Consider these five biggest wedding preparation and planning mistakes that amateur 'wedding planners' often make before you begin planning your special day.1. Budgeting CostsMany couples do not create a budget when it comes to wedding preparation and end up in a deep hole of debt. The very first thing you should do to avoid disastrous wedding mistakes is devise an itemized budget, allowing for the necessary requirements, such as a venue for both the ceremony and reception, food and drinks, flowers, favors, decorations, etc. If anything is left over, either use this money for your honeymoon or spend it on something a little more frivolous, like a horse drawn carriage for your departure from the reception.2. Giving Yourself Enough TimeIf you want extravagant wedding, you need to begin planning at least a year and a half in advance; for a smaller, more intimate wedding of about 50 guests, eight months to a year is fine. You need to take into account what your plans are for your wedding and adjust your schedule accordingly to prevent costly wedding mistakes from occurring.Giving yourself more wedding preparation time allows you to order your cake, dress, wedding favors, flowers, decorations, etc.3. Delegating ResponsibilitiesPart of the wedding experience relies on a number of people who require detailed wedding preparation directives from you, such as the caterer, photographer, florist, transportation and/or drivers, and DJ. Discussing your ideas with them ensures that you can work together on the same wavelength and avoid embarrassing wedding mistakes during the actual reception. You should also arrange for the wedding party to meet at the church or the wedding ceremony location at a specified time. Corralling so many people at the same time is what leads many couples to pick up the wedding party members at their homes. Late arriving wedding party members is one of the most frequent and sometimes uncontrollable wedding mistakes a bride and groom have to deal with.4. Hiring a Wedding Planner or Someone You TrustWedding planners know all the ins and outs of great wedding preparation and planning and can help the couple find reliable caterers, bridal attire and supply stores, transportation, and DJs at lower prices. Before signing any contracts, however, talk with the wedding planner to see if it's a situation you're happy with. While incredibly helpful, wedding planners can also be pricey, unfortunate for the bride who is trying to cut costs. This scenario goes back to delegating responsibilities - ask someone you trust to help you make wedding preparation arrangements and appointments with each wedding supply store and/or vendor. You can even scale back operations and have a simplistic wedding that you plan completely to save money.5. Considering the Reception Venue and Detailssomething that happens more often than you'd think and is one of the biggest wedding mistakes couples overlook is sending your guests on a wild goose chase to find the reception venue. For out-of-town guests, this is confusing; for in-town guests, it's an annoyance. Choosing a reception venue that's close to the wedding site is a must, unless you provide the transportation to and from the reception. More than 15 - 20 minutes away is a hassle, and some guests may not even bother going if it's farther than that.
