’t plan any major tasks during this period.

If you want to make sure that your wedding goes off without a hitch, then you need to get stuck into the preparations now.  If you’re falling behind on the timeline above, you have to kick things into gear right away.