When Should you be Booking Wedding Vendors?

Dream proposal? Check. Engagement ring? Check.  Venue? Photographer? Florist? Cater? Make-up Artist? All the other vendors that will help to create your dream wedding? Oh wait…With so many moving pieces involved with the wedding planning process, we understand it can get a little overwhelming booking your wedding vendors.

Once you’ve done your research and found some of your preferred vendors, you’ll likely find that some of them will already be booked up at least a year out. Don’t you worry! You don’t need to book all your vendors and figure everything out all at once. To help you we have put together a guide for the perfect wedding planning timeline.  This timeline is based on the couple being engaged for about 15 months. Of course you can plan a wedding on a shorter time frame, but extending your timeline means you will have a greater selection of vendors available for you.

12 – 18 Months Out:

It might be tempting to jump right into wedding planning and book vendors as you find them, but there is a specific order you want to work with when booking wedding vendors. It is particularly important to follow this order for the first few vendors you book. That way the rest of your planning flows seamlessly!

Wedding Planner:

This should be on of the first people you book, especially if you are choosing a Full Planning Service, as we will help you throughout the whole wedding planning process. Hiring a wedding planner from the start, especially for Full Planning Services, will help select vendors who will be a good fit to execute your vision and make sure you stay on budget. If you are selecting Month of Coordination, you still want to reach out to your planner early but the timeline changes to around 6-9 months out from your day.  Most Wedding Planners will only work one wedding per day, so you must reach out early.

Venue:

Booking a venue should be the second thing you book, right after a Wedding Planner.  You haven’t officially “set the date”, until you have your venue booked! Venues book up fast, especially if it is popular, unique, or seasonal. Manitoba Summers are short, so you need to secure outdoor venues quickly. To help with the search for your venue, have a budget in mind and request packages and pricing from your top venue choices right away. Once you have your venue selected, this will dictate if you need to book a caterer next.

Catering:

If your venue does not include food with your package, caters are the next thing you want to book. Food is a big part of any wedding, and to have the best options that fit what you are looking for you want to book early. This also gives you lots of time to work out the menu for your big day. Depending on what type of packages you cater offers, you may have to look at booking plates, glasses and cutlery. Knowing this early on will help keep you organized when booking your décor.

Photographer/Videographer:

If you have a dream photographer or videographer you want to work with, you want to book them early. You can’t book them early enough, as some photographers will be booked up to 2 years in advance. Especially during peak summer wedding season.  Most photographers/videographers work solo and can only shoot one wedding a day, so once you’ve found one you love, sign that contract!

9-12 Months Out:

Once you have secured most of your key vendors, you can start researching and selecting the rest of your vendor team. This is just a suggestion for when to book the rest of your vendor team. If you have a certain dream vendor you want to work with, reach out to them earlier!

Florist:

Flowers can transform your ceremony and reception spaces into your dream spaces. When booking your florist, you don’t have to have all your design planned, you just need your general vision for the flowers. When booking your florist, you want to make sure you have your budget worked out. If you are curious about what the average floral costs are for a wedding, check out our blog How Much Does a Manitoba Wedding Cost.

Music:

The first thing you want to decide first is a Band or DJ. Once you have that figured out, you can start looking at available options. You don’t want to forget about ceremony music as well. There are a variety of different options you can select, from a live musician to a string quartet. Popular music performers will book up quickly, that is why we suggest booking early.

Officiant:

You can’t get married without an Officiant! There are a handful of professional officiants in Manitoba, they do book up quickly. If you’re having a friend marry you let them know early, and make sure you research what official documents they need to be able to legally marry you in Manitoba! For more information on what is needed to get officially married in Manitoba, check out Vital Statics.

Attire:

Wedding attire can take a long time to get made, so you’ll want to start shopping early. Book your dress shopping appointment early, that way you don’t have to feel rushed (or face rush delivery fees).  If you are wanting anything custom-made like suits, you want to start the process a minimum 6-9 months before the big day.

Hair and Makeup:

You want to make sure you look great on your wedding day, part of that will be hiring a hair and makeup team. The earlier you book them, will allow you to do proper hair and makeup trails before your big day. We suggest doing the hair and makeup trails for your engagement shoot!

Stationery:

Save the Dates should be sent out to guests eight to ten months ahead of your wedding day; invitations should be sent out ten weeks before your wedding date. Start sourcing your stationery well in advance, so you will be able to find paper products that fit your vision. Planning stationery at this time is perfect if you are going to a custom route, as they will be able to pull design details from other elements of your event.  This also gives you plenty of time to get your stationary items shipped to you, depending on where you are getting them from.

Hotel Blocks:

If you have a lot of out-of-town guests attending your wedding, we recommend working with a hotel close to your venue and securing a block of rooms for your guests. This will allow them to easily find a place to stay. You can share this information on your wedding website for guests.

6-9 Months out:

As you continue filling out your vendor team, it’s important to keep everyone’s information organized. That way you have everyone’s contact information, payment schedules and other details easily accessible.  This is another great reason for hiring a wedding planner, they help you stay organized as you continue booking wedding vendors and will send out alerts for when payments are due.

Décor Rentals:

Now that you have booked your venue and you cater, you will have a better idea of what décor retail item you need to make your vision a reality. If there are any large quantities of items you need like chairs or tables, you will want to book that earlier around the 9-12 month timeframe. That is just to make sure you have lots of options to choose from.

Transportation:

Depending on if you are having an out-of-town wedding, or just want a fun getaway car, look into your transportation options. At this point you have a rough idea of your guest count, and how many people may need to use this transportation option. If you’re marrying in June or July —prom and graduation season—high-class vehicles will be in higher demand, so you’ll need to book your transportation even earlier.

Cake:

Who doesn’t love cake?!? We recommend contacting bakeries and setting up a tasting no later than 6- 9 months before your wedding date. Bakers fill up fast, and they will only take a maximum number of cakes per weekend.  So be sure to reach out and get those tastings scheduled!

A reminder, these are all suggested time frames and they will vary from one wedding to the next. While there are no hard and fast rules, the points above should help you maintain perspective and keep a clear head throughout the process. A planner is also a great way to stay organized and on track when planning your big day, so book a consultation today to learn more about our services.