So You Just Got Engaged. What Now?

Tips on planning your Sussex wedding

Being engaged is a new and exciting adventure for everyone, maybe you’ve been waiting for them to pop the question for a while? Or perhaps it came completely out of the blue. However, they did it! You can now introduce them as “My fiance” and how thrilling is that. So, you’ve popped the champagne and called up your whole family to tell them the news and posted a picture of the ring on facebook subtitled “I said yes!”. The adrenaline has passed and the reality has hit. What now?? Time to plan the wedding. I’ve come up with two categories to help you and your fiance enjoy the process instead of all the stress. Although I’m sorry to break the news there will be stress. There always is!  

Make the most of it…

I believe there are three different areas you should practice as a couple in the wedding planning stage so you make the most of it. Whether you’ve given yourself two years, six months or a few weeks (to which I say you’re crazy!) you must practice these areas so time doesn’t fly by and you look back at it and all it’s been is stress and endless payments.

Number one… plan together!

I know that sounds like common sense but trust me. I have met so many couples where one, usually the lady has decided to plan the whole thing… on their own. And I know why? It’s because you’ve been thinking about it since the age of six dressing your favourite Barbie up in a sequin fishtail gown and every time you go to that National Trust your heart skips a beat. But, slow down! This is a day to celebrate you both as a couple, a union, a bringing together of two families and joining them in the name of LOVE.

So, make it about that. I love a wedding which screams out ‘individuality’ whether that’s football themed wedding cakes or vintage cars. If you’re into glitz and glam and your partner wants to get married on a beach with a can of stella. Meet in the middle! Make it that beach themed, Miami glam with an open bar. Talk budget, talk likes and dislikes. Make it a project which you’re doing together as a partnership. Which brings me to my next point.  

Number two…. Talk tastes.

Planning a wedding can be an exciting time to discover more about your other half. Whether that is while you’re choosing the flowers, tasting cakes or picking the venue? Perhaps your partner suggests, “Oh no not Lillies, they’ll tend to wiff a bit and the pollen will get all over the table cloths”. You may think, very sensible! I never thought of that. Or, perhaps you never knew before they had a great disliking to carrot cake. “It’s just wrong on so many levels, a vegetable in a cake. Why?”. You may disagree but discuss tastes because their whole half of the family may feel the same way. Also you can make it fun. Suddenly, your weekends are full with different adventurous activities to do together. Cake tasting this Saturday? Groomsmen tie shopping on the Sunday? You go to different places together and you learn more about each other. Which ties in nicely with number three.

Number three… date trips to venues.

A lot of people would argue that balancing planning a wedding alongside, working full-time, having kids, keeping fit & being healthy as well as making time for each other is IMPOSSIBLE! But, you change looking at venue to date day at Southover Grange in Lewes. You take a picnic, you snap a few selfies while envisioning your big day there, drinking fizz in the walled garden and your dress floating down the aisle of the lilac and white registry office.

Getting ahead….

My top three points of advice for getting ahead in your wedding preparations to make the ride a lot smoother are as follows.

Book your venue early! The venue will most likely be the most expensive part of the day. So, you can think about budget, themes and dates it is essential that you book your venue before anything else. This will help you to truly picture everything else.

Is it the right dress? Start looking early but don’t commit. The dress is an element of the wedding which many of you ladies have thought about for years. You may think, I want an a-line satin off the shoulder gown, with long lace sleeves with pearl buttons. You find one with all of this in the first shop? But it’s on and does it feel right? The colours not right? The sleeves are as complimenting as you first thought. Keep looking. There is no rush.

Finally, think about costs? The average wedding in the UK costs £30,000 but that doesn’t mean you have to? Think about where you can cost cuts? There is no worse feeling when planning an event then feeling like you’ve been ripped off. If you’ve got a budget, stick to it. Discuss your budget with the venue? Ask them if they’d wiggle on the price.

There it is my advice to help you get unstuck from the feeling of what now?? My answer to that question is; have fun! See it as a once in a lifetime opportunity for your partner and you to create something together, see it as a project. Something that you enjoy. It’s not about who can spend the most cash? Or how many freebies your guests go home with. It’s about creating a day where people have fun and are in an environment where they can celebrate your love and commitment to each other.

If you’ve recently become engaged or are looking for a photographer to help create the perfect style to capture your engagement photos together then please look no further.

If you would like to speak in a bit more detail, then please feel free to send me an email to info@darrengrittonphotography.com or give me a text on 07538 135722.