The Devil is in the Details...We have all heard the saying and we have lived long enough to know how true it is. The details can make or break an event; therefore, organization is key! With all the details involved in planning your special day, it is quite easy for budgets to be blow, items to be forgotten, and tempers to flare. In order to keep everything in its place (and keep your family and friends :)), here are some free wedding planning tools that are available for DIY-ers or for any bride who values her sanity.
Online Options: This is perfect for those individuals who are internet savvy and prefer to have everything readily available.
- I have mentioned them before and I will mention them again, Wedding Wire (one of my favorite sites) allows busy brides to plan their weddings with their online planning tools (and did I mention it was free). I love the fact that two users are able to access the site under their own names (yay for not sharing passwords). They also offer a Wedding Website, also free, for you to share your thoughts, pictures, and stories with family and friends. Finally, for those who want to have a green wedding or include eco-friendly elements in your wedding, Wedding Wire made that possible. They have a carbon calculator that allows you and your guests to calculate your carbon footprints in order to have a carbon neutral event.
- The Knot is another great resource for individuals planning a wedding. Their free planning tools include a monthly or weekly to do list with reminders, a budget and payment tracker, and guest list tracker just to name a few of the features available. In addition to planning and keeping track of all the details, you can also read responses of local brides, look at pictures of real weddings, which is a great way to get ideas for your own day, and find local vendors.
- How can we talk about planning a wedding without mentioning Martha Stewart Weddings. Martha Stewart Weddings has everything from etiquette, how-to demonstrations, and of course her free wedding planning tools. You can keep track of your vendors, your guestlists, your budget, and so much more.
Printable: Go ahead-print 'em. These planning templates are for people who need to cross something off their checklist. A to-do-list just isn't the same on a Blackberry. I personally prefer the satisfaction of striking a line through an item on my list.
- Cost of Wedding.com offers a free printable Wedding Day checklist from Wedding author Sharon Naylor. This checklist reminds you of all the details you should handle and the order they should be accomplished. The checklist begins at 12+ months before your wedding date; however, I still think it is great for individuals who have only a few months to go. You may not have the amount of suggested time but you can at least ensure you have checked everything off your must-do-list (i.e. obtain marriage license, pack passport for honeymoon, etc).
- I love Bonjour Events' site for many reasons. They give great tips, they advertise sales all the time and it is easy to navigate. Bonjour Events offers free templates for those planning anything from a corporate event to a dinner party. The template that I think is a MUST HAVE for someone planning a wedding is the Wedding Budget Spreadsheet.
- Wedding Details.com also offers checklists, which you can fill in online and then print it out later. The lists I recommend are: a) Wedding Budget Worksheet (are you beginning to see a theme here), b) Planning Calendar and the Final Phase Calendar (they are good to have but they are not as detailed as the one offered by Sharon Naylor above), c) Wedding Day Timetable (great to have and should be filled out prior to the week before the event rush), and finally, if you want to include your groom-to-be in the planning process, here is a checklist just for him d) Groom's Checklist.
Hope this helps you stay organized and stress-free. Happy Planning from your favorite wedding consultant! A K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple and Savvy) until next time. ~Kenesha
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