Organising your big day is a huge job, but having a wedding planning checklist will help to reduce stress and ensure you don’t miss any important items.
In this blog, the team at One Stop Wedding Shop has shared our go-to checklist to help you map-out the year leading up to your big day.
Our team can also assist with ticking off a number of items in the 12 months leading up to your big day.
Here are some of the big (and small) items we can help you with, which are covered below:
- Wedding Ceremony and Reception Styling.
- Wedding Flowers: We create stunning real and artificial bouquets and arrangements, along with arbour arrangements,
- Wedding Stationery, including invitations, place cards, menus and thank you cards.
- Bomboniere, Favours and Bridal Party Gifts
Wedding Checklist Australia
12+ Months Out
While a year might seem like a long time, when you’ve got plenty to organise it will go quickly – trust us!
- Choose a date (or a few options)
- Determine your budget
- Research, visit and book ceremony and reception venues
- Decide who will be in your wedding party
- Begin collating your guest list
- Decide formality, overall themes and colours
- Visit One Stop Wedding Shop showroom to get a feel for the Ceremony and Reception styling items you can hire (or buy)
Expert tip: This is a good time to create wedding and styling boards on Pinterest, so you’ve got a central place to save images of decorations, flowers and other wedding items you like. That way you’ll be able to find them quickly when you are visiting wedding suppliers and discussing your dream day with them.
11 Months Out
- Hire wedding professionals who book up quickly e.g. photographer, videographer, band/DJ, and wedding planner
- Begin the search for your wedding dress
- Order Save the Date cards
- Start collecting your guests’ address details (if you’re posting invitations and save the date cards)
10 Months Out
- Buy your wedding dress and veil
- Hire a celebrant/officiant
- Take engagement photos
9 Months Out
- Send Save the Dates to your guests
- Pick the bridesmaids’ dresses and organise fittings
- Begin planning your honeymoon
8 Months Out
- Discuss your desired floral arrangements with One Stop Wedding Shop’s qualified florists. From bouquets, centrepieces and ceremony styling including wedding arbour flowers.
- Meet with our Event Stylists and decide which items you’d like to hire. Our extensive range of chairs, tables, linens, carpets, lounge furniture, bridal party table decorations will make your ceremony and reception one to remember!
Expert tip: Did you know One Stop Wedding Shop has a whole floor in our showroom dedicated to Reception Styling? With different shaped tables you can design your perfect tablescape without stress. Use our hire items or mix and match with your own items from home – we don’t mind!
7 Months Out
- Register for gifts or decide to have a wishing well
- Hire musicians for the ceremony
- Explore hair and makeup options
- Book the honeymoon
6 Months Out
- Book the bridal party transportation to and from venues (limo, specialty cars, etc.)
- Buy or rent the groom’s and groomsmen attire and schedule fittings
- Start looking at other wedding stationery, including invitations, programs, menu cards, thank you cards (hint: we have a beautiful range of wedding invitation paper, so you can also DIY your stationery, or talk to us about creating your dream wedding stationery)
5 Months Out
- Book your cake decorator and choose your cake
- Purchase wedding bands
4 Months Out
- Meet with celebrant/officiant to discuss ceremony details
- Order the invitations and other stationery
- Book room for wedding night
- Start bridal dance lessons
3 Months Out
- Explore guest bomboniere/favour options – visit us in-store or shop our range online
- Write your vows for ceremony and speech for reception
- Select ceremony readings and readers
- Start crafting any DIY items (if you haven’t already)
- Schedule final dress fittings
2 Months Out
- Attend a hair and makeup trial
- Buy wedding party gifts (Shop Gifts for the Guys here and Gifts for the Girls here)
- Buy all small items – toasting flutes, cake knife, guest book, pens, flower baskets, ring pillows
- Order bomboniere/favours
- Order wedding programs
- Decide “Something Old, New, Borrowed, Blue”
1 Month Out
- Confirm all details with vendors and finalise payments
- Speak to One Stop Wedding Shop to confirm/run through all hire items and plan for set up on your big day
- Have a final venue walk-through and finalise menu
- Finalise guest list – collect all RSVPs (follow up with guest who haven’t replied)
- Create a seating chart
- Order of make place cards
- Prepare playlists for band/DJ
- Create wedding day time line and send to your vendors and wedding party
- Break in your wedding shoes
- Confirm honeymoon plans and ensure all documents are in order
Two Weeks Out
- Get final haircut and colour
- Final dress fitting (a friend or bridesmaid should come with you so she can learn how to bustle if your dress requires it)
- Get a massage (why not make it a couple’s massage?)
- Delegate someone to return all hire items after the big day (hint: if you book a package with styling set up from One Stop Wedding Shop, we’ll take care of this for you so you don’t have to think about it!)
Final Week
- Clean your engagement ring so it’s extra sparkly on the big day
- Prepare wedding day emergency kit
- Manicure/pedicure
- Any edible crafting
- Practice your vows out loud
- Write your partner a note
- Pack your bags for the honeymoon (don’t forget your passport if you’re leaving the country)
The Night Before the Wedding
- Pack a clutch or small bag of personal items
- Take your dress and veil out of the bag early on and have someone steam them if needed
- Eat a healthy meal
- Drink water
- Get a good night’s sleep
The Morning of The Wedding
- Eat breakfast
- Lay out all the items (rings, invitations, etc.) that you want your photographer to capture
- Exchange notes with your partner
- Say thank you to everyone around you
- Relax, smile and soak up every moment
Wedding Planning Checklist
If you’d like more guidance with wedding planning, you can download our planning brochure here.
Alternatively, if you’d like our team to create stunning floral bouquets, arrangements, wedding invitations or to help with styling, please reach out to us today by calling (07) 3889 7500.
At One Stop Wedding Shop we can help create the wedding day of your dreams.
We offer a value for money experience for couples as we have a selection of services on hand, including decorations, styling and floristry.
Attention to detail is paramount to us. Our staff have helped create picture-perfect weddings for more than 18 years and will ensure your day goes off without a hitch.
For stress-free wedding styling and flowers on the northside of Brisbane, contact One Stop Wedding Shop on 07 3889 7500, enquire online or visit out showroom at 65 Kremzow Road, Brendale.
