3 Top Tips When Planning Your Own Wedding
As the start of a new wedding season approaches I’m really happy to bring you these tips from Karin Tindall who I met whilst shooting a wedding in The Cotswolds a couple of years ago. It’s that time of year when couples will start to plan their weddings either for this coming year or making preliminary plans for 2025. I hope these tips that Karin has provided give you some guidance on planning your wedding and that you find some inspiration in the photos too!
Have a great wedding wherever and whenever it is.
Ste
You’re embarking on the wedding planning journey! How utterly exciting. No doubt lots of thoughts and ideas and wonderful possibilities are running through your head. As they should! But sometimes – and I only say this, as I often get pulled in once this has taken over altogether – the overwhelm starts to creep in as you’re ambushed with all things labelled ‘Wedding’. A whole new world opens up, and suddenly you’re meant to know all about table planning, styling, photography and fashion (and also know what you want) while well-meaning opinions from friends and family are showered over you, all the while some frightening tooth-whitening-for-your-wedding ad is relentlessly pushed in your face by social media. Phew. It’s a lot. I know. I’m sorry. But, deep breath here, and let me guide you through my top three things to consider when planning your own wedding.
One. Time and Venue
Let’s start here: Will you enjoy setting aside time to plan your wedding? If the answer is a whole-hearted ‘I can’t wait to spend my evenings and weekends planning the wedding!’, and you’ve got a good head for planning, then you can opt to have a venue that dictates more logistical elements, such as a dry-hire venue or a marquee at home.
If you feel spread thin before the planning has even started, then I suggest finding a venue where more is included – such as food, wine, bar, staff, tables & chairs, etc – which frees you up to focus on other things (in life, or in regards to the wedding, you choose!).
Once you’ve established what you feel comfortable tackling, it will be time to find that all-important venue.
And this is no small task. There are so many gorgeous venues out there! But be savvy: Do lots of online research before you start visiting. Use platforms like Coco Wedding Venues and Hitched to narrow down your options by region. And then make sure you’ve done further research on your chosen shortlist, to make sure the following points all work for you, before you go and visit:
- Capacity
- Costs (don’t forget about food, drink and any extras)
- Must-haves (your own ‘musts’ such as accommodation, or fireworks, for instance)
Stephen has a great list of London wedding venues here that can also save you time: https://www.stewalkerphotography.com/luxury-wedding-venues-london/
Next, we’ll look at suppliers and what to consider when curating your dream team.
Two. Photographer & Other Suppliers
Now, I wouldn’t be here writing this if I didn’t think Stephen was one of the top photographers in the country. But the reason very much resonates with the advice I would like to share when it comes to choosing your photographer and other suppliers. It goes like this:
First and foremost – and yes, this is pretty obvious – their work needs to speak to you. Not the price. Not the awards. Not the reviews. These things will be important later when you make your final choice, of course. But the most important thing, what to consider first, is what you feel when you see the images. Do they make you yearn a little? Does the style and the details and the emotions make you think “yes, this is what I want”? Perfect, on the shortlist they go.
Secondly, you need to figure out their style of working. Now this is where you become a detective, and use the reviews and awards and recommendations and Instagram posts to figure out who this person is, and if you’d be comfortable in front of the camera on the day. A discovery call is of course an excellent choice here too!
Your suppliers, no matter how many (or few) you end up contracting for your day, will play a huge part in how you experience wedding planning. If they’re responsive, and easy, and make you feel seen and heard at all times, wedding planning will feel positive and fun. If they’re hard to get hold of, make demands or are curt in their interactions, then wedding planning can feel quite draining. So choose your suppliers wisely: Find those who make you go ‘hell yeah’ when you see their work, and also make you feel good in the process.
As I mentioned earlier, this is why Stephen Walker is perfect: He gets a fat tick in both of those boxes!
My final tip is in regards to the wedding day itself.
Three. The Wedding Day
There is a lot I would like to mention here, not least eating. Consuming enough protein and water before the ceremony will make for a much happier wedding day – trust me!
But I’ve chosen to focus on another aspect instead, and that’s the coordination of the day: You’ve done such an amazing job planning your wedding, thinking about all the details, agonising and choosing all those final touches and thoughtful timelines, that you truly deserve to simply enjoy the day. And that’s very hard to do, if you’re the only one that knows the plans and what needs to happen when and what goes where.
Bridesmaids and groomsmen can be truly wonderful and super supportive. But they are normally there to enjoy themselves too, and the pull of that can sometimes detract from the task at hand, and also the fear of doing the wrong thing can lead to a thousand questions you don’t need on the day.
Instead, I would suggest using someone that you can trust fully and is not part of the immediate wedding party. That can either be the coordinator at the venue – some venue coordinators are truly exceptional – or, if it’s a DIY venue, consider a couple of friends or relative that you can hand over all the plans to, and then your bridesmaids and groomsmen and parents can focus on living in the moment with you. Or, if no one immediately springs to mind, then consider a professional wedding coordinator. It will save you a lot of stress and pressure on the day, and like I said, you truly deserve that after all the work you’ve put in!
In conclusion, my top three things to consider when planning your wedding is your venue (think about how much time you have, and do lots of online research before visiting); choose your photographer and other suppliers based on how you feel when you see their work, and how do they make you feel when you interact; and finally, let yourself enjoy the wedding day by handing over the plans that day – to a friend or professional coordinator. You really need to allow yourself to live every moment of your day!
If you fancy more tips or would like a chat about your plans, never hesitate to reach out. I love talking weddings! You can find me here:
Website: www.karintindallweddings.co.uk
Instagram: @karintindallweddings
Email: hello@karintindallweddings.co.uk
PS. You don’t need the teeth-whitening-for-your-wedding. It’s a load of baloney. They’re perfect as they are.
Much love,
Karin
