Planning timeline - how early for these "to-do''s"?

[laughwithme]

Hi everyone, I have a "master timeline" to follow but there are a few items which I haven''t yet added because, well, I have no idea when they should be done - I read different things in every single magazine/website. Could you all let me know when you did the following, based on your own experiences? i.e. 7 months before wedding, 3 months before wedding, etc.

Place orders on bridesmaid/flower girl dresses
Place orders on tuxes
Place order on chair covers
Initial appt/reserve florist
Meet/reserve DJs
Reserve block of rooms for hotel
Reserve limo for bridal party
Reserve restaurant for rehearsal dinner

My wedding is 6-26-2010...so no special holidays to factor in extra time for.

Thanks everyone!!!

 

[princessplease]

I''m in August of ''10, and I already have my DJ booked. He''s really good, so he books way far out. I''m paying him in a timeline, so it was easier for me to book him now and have my monthly payments be smaller. Same with my photog. I''m doing the hotels in August, so that gives 1 year for the hotels. Tuxes, we''re going to do in late April-early May.

 

[lala2332]

i would say the more important something is to you, the sooner you try to get it done. If you want a specific DJ/band or restarant, then go ahead and get it done, or at least start figuring out which you want. Something like chair covers may not be as big of a deal , so you can probably put that off for a little while. THat has been my rule of thumb so far.

Photographers/venues/caterers/bands book up earliest. And hotels may, but you usually can''t book those earlier than 1 year out. June is also such a popular wedding month. I''ve been spoiled being a late January bride that everyone has been clamoring for the business.

 

[Blair138]

Place orders on bridesmaid/flower girl dresses-ASAP, I am 7/11 this year and I ordered mine in Sept 08 and they didn't arrive until April.

Place orders on tuxes-a few months out, I believe we did it in April, just enough time for all the guys to get fitted and make any changes

Place order on chair covers-I just did this last month, not necessary to do right away but the sooner you get things done the better!

Initial appt/reserve florist-did this in November

Meet/reserve DJs-did this right away so I could get the one I wanted, done by July 08

Reserve block of rooms for hotel-ASAP, though we got ours to come down on the rate a few months ago because of the economy.

Reserve limo for bridal party-Did this in May

Reserve restaurant for rehearsal dinner-did this in January, but we wanted a private room in a popular place


The earlier you can get things done the better, I did most of the BIG stuff really early and it helped A LOT. Good luck!!!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

If you''re within 12 months of your date, it''s not too early to do any of those things IMO.

 

[Honey228]

I''m 15 months away, but I''m scouting out a ceremony location, reception location, and hotel. There are certain venues that I want and I know that they can book up well in advance. All of my guests are out of town and I want to be able to include this information in the STD. Next on your list, I would look for florist and music, but that''s because they''re important to me and would take a considerable amount of my budget.

 

[Amanda.Rx]

If it''s something that can be booked, I would do it early if you have your heart set on something.

At 10 months out, I''ve booked my venue, photographer, and DJ. My next move is to block hotel rooms.

I''m not sure how long I''m going to wait on the other stuff, but they''re not a priority for me. May when it comes to ordering things (dresses, tux, chair covers) you can contact the company and ask them when you need to place the order to get a better idea.

 

[Morgie44]

I would do them on this timeline:

BM Dresses - around 6 months out. Depending on your group, it may take awhile to get them all in and measured, if you have slackers like I do!

Tuxes - 2-3 months out for the order/measuring

Chair Covers - I think the sooner the better with these, June is a popular month, and there is a pretty wide range of prices on these, so I would do them around now to try and lock in 09 prices and make sure you are getting a good deal.

Florist - As soon as possible start getting quotes from different people and book.

DJ 9 months to a year out. Again June is a popular month best will book up fast.

Hotel - This can probably wait to about 6 months out or so, but if you are sending Save the Dates, you will want to include this info on them, so before you send your Save the Dates, you need to have this done. If no STD''s then it just needs to be done before you order your invites.

Reharsal Dinner and Limo - I would say 3-6 months in advance, depending on your area. Though i attended a wedding this weekend where they just reserved their limo the week before, and it was fine. It is better to just get it out of the way though.

 

[Amandine]

I second the 6 mo timeline for BM dresses--it can take forever for some girls to get measured and to send in the deposits.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I think you should do as much as possible as quickly as possible. Don''t overwhelm yourself, but don''t put things off...places get booked, people get busy...the more you can lock down, the sooner the better. That gives you room for the fun stuff without the stress.

Find the things that you want that you''re not willing to give on...book those first. Weddings, nowadays, are booked two or more years in advance because people love a certain DJ or want a certain facility. So while in grand scheme it might seem early to push forward with big plans so soon, it''s not unheard of anymore.

First, the big things....

The hall/facility
The music
Colors

Secondary...

The dress
The invites
The flower
Rings

Third...

Accessories
BM dresses
Groomswear and GM wear

 

[laughwithme]

Thank you for your input everyone!

So far, I have reserved:
Reception venue (country club)
Church
Photographer

We also have our colors, I will order my dress in 3-4 weeks, my BMs are on the hunt for their dresses and a few small things are decided such as our invitations and placecards.

Based on input, I need to bump up the DJ hunt a bit, and chair covers...I think I''ll start searching for DJs in the next few weeks!!

 

[honey22]

The earlier the better. If you have decided on something, book or purchase it IMO. You can never be too organised, and you will suprised at how fast the time flies, trust me!