I want to talk about the big task that weighs over bride’s head and that’d be the “day of” timeline! This is something that get’s pushed to last minute for most brides who don’t have a planner, which I get it! It isn’t fun to write up and is quite time consuming. If you’ve never put together a detailed “day of” event list before, it can be overwhelming.
When having a planner, your workload on the day of timeline will be cut down drastically. If you’re not having a planner don’t stress because it can 100% be done, you just won’t want to wait last minute.
Rather than making the day of timeline a week before your big day (if procrastination) I recommend having it written out before you send out your invitations! Here are 4 tips on what to do when making your wedding timeline!
#1 Get your Photographer timeline First
The best thing to do if even possible, is to have your photographers list first (if the pictures are important to you.) Why? Because if you aren’t working in this type of industry chances are, you might not know the times it takes for an event with all these details as well as the best lighting times.
If your photographer doesn’t send you a timeline until a month before, that doesn’t give you time to change around what you’ve already planned and that can become stressful.
Either hop over to, “the best ceremony times” blog post if you’re not wanting to wait on your photographer to start your list or see when your photographer will send you that list. Trust me when I say, the sooner the better and you’ll need this before planning a ceremony time!
This is a simple way to get you ahead of the game by having the photographer timeline first (months before) then use it as a starting point!
#2 Add to it
This is where you’ll want to add to your day of timeline everything else. From times of getting ready, setting up vendors arriving and when their time ends. This is when a planner will come in great help. They are used to these events and the times it takes. I highly recommend a planner to save you some stress of having to put this list together all yourself.
If you’re not having a planner then here are a 6 examples of what you’ll want to add to your list.
Makeup & Hair
This can be the make/break of your timeline on the day of! Hair & Makeup, tends to run over time which then, each thing following could fall behind. This is why it’s important to message your artist’s and ask for how many minutes it’ll take for each bridesmaids + Bride & mother of the bride. You will then want to add a list of everyone who plans on getting ready with those artists. This is where many bridal parties run late on which runs into picture time.
Give yourself 30 minutes of being makeup & hair ready before photographer arrives so you have a little wiggle room if something doesn’t go as planned or takes a little longer.
Here is a sample of a hair & makeup list I made for a wedding I was a bridesmaid in. Hope this give you a better idea on how to make a getting ready time list.
Rentals/Decorating Venue
If your hiring a company to do this or even friends/family this is super helpful but, you’ll still need to think about times! I always like to say, try to have everything decorated before the photographer arrives (another example of why it’s good to have the photographer timeline first.) A rental company will know the time it takes for them to set up if just give them the time you’d like to have it finished by
Florist
Your florist plays a huge part into the look of your day! With that being said, if you’re anything like I was as a bride.. ask your florist if it can be done before the photographer arrives. You will want everything ready to go upon the photographers arrival since those are who will be capturing your day!
DJ – Ceremony songs , Formal dance songs & reception favorites list
Dj’s are great at what they do and are able to know what you like based off of your likes. Most Dj’s will ask for a list from you on your favorite song’s you’d like played as well as the ceremony songs. Something I did the season of being engaged, I created a song lost on my iPhone notes. Each time I heard a song I loved I wrote it down, that way didn’t forget when it came to what I wanted played.
Officiant
Meet with who is marring you two! This helped me so much when trying to figure out what all goes on during a ceremony. The officiant will also let you know the approximate time the ceremony will last, which is normally 30 minutes.
Cake Artist
Know when the cake is being dropped off and set up! This is one thing I recommend not having there when the photographers drive due to it needing to stay refrigerated, but you’ll still want to have your photographer capture the cake table. What I did, was the hour before the ceremony, my cake arrived and was set up. That way the photographers had a chance to capture it and the guests could see it after the ceremony
#3 finalize times with your vendors
Make sure each of the vendors your working with have a time and know your expectations. Each wedding is different for us vendors but it’s also somewhat the same routine. Be sure to send each vendor the times and what is to be going on based on what the’ll be doing, not because they can’t do it without a time list but because it’s helpful to everyone working a wedding. Your vendors will appreciate it!
Overall, the best way for a stress free wedding is to plan ahead especially when it comes to the day of timeline. Even if you don’t know all the answers right away, ask for your photographer list first and that will start you off on the right path! This doesn’t mean everything will turn out exactly as planned, because trust me… things could change the day of, and that’s okay. I am just sharing this to remind you, the more things you can get planned and down on a list will give your vendors a better expectation on your wants and make sure everyone is on the same page which will give a relaxing day!
If this blog post helped you any, I’d love to hear about it! You can leave it in the comments below
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