Wedding planning is hard (understatement of the year) and full of facts + figures, and endless minuscule details to keep up with. It’s even harder when you don’t have a way to manage all the mess. Now we’re not trying to convert any of our fancy-free brides into Type-A organizers, we see you, but we have a little something for everyone in this post.

We tried our best to be thorough and tick all the organizational boxes, but none can quite compare to the support a wedding planner can give you. Your 6-page color-coded spreadsheet won’t wrangle vendors, comfort your mom, or bust a move with you on the dance floor. Stress-free brides hire wedding planners and brides who don’t want to pull out all their hair organize.

Quick Tips!

2: Read Every Contract—Closely.

Contracts keep you informed about vendor expectations, but it’s also the bible for every deadline, timeline, and cost involved on your big day. This is where your big organizational data will come from.

1: Ask for help.

Your friends, family, and spouse are there to help! So reach out! Delegating small tasks here and there will keep your plate clear for bigger, more time-consuming tasks.

4: Prioritize.

3: Email Address.

All wedding elements are not created equal. There will be parts of your wedding day that you care about less than others and those tasks are perfect for delegating to your spouse, friends or family. Plus, now you can put your energy into what matters to you instead of wasting time on which color chair cover looks best with the napkins.

Sign up for a separate email address for all your wedding-related needs. This will keep your primary email address free of wedding clutter and you can tackle wedding emails without distractions.

5: Collaborate With Your Planner!

This seems like a no-duh, but your wedding planner is a resource so use their expertise. Plus many wedding planners, Celebrate Dallas included, use sites that help couples and wedding planners work together.

LITE

These organizational tools are light and casual. You won’t need them every single second, but you can throw it in your purse so you have it when you need it.

Notebook or Bullet Journal

A classic monogrammed notebook is perfect for keeping to-do lists and meeting notes.

Photo | Carlo Mendoza , Illustration and cards | Via Calligraphy

Bullet journals give you a space for creative expression and info dumping.

Artful Agenda or Google Calendar

Artful Agenda is a fancy (and much cuter) version of Google Calendar, but it comes with a $50 a year price tag. If you don’t need the cute consider using old fashioned GCal for your calendar and notes integration.

Aisle Planner

Aisle Planner is a website that many wedding planners use to organize, share, and collaborate on your wedding info! It’s a one-stop-shop to check off to-dos, track RSVPs, and share wedding inspo and timelines.

MEDIUM

Medium organizational options give you more bang for your buck. Your bases are covered, but you’re not chained to the system.

Wedding Planner

Paper

Wedding specific planner come in many different shapes and sizes, but Erin Condren is one of our favorites. Of course, there are many other more affordable options (see: Purple Trail or Recollections at Michael’s.

Digital

Digital planners are for the tech-savvy and available on Tablets or iPads. You can take notes and fill in important info using your apple pencil or the Android alternative.

Binder

Source | Etsy

Binder pages are old fashioned, but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. These resources are all over the internet and you can find in-depth options very cheap or free. *Note these don’t come with a binder, decorating and organizing your binder will be your DIY activity (I feel a scrapbooking montage coming on…).

Dropbox

Have a lot of information coming from a million different places? Consider Dropbox. You can scan all your contracts, receipts, notes, and invoices in one place. Dropbox can be organized, re-organized, and organized again. The more folders, the better.

MEGA

This is for the bride who can’t get enough of the wedding planning process. These systems are for the faint of heart, but if this is your thing it might take your breath away.

Scrum Board

Scrum boards break your task list down to it’s absolute tiniest detail. Anything you’re doing in the name of your wedding day goes on the board. You won’t forget anything, we promise you that much. You can also create a digital scrum board on Trello and other project management apps.

Spreadsheet

Spreadsheets are the Grand Poo-bah of organizational systems. With the right spreadsheet, no wedding detail will go unnoticed. If it matters, there’s a cell for it.

What’s your organizational style?

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Most girls have a Pinterest, whether it's for DIY home ideas, clothing, or our personal favorite, weddings! On the other hand, most girls have also found that the pictures they quickly fell in love with on Pinterest, are often out of their wedding budget.

This week, we have some tips and tricks to educate brides on the price tag of a pinterest wedding and how to have realistic expectations for your budget, because really... who doesn't have at least some sort of budget for their wedding!? People all around the world see the same images and fall in love with the same ideas, without any knowledge of where that venue is or how much that gown truly costs. Here are a few things to keep in mind!

That venue doesn't always look that perfect at your budget.

Those drapes with twinkle lights are not always so perfectly placed, and in fact, the cost of the venue might not even include them. Having a venue add drapes and lighting can cost up to thousands of dollars extra! The additional costs at a wedding venue, for example, upgrading the color of the reception chairs from a black chair to a nicer white chair, can quickly add up and surpass your budget, so make sure you know what you want and if the venue includes those little details in their rental price.

Photo courtesy of Nessa K Photography found on Pinterest.

That "discount bridal dresses" caption might be paired with a designer dress picture.

Pinterest can be deceiving at times... you can't always trust the caption that goes with the picture! Personally, I have about a million (okay, maybe not quite THAT many) dresses pinned for ideas when my time comes around, many of which have "cheap wedding dresses" as the caption. After doing some digging, I've found that most of the dresses, which I have imagined myself walking down the aisle in, are accompanied by a not-so-cheap top dollar price tag! Take those pictures and use them as inspiration for your own wedding gown, shop around, and find similar styles at local shops that are within your budget.

Sometimes, we have to go to the professionals for help.

DIY this, DIY that. Yes! Don't get me wrong, you can save quite a bit of money doing things yourself, but if you're anything like me, there are just some things you gotta know when to turn to the pros. One of the most common examples this wedding season is calligraphy. Welcome signs, menus, invitations, you name it and it's being done this season! I know my handwriting isn't the best, let alone trying my hand at calligraphy! So if your budget allows, find a professional from your area and spend the extra change to get that sign so perfectly written everyone will think it's printed! We highly recommend Ellie and Ace, and you can learn more about them here!

All in all, some of the best advice I have, is pick what is most important to you, and splurge on those things. For some brides it will be florals, for others it will be the photographer, and for me personally, the cake! Pinterest should be used for ideas to help get those creative juices flowing. Make your wedding your very own at a budget that won't break the bank!

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