Wedding Timeline

Upon Engagement:   

- Begin sharing your good news with family and friends.

- Begin to assemble a fairly complete guest list – at a minimum establishing the number of guests you will be able to invite to your big day.

- Select and inform wedding attendants, particularly your maid (matron) of honor and best man, as you will be counting on these two people throughout your planning process.

- Have the money talk and determine a wedding budget. Decide whether you and your fiancé will be covering the wedding costs or discover who else may be contributing to your wedding budget and how much they can share with you.  This step (while potentially uncomfortable) is very important; resolving the type of event you can afford and establishing who will be hosting the event.

Nine to Twelve Months Ahead:

- Select a wedding date and time of day.

- Identify and reserve your ceremony and reception locations.

- Revise/Finalize your guest list and begin the collection and  verification of guest addresses.

- Host an engagement party or order and send Engagement Announcements to those closest to you and your fiancé.  Engagement party invitations or announcements are only sent to family and friends you know WILL be invited to the wedding.  Lilywillow has a selection of Engagement Party Invitations and Engagement Announcements available through the website or this may be the time to begin your Custom Design Experience if you prefer this design option.

- If your wedding location is out of the country or will be a destination for most wedding guests, send a Save-the-Date Card nine to twelve months ahead to give guests plenty of planning and travel coordination time. The more useful information you are able to provide your guests with the better - hotel and travel details, a weekend trip itinerary, sightseeing/shopping/restaurant information, etc. You should plan on reserving a block of rooms at hotel(s) near the wedding and/or reception site and identify transportation options for your guests. 

- Lilywillow has Save-the-Date Card designs ready for personalization through the website or again, if you prefer Custom Design, now is the time to begin so your wedding stationery suite works together from start to finish.

- Order Personalized Stationery for the bride and groom-to-be. You will need stationery in order to write thank you notes for both  engagement and wedding shower gifts. Lilywillow’s Stationery Collection includes pre-printed thank you notes as well as the ability to Personalize any of the designs to include your name, initials, monogram, etc.

- Begin Collection of Your “Yes’s” – Go through magazines, sample books, websites, fabrics, artwork, photography, flowers, etc. and begin a file containing the ideas you love.  Anything that inspires you will inspire your wedding stationery designer.

Six to Nine Months Ahead:

- Begin to finalize the style, tone, mood and sentiment you want to establish for your big day

- Select the formality of your event: Formal, Semi-Formal, Informal

- Identify your wedding “style” – be it classic, romantic, modern, dramatic, vintage, etc.

- Determine a wedding theme, if you are planning on having one

- Identify the color palette you want incorporated throughout – stationery, flowers, decorations, linens, attire, etc.

- Review invitation wording options relevant to your “hosting” situation and preferred formality level.

- Finalize all locations relevant to your wedding celebration – guest accommodations, rehearsal dinner location, etc. and begin preparing directions or determine whether a map may be required.

- Finalize your budget.

- If your wedding is within the United States or more localized for your guests, send a Save-the-Date Card 6-9 months ahead of time. It is helpful to provide accommodation and travel information as soon as you can, especially important if your wedding occurs over a holiday weekend. Lilywillow has Save-the-Date Card designs ready  for personalization through the website or again, if you prefer Custom Design, now is the time to begin so your wedding stationery suite works together from start to finish.

- Time to order your Wedding Invitation Suite! Invitation sets should be mailed 6 to 8 weeks before the wedding date, so allowing plenty of time for ordering, the review and editing of your design proofs, printing, assembly, shipping, and addressing is very important.

- If you will be hiring a calligrapher to address your wedding invitations, consider coordinating these services at this time – Lilywillow offers calligraphy as well and can incorporate this service into your order if desired.  As wedding season is a busy time for calligraphers, reserving their time early is a good idea to ensure completion by your target mail date.

Three to Six Months Ahead:

- Decide on reception favors and packaging and place your order.  Lilywillow has several creative Favors and Favor Tags available through the website.

- One of the biggest stationery components of your big day is the Wedding Program and now is the time to finalize the order of your ceremony with your officiant and family members, prepare your wedding attendant information, and write a thank you or dedication to your family and friends if you would like one included.

- If you are having a Rehearsal Dinner or “Morning-After” Brunch and these invitations were not included with your wedding stationery suite order, now is the time to get these prepared and ordered.  Lilywillow can design these in your wedding style or there are many other Event Invitation Options available through the website to choose from.

- Your Invitations should be delivered and ready for assembly, addressing and post if Lilywillow is not taking care of this service for you. If you are utilizing a calligrapher, this is the time they need to receive your envelopes and final address list and you should plan on calligraphy taking up to two weeks.

Two Months Ahead:

- It’s time to Mail Your Invitations! Your wedding invitation package should be mailed no later than 6 weeks before the wedding date, 8 weeks is preferred.  Have the post office weigh an assembled invitation package to inform you of the final postage per set – they often exceed regular letter postage.  Square envelopes or other unusual shapes or mailing options automatically require additional postage, regardless of the final weight. It is customary for your response card envelopes to be pre-stamped for your guests as well.

- If not already prepared with your initial Lilywillow stationery order, now is the time to finalize the details and place your Wedding Program, Menu, Table Card, Place Card, Thank You Note, and Wedding Announcement order.  These pieces, if letterpressed, should be ordered when your other stationery items go to press as letterpress printing takes between four to six weeks and you won’t want to cut things too close!

Four to Five Weeks Ahead:

- If your Wedding Rehearsal, Rehearsal Dinner, Welcome Dinner, or Morning-After Brunch Invitations were included within your wedding stationery package, now is the time to assemble, address, and mail these out.  There is a benefit to including these invitations within your stationery suite, as the response card may be prepared to handle these additional events and you won’t have another series of responses to assemble and manage.

- Coordinate any remaining details of your wedding day with your parents, attendants, and vendors.

Two to Four Weeks Ahead:

- Your response cards should be arriving and your final counts should be close.  This is the time to contact guests who have not replied by phone to determine their attendance status.

- If Lilywillow is preparing pre-printed Place Cards for your event, please provide a complete list of attendees for preparation.  If a calligrapher is handling your place cards, they too will need the most complete list of attendees possible.

- If not earlier in your planning process, purchase and prepare attendant gifts, wedding party gifts, and parent gifts to be distributed at the rehearsal dinner or the day of the wedding.  If you and your fiancé(é) are exchanging gifts, especially if you are having something monogrammed or personalized, now is the time to coordinate this.

- For out-of-town guests, consider preparing a Welcome Letter and basket or bag to be placed in their hotel rooms prior to arrival. This is a great opportunity to personalize a greeting, reiterate the event schedule and transportation options, provide things to do and directions, etc. as well as making your guests feel at-home and a part of the wedding excitement! Your wedding hotel(s) will normally deliver these packages for you.  Lilywillow can help you prepare your Welcome Greeting and Weekend Information when you place your Wedding Stationery Suite order or later in your preparations.

One Week Ahead:

- Ensure your wedding day stationery items have been delivered to your ceremony and reception locations, or given to your coordinator/florist for display: Wedding Programs, Place Cards, Table Numbers, Menus, Favors, etc.

- If you are sending Wedding Announcements, make sure these are assembled, addressed, and postage has been adhered.  Assign a parent or attendant the responsibility of mailing these for you if you’ve already left on your honeymoon.  Wedding announcements may be postmarked as early as the day after your wedding.