The non-wedding day vendors of wedding planning often get overshadowed by the booking of wedding day vendors, like photographers and florists. While it’s obviously important to prioritize booking your larger vendors, don’t forget the other vendors you need to complete your planning!

Attire

Of course, there’s the bride’s dress to consider and the groom’s suit or tux to rent (or buy!), but there’s also the rest of your bridal party’s attire to consider and plan for. Just like the couple’s attire, the bridal party’s attire will take time to pick out and order, so you want to make sure you have enough time for that. 

Plan to pick your bridal gown by eight months before wedding day, bridesmaid’s attire six to eight months out and groom / groomsmen attire at the four to six month mark. 

Paper Goods

There are a lot of paper products that come along with a wedding. There are save the dates and invitations before the wedding and then everything you need for the wedding itself including table numbers, programs, seating chart, menu cards and any extra signage. 

Plan to have save the dates sent between six to eight months out and invitations should be sent between two to three months beforehand. Don’t forget to leave enough time to get them ordered and delivered! For wedding day products, most of these items are ordered in the final month, once guest count is finalized. 

Events

Any other events you are planning for wedding day weekend like your rehearsal dinner, welcome party, brunch or luncheon all require their own planning. 

Plan to start the planning on any of these events about six to eight months out, depending on the scale of the events. Make sure you send invitations out at least a month in advance (but not before wedding invitations!).

Watch more of our pro tips here:

Love these tips? Subscribe to our “Every Day I’m Bustlin’” podcast by clicking HERE for more weekly planning tips and tricks from our co-founders and vetted vendor guests.

Photo Credit: [Vetted] Easterday Creative