How do you plan a wedding at (very) short notice?
There may be any number of reasons why you might want to plan a wedding at short notice, but the good news is that it is both more common and easier than you think. We’ve photographed loads of weddings where the couple only had a couple of months to plan their day. In fact, we ourselves got married with about 3 months notice.
If you are thinking of having a wedding at short notice, here is some time-saving advice for you.
Set your wedding budget early on.
While planning a wedding doesn’t have to take a long time, couples will often give themselves a year or two in order to save up some money. If getting married at short notice, you’ll have less time to save money so it’s a good idea to set a budget early on. Do not let your wedding put you into massive debt. Set aside what you can afford and stick with it as best you can.
Book the important wedding stuff first.
Take a moment to figure out what is important to you and prioritise booking this first. For example, we decided that our priorities were food, photography and music, so that’s where we focused our budget.
You also need to think of the overall vibe. Do you want relaxed and casual? Or maybe grand and formal? Making these decisions will help you hone in on what venues fit the bill, saving you time.
If you’re super keen on photography (hey, who isn’t?) talk to a photographer early on as they can also offer help with other things and provide good recommendations and advice (hey, sure that’s what we’re doing right now!).
Often, you’ll find that listing what is important will help inform some decisions such as venue choice and where best to put your budget. Also, don’t feel that you have to book things just because they’re traditional (more on that, below).
Size it up
There’s no question that an intimate, smaller wedding is much easier to plan. That’s not to say you can’t have a bigger wedding, but it may take a little more work.
Decide early in the planning process what you want and stick with it, even if under pressure from family to increase the size of the guest list.
Get a little help from your friends.
We’ve all got a friend who loves a spreadsheet, don’t we? Don’t be afraid to ask friends and family to help. It’s good to have an extra pair of eyes trawling through Pinterest and instagram.
If any of your friends got married recently, don’t be afraid to ask them for advice too. The experience of couples who’ve been through it all is invaluable and should help you in deciding what is important.
Find a wedding venue
You may have been to a dozen weddings in the past few years, or you may never have been to a wedding in your life, but choosing a venue can seem like a mammoth task.
For a wedding at short-notice (or any wedding, for that matter), don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Why not have it in your favourite restaurant, pub, museum, gallery, concert venue or cinema? Even if they’ve never hosted a wedding before, they may be open to it. The shortest notice wedding we’ve ever photographed was in the couple’s living room (and it was magic!).
If you are having a civil ceremony, your venue must have a license but you can have a humanist or religious wedding anywhere as long as your celebrant agrees to it.
If your wedding is at short notice due to illness, it’s worth asking the venue how they can accommodate any special needs that you or your guests may have.
Book your wedding celebrant
It’s worth pointing out that to have a legal ceremony in the UK, you must give 28 days notice. If you want a religious ceremony, it’s a good idea to book it as early as possible as they may have less flexibility with dates and times. Humanist celebrants generally have greater flexibility and most will work any day of the week.
In the unlikely event that you can’t find a celebrant on your preferred date, you could opt to do the legal bit on a different day (before or after) and have an outgoing friend or family member conduct the ceremony on the day of your wedding.
Think outside the wedding industry
As we said, there’s nothing to say you have to get married in a wedding venue. There’s also nothing to say you have to book wedding suppliers either. Your favourite musician, hairdresser, florist or even photographer may never have worked at a wedding, but that doesn’t mean they can’t or won’t do it.
We weren’t intending to be wedding photographers. But here we are, hundreds of weddings later, dishing out wedding advice, all because someone we knew once asked us to photograph their wedding.
Don’t rule out having a weekday wedding.
If you get engaged in June and are hoping for a wedding on a Saturday in August, you could struggle to get the venue or suppliers that you want. We’ve photographed weddings on every day of the week and have noticed that we’re trending away from Saturday weddings being the norm. This gives you greater scope for getting the venue and suppliers you want, especially at short notice.
Find something to wear
Bridal shops and suit hire will probably need a certain timeframe that may not work for you, but it is still worth asking if they can accommodate you. But, you don’t have to buy your dress in a specialist shop - in fact, any dress that you feel confident and comfortable in is perfect as a wedding dress.
We’ve had stunning brides that found their dress in vintage shops, high street shops and even on ebay. Anthropologie sell gorgeous, modern wedding dresses through their BHLDN brand that aren’t super expensive and can be bought with a few clicks.
As for guys, you could probably buy a great suit the day before your wedding without any stress or hassle, if you wanted. Yeah, you have it easy.
Keep things simple
They say ‘don’t get bogged down in the details’ and this is great advice for a wedding at short notice. Keep things simple and don’t go overboard with handstitched, homemade decor that will use up every spare moment of your time and cause all sorts of stress.
It’s especially easy to avoid custom decor if you choose your venue wisely. Most restaurants have gone to painstaking lengths to perfect their dining ambience, and you’ll find that it isn’t necessary to add anything.
Ditch wedding traditions.
Check out our post on how to ditch wedding traditions. In short, breaking with some traditions will save you time and money and make planning less stressful. You don’t need bridesmaids and groomsmen, you don’t have to have wedding rings, a meal, a cake or band or a disco.* You won’t be refused entry down the aisle if you’re not holding a bouquet. Do it your way and you’ll have more fun planning things.
*Obviously, you have to have a photographer. It’s actually the law. Don’t bother checking, trust us, you have to have one. We’ll keep you right.
Get a Wedding planner
Several couples who have booked us short notice have worked with a wedding planner and have been grateful for having done so. A planner will listen to what you want and work within your budget to deliver it, doing all the tedious legwork.
They’ll present you with a shortlist of suppliers and arrange the booking. If your wedding is short notice due to illness, a wedding planner can be essential in removing a lot of the stress of arranging things, allowing you to focus on what matters most.
Get your invites out
Hooray for the internet! With a shorter timeframe, you can opt for digital invitations that are delivered instantaneously. As soon as you have your wedding booked, get your invites or a save the date out.
With shorter notice and the potential for a weekday wedding, guests may have to book time off work or arrange babysitters. Give them as much notice as you can, and do your best to ignore the wild speculation from guests as to why you’re getting married as short notice.
Consider An Elopement
The only thing that you have to do at a wedding is get married. If you feel like you don’t want a big party you can always elope. For this, the only thing you have to do is book a celebrant. It can be as simple as going into City Hall or you could decide to do it at one of your favourite beauty spots. We’ve photographed many elopements with just the couple by themselves, and have even signed the legal documents as witnesses.
Get in touch with us.
If you’re thinking of planning a wedding at short notice, please get in touch. We have a wealth of knowledge of the wedding industry and loads of contacts to help you plan your day with as little hassle as possible. And as a couple who’ve been there and done it, we know exactly what lies ahead of you.