Our Top Five Tips for the Newly Engaged

Congratulations, you’re engaged! Now what?

The million decisions ahead of you can be overwhelming so here are our top five tips to keep calm, enjoy this wonderful time in your lives, AND keep on budget.

Tip #1: Enjoy the engagement bliss.

In this day and age of social media where everyone is posting updates about their life, whether big or small, it can seem like a knee-jerk reaction to share the happy news right away. Our advice? Hold off.

Take the time to take it all in. Cuddle in. Relax. Cherish that private moment between you and your fiance. There’s no real need to let everyone know about this momentous moment of your relationship straight away. Part of the rush could also be the excitement of planning the big day, but there will be plenty of time for that later. Enjoy the little moments when you find yourself staring at your life partner and your ring!

Share your short-lived secret when you’re both done celebrating yourselves and ready to be bombarded by notifications of congratulations and questions from equally excited friends and family.

Tip #2: Know what you want as a couple.

There’s so much wedding inspiration these days, we dare say, too much. From Pinterest, to celebrity weddings, to opinions from loved ones; there’s an endless amount of options to choose from. While the *easy* decision could be to simply choose what’s on trend, there is nothing like seeing weddings that genuinely reflect the personalities and interests of the couple.

To achieve this, start with a clear mind. Imagine YOUR perfect wedding day. What does it look like?

Are you surrounded by nature - the smell of trees or can you hear the distant crashing of waves? Or are you in beautiful ballroom or maybe your favourite restaurant where you’ve shared many happy memories before?

Who’s celebrating with you - is it an intimate affair with close family and friends? Or big bash with everyone you’ve known in your lives?

How will you and your guests go about the day - will everyone just casually hang out or is it a formal event with a set program?

There’s no right or wrong way to get married; just what you want and what feels right to you as a couple.

Tip #3: Set a budget. And be realistic about it!

The reality is, almost everyone spends more than what they initially thought they would. However, it’s important to know where that threshold is and how much more you can actually spend. There are so many elements in a wedding you can splurge on - from the dress, the food, the alcohol, the giveaways, the photo booth and many more.

But what’s important to you? Be realistic with what you can afford and what’s important to you (see step prior to this). If you’ve envisioned a night of drinks and dancing to your favourite band as a couple, then that will guide you to prioritise these two elements and set a higher budget to these as compared to other expenses which may have to take a step back.

Remember, a wedding is a one-day celebration. Don’t spend all your savings on this one-day. What’s important is your marriage, not the wedding, and all your plans together for the years to come.

Tip #4: Get an On the Day Coordinator

One of the things that couples always seem to always skip out on is hiring a wedding coordinator. Although we understand that long engagements can give you more time to plan yourselves (and some actually enjoy the process of being hands on), we would still HIGHLY recommend hiring an OTD Coordinator. It is one of the best gifts you can give yourself as a couple. Having an OTD Coordinator means that you can hand off all your wedding day plans to someone who will execute it with the outmost care. And while you can assign these tasks to friends and family, keep in mind that this may switch them to “work mode” where they’ll be focused on fulfilling your wishes instead of celebrating with you. Running around with these tasks can also mean that some of your loved ones may miss out on key moments of your day.

Our On the day coordination service does exactly this. A month before your big day, our team will take over your wedding plans and iron out all the details for you. We make sure all the hard work you’ve done in planning for your big day doesn't go to waste, and that you and your fiance get to enjoy every moment of your wedding -without all the logistical noise that may be happening in the background. If you’d like to hear more about this service, send us a note and let’s chat about how we can be of help.

Tip #5: Enjoy your wedding planning journey.

Planning a wedding will have its stressful moments; there will be disagreements between you and your fiance, and there will be moments where you’ll feel overwhelmed by it all. Don’t worry, this is normal! But also try to remember that your wedding is a celebration of your love. When you feel overwhelmed, take a step back and refocus on this instead. At the end of it all, what matters is your love and commitment to each other, and this crazy new adventure you have both decided to be on. All the rest is fluff!

x,

K + K