Wednesday 9 May 2012

Save the date?

I've got a question. Are save the date cards a 'must' when planning a wedding?

The date for our forthcoming nuptials looks set to be Saturday 11 May 2013. Only a year to go...eeek. I really want to send save the date cards to our family and friends in the next month or so to;

 a) Give them the heads up and let them know to save the date in their diaries (obviously) 
and
 b) It'll make everything start to feel more real for me. Like this thing is definitely happening and the wheels are in motion.
Source
These cards are rather lovely.

I guess the truth of the matter is that I feel like everything is losing momentum a little and I want to keep my foot on the gas. Plus my Mum told me a few days ago that one of my male cousins is getting married in May next year too, so it'll be prudent to let people know our date, so they can make the necessary arrangements required to juggle two weddings. 
I'm not close to this cousin, but it still feels like a little spanner has been thrown in the works and the exclusivity of our wedding has diminished slightly. To be honest we haven't even properly announced to the family our plans, so it all still feels surreal and I want it to start feeling REAL!!!
Anyway getting back to my cousins wedding, the plus side to that is, this may mean our guest list may reduce slightly. May sound harsh but both of our families are huge and having to leave people out feels awful, so this may ease things a little....?? Probably not.
The other half doesn't seem too fussed. I think he is dragging his feet a little, but then that's men for you. He seems to think there's no urgency and there is no way we need to send out save the date cards. May I add this is a man who is ridiculously laid back full stop,  and doesn't seem to understand the amount of planning that goes into making an event run smoothly.
 
He says we can leave the planning until a few months before the wedding. I say NO WAY and want to get things like the reception venue and church booked now, so at least we know the main elements are taken care of and everything else can be planned around them. He thinks I'm being too hasty and we'll end up paying over the odds if we book now, I guess he has a point, but what if we end up not getting the date we want if we wait?
 
To say I'm getting a little frustrated with all these annoying factors is an understatement, and we haven't even properly started yet...I've got a sneaky feeling this whole process will end up being quite painful and I had such high hopes. Groan....
Anyone else think I'm being too hasty? Should we be sending save the date cards soon, if at all? And should we get the church and reception venue booked while we're at it too?
Help...??

8 comments:

Jennifer Jain said...

We started planning our wedding in August I think, for April the next year, and I felt that was leaving it quite close! We found that many places were getting booked up.

We didn't send save the date cards but we did send out a mass e-mail as soon as we knew the date. We had quite a complicated wedding which took place over several days with different guest lists for each (!), so we did it over Easter weekend.

You definitely need to book the big things well in advance - venues, photographer, entertainment, flowers, dress etc. especially if you are fussy about what you'd like. Many venues take bookings well over a year in advance.

As soon as you start booking things it's a good idea to take out some wedding insurance in case you have problems with any of the suppliers. Luckily we didn't need it, but you do have to start paying out money and it's nice to know that you're covered if someone goes bust or if there are any problems on the day.

Must admit I found planning a wedding very stressful, but as I said it did turn out to be very complicated with some quite strong opinions as to what was required, so we ended up with a much larger event than we really wanted to keep everyone happy...

Best of luck with the planning, once you've got the date and venue booked that is the main thing, then you can start to concentrate on the more fun details!

Unknown said...

Jennifer thank you so much for your comment. I thought I was going mad.

I'm a mass email kind of girl too these days, but I'd like to send save the date cards they are so cute.

Yes it seems strong opinions seem to come out of nowhere when there is a wedding involved. ugh. My other half is very good at blocking them out, I'm trying hard to follow suit, because you can't please everybody and at the end of the day we are doing this for us.

Thanks for wishing me luck. Think I may need it. : )

Tinuke B said...

You can never start planning too early! Especially as there is always someone out there who started planning before you, it would be horrible to find your dream venue / hairdresser etc was already booked up!

The save the date cards are a great idea. My friend posted fridge magnets to everyone , I don't think it even worked out that expensive, you can even buy magnetic paper yourself these days! It was a nice constant reminder on our fridge.

Good luck for your wedding plans! I can't wait to hear more about them xx

Unknown said...

Tinuke thanks. Fridge magnets sound like a fab idea. I'm going to seriously explore that option.

Come to think of it the other half and I have a thing about fridge magnets and we always buy one whenever we go on holiday or visit an attraction. Oooh I must say I'm sold on that idea. Thanks for the heads up : )

Yes I think I'm going to keep pressing on full steam ahead and aim to get things booked and confirmed sharpish. Sorry to say it, but men don't seem to have a clue about these things. HA!!

Diva89McFly said...

yes it is VERY i mean VERY important that you send "Save the date" cards or I prefer fridge magnets so that everyday until the time comes they are reminded oh okay the wedding is May 11, did i book a flight, etc. PRRRFECT girl. seems like you got everything in motion. remember any help let me know

Nu Bride said...

Hi Natalie,

I would strongly suggest that you book your reception and ceremony venue BEFORE you send out any save the dates to ensure you get the right date!

Also you are more likely to pay more for venues and run the risk of adding unwanted pressure if you opt to leave things till the last minute. Venue and church prices tend to go up each year!

Whatever you decide to do, don't forget to negotiate - you don't ask you don't get!

We have just sent out a handful of save the dates so family coming from abroad or further a way can plan flights and accommodation and so we can make sure those who are forgetful have the date earmarked!
Hope this helps. ;o)

Unknown said...

Ahh Nova thank you.

Your words of advice are extremely helpful and make a lot of sense.

Now back to getting venues firmed up. Here goes : ) x

Nu Bride said...

You're welcome. Anytime ! Keep us posted. ;)

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