We know that task of planning a wedding day timeline can feel overwhelming – most of our clients say they don’t know where to start, which is why they’re grateful to have us aboard! 16+ years of planning timelines has given us such great insight into what people really want. We start fresh with each and every client, listening intently to their priorities for the wedding day. Here are a handful of our top tips:
Prioritize – define how you’d ideally like to spend the most time on your day. Is a huge dance party that goes until the wee hours important? Then start there. Would you prefer a traditional Catholic mass and communion? Then know you need at least 90 minutes for the ceremony itself (not including guest arrival and seating). Is a gourmet dinner experience with 9 courses on the top of your list? Then you’ll need to plan a good two hours for dinner (at least). Knowing what you both want to focus on will help to start the timeline.
Remember to plan time to relax – when we first start planning the timeline a good amount of our couples say we won’t have time to enjoy dinner, will we? And we always say you will if you want to! We want our couples to be able to sit down, relax, and really soak in the experience, their food, the music, and the amazing day we’ve all created. Planning padding in between segments in crucial for us to achieve this.
Photos: Ryan Flynn Photography || Planning/design/floral: Valley & Company Events
Always add 30 minutes – we always add an extra 30 minutes to the ceremony (to account for late guests), happy hour (to give more time for relaxation), and dinner (to account for any delay in service). If everything is flawless, then this extra time just turns into the next segment and helps to keep us on target!
So, what are your wedding day priorities? Check out our Instagram stories tomorrow where we’ll talk more about timelines!
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