First Things First: Starting Your Wedding Planning

Hold your horses! Before you run to your dream wedding suppliers, take time to read the things that you need to consider for a seamless and practical wedding planning:

1. Discuss and agree on a wedding budget

Aside from your undying love for each other, money is one of the most important factor that you need to consider in planning your wedding. You would need a serious and realistic talk on how much you’re willing to spend and the aspects of your wedding that you’d be willing (or not willing) to flex and give up. Truth is, as much as you want to execute the wedding of your dreams, majority of us brides-to-be have limited resources to spare. Setting a budget can help you control impulsive spending on trivial stuff. Remember, your wedding is just the beginning, and not the end-all, be-all of your married life. Might as well start with some bucks for your new life together.

2. The When

Of course, you need to pick a date for your big day. Consider the season, the availability of the people that needs to be there or if you want to be a little sentimental, you may pick an important date that has a deep relevance in your relationship; say, your anniversary. In our case, this has got to be one of the hardest things that we had to decide on. Aside from the fact that holidays and school breaks in Canada and the Philippines are different, we had to hear what our folks and elders had to say. I know, I know, it’s our wedding day and we should have the final call. Apparently, the husband-to-be and I are a bit superstitious and deeply rooted to our belief that for a marriage to be successful, we need the blessings of our parents. That’s why their opinions are something that both of us value. Anyway, to make things easier we picked several dates and allow them to choose among these dates. As per my MIL, the date must fall on a 1) full moon, 2) Joyful mystery, 3) weekend and 4) is lucky according to Fengshui and Numerology. Hahaha… and with all that considered, our wedding date was set on the 24th of November 2018 which is fine by us. It’s a colder season in the Philippines, a weekend and a low season for plane tickets.

3. The Where

The venue of your wedding sets the mood and tone of the event. If you want it casual, you may opt to have a beach wedding for you and your surfing pals, you hippie millennial! Or you may go for the traditional church wedding too.

I wouldn’t call ours a destination wedding. After all, Tagaytay is just a couple of hours from Manila. We decided to hold our wedding there to keep things intimate. Pat and I are from Bulacan and both of us came from big clans. It would be hard to keep the occasion to a few family members and friends had we decided to hold it in our hometown. Plus, we would love a cold breeze and some greenery on our wedding. So there, Tagaytay it is.

4. The Why's

Often, in our overwhelming excitement to get married, we tend to overlook the essentials. Always remember, your wedding day is all about you and your husband to be and that love and commitment is the reason for celebration. So regardless if you prefer a big and extravagant or a simple and intimate union, keep in mind that the most remembered wedding is those that are surrounded by a community of loving family and friends.