Happy Holidays & Congratulations! Now What?!!

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'Tis the Season for all kinds of wonderful things: carols & cookies, family and presents...like engagement rings!! Ok, I know I really had to force that rhyme but it is for a good cause.

More couples get engaged during the December holiday season than any other time of the year. 

If you are one of those lucky couples that are celebrating your engagement to be married, Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge would like to wish you my heart felt congratulations!!

After the first waves of initial excitement wash over you, the next big question asked (after that initial obvious one) is..."now what?!".

Here are some key first steps courtesy of The Emily Post Institute, one of the foremost names in defining etiquette and wedding etiquette for over 6 decades.  Emily Post's Wedding Etiquette & Emily Post's Wedding Planner are two books that will get you off to a great start and the "Wedding Planner" is the source for the list below, outlining 12-24 months before the wedding. I have added some of my own comments in italics as well.

• Announce your engagement to friends and family, and in any newspapers if desired. 
• Decide the date and time of your wedding. 
• Choose the style of your wedding—formal or informal; traditional, theme, "green" or destination; civil or religious. 
• Research magazines, books, movies, websites, blogs, etc. to help INSPIRE you and educate you about new trends, resources and make your own inspiration book book and favorites list of your ideas to refer to.
• Determine a budget and make a promise to stick to it as much as possible!
• Create a filing/organizational system for wedding paperwork. For a great computer wedding planning program, check out "I Do Wedding Software for Couples". Very comprehensive if planning on your own and a great companion to the professional version that many wedding consultants (myself included) use.
• Decide on the size of the guest list and number of attendants.
• Meet with your officiant or clergy member, if having a home wedding, or begin research for officiants in your destination locale of choice.
• Meet with family members to discuss plans and the division of expenses.      
• Decide whether to hire a Wedding Consultant and begin interviewing some in your area or destination locale of choice. Click here for help deciding “Is a Consultant Right For You?”.   
• Decide if yours will be a local or destination wedding. I hope it will be a Las Vegas wedding!         

• Begin researching and make selections on ceremony and reception locations (whether local or destination).  
• Investigate the legal requirements to acquire a marriage license in your state/province or in the destination location of your choice. *For Las Vegas & Nevada information, go to www.accessClarkCounty.com.
• Select your attendants, both female and male.
• Interview and book wedding professionals, including your caterer, florist, photographer, videographer, and musicians.
• Research honeymoon options and destinations.

The journey you will take in planning your wedding will be one of the most interesting, exciting, emotional and enlightening (on a multitude of levels) journeys you and your fiance (and by default your family & friends) will make. Please remember that although this day celebrates the two of you, please follow another piece of sage advice from Emily Post. I really don't think I could say it any better: 

"Don't Forget the 3 C's: Not clarity, cut or color. We're talking about consideration, communication and compromise. How you handle your wedding plans can foretell how you will handle the other major decision of your life together. Along with the stress that will accompany the big decisions and little details should be a sense of adventure and fun. You are celebrating one of the most joyous milestones in your lives. Do so with a focus on consideration, communication and compromise and the process is sure to be smoother."

That is surely the way to begin planning your wedding with Style!