I want to scream

katieb168

Hi imfedup,

No it's not too soon to be planning things, we got engaged New Year 2010 and immediately set a date for May 2013 because we wanted to save up. Again we were limited with dates (partner is a teacher) and the area we are getting married is quite popular. In Spring of 2011 we booked the venue, caterers and transport (fell in love with the car as soon as I saw it) and we found this kept us busy for a few months plus it gave us peace of mind because we knew we had our favourite venue. Then we enjoyed relaxing a bit for a few months whilst still researching the odd idea here and there. We also contacted some suppliers early on to get a rough estimate of services and costs so we could plan our budget. It's amazing how quickly the time goes and we are now putting down other deposits although I'm yet to go dress shopping (trying to lose weight first). If anything the extra time allows you to research things thoroughly to find the best deals so you know you have made the right decision and don't feel rushed into anything. Also when I was making intial enquiries some suppliers were happy to keep their prices at the rate for the current year instead of 2013 which was very helpful.

In short don't worry about what others think, it is your day and you should be enjoying the planning not worrying about other people.

Good luck x

mummyroysof3

i think its due to not realising that if you get married in some venues they might only do 1wedding per weekend we as alot more people in the past got married in a church who would do several. i wouldnt call you silly for planning early even though i would never do it(we had 9months between deciding and the big day and moved in our house in that time too). it might be good to remember though that just cos you want to think about weddings for 2 years not all your friends and family will so bare that in mind.

imfedup

Mummyroysof3 - definately trying not to speak about the wedding all time time, luckily I have a very good friend who brings the subject up all the time which gives me good excuse but I know I wouldnt like to hear about it so am definately mindful of that.

Our church only does 1 wedding per day and with it being in June I really wanted to make sure that the date was mine - all mine.:D

Wedding Insurance will only cover up to 2 years in advance, we have only put down £50 at the church and venue so not a great deal to loose if anything goes wrong between now and this June then as soon as I can insurance will be sorted.

YoungBaker

sugarwalsh wrote: »

I personally don't see the need to book a wedding 2 years in advance, I can understand saving for it and I can understand pencilling my date in somewhere, but I really would not hand over any cash until much closer to the time. As people have mentioned above any number of things could happen, good or bad. You could even come into money and want to hold it sooner.
I also think that planning so far in advance can take a lot of the magic from it - it just drags on for you and for all those around you. If oyu want to scream now - a full 27 months in advance imagine how you will feel towards the time if you carry on worrying about everything? I also agree with alisa jo - it might just be that people are being kind?
Saying all that - if you really want to plan your wedding so far in advance prepare yourself for a lot of others 'opinions' and learn how to grin and bare it. The chances are it wont be the only thing your friends etc have an opinion on...

Then unless that venue allowed you to it would be very likely you could lose the 'venue of your dreams' as, as I already explained, the venue we had our hearts set on was already booked up to two years in advance and if we didnt we wouldn't have got it at all.

sugarwalsh

Our venue allowed us to pencil our name in for a few weeks then they sent out a contract with a further 2 weeks for a deposit. The place where we are having our ceremony held it and when they got an enquiry about the same day they just rang to see if we still wanted it and we paid the deposit then. I would rather 'loose' a venue than hand over money 2 years before. To me I know where ever we were to marry and have our ceremony it wouldn't really matter, all I care about it having the most amazing day and it is marrying my better half which will make it that. It is nice to have your chosen place but not essential to me. We are all different - I am a planner, but I also believe in ceasing the day. I bought tissues the other day and my OH wa laughing because I have 'thought of veverything'. As much as people who plan 3 years ahead are an enigma to me I am sure someone as relaxed as me is weird to the planners of this world!

YoungBaker

sugarwalsh wrote: »

Our venue allowed us to pencil our name in for a few weeks then they sent out a contract with a further 2 weeks for a deposit. The place where we are having our ceremony held it and when they got an enquiry about the same day they just rang to see if we still wanted it and we paid the deposit then. I would rather 'loose' a venue than hand over money 2 years before. To me I know where ever we were to marry and have our ceremony it wouldn't really matter, all I care about it having the most amazing day and it is marrying my better half which will make it that. It is nice to have your chosen place but not essential to me. We are all different - I am a planner, but I also believe in ceasing the day. I bought tissues the other day and my OH wa laughing because I have 'thought of veverything'. As much as people who plan 3 years ahead are an enigma to me I am sure someone as relaxed as me is weird to the planners of this world!

Well obviously it doesn't matter if you get married in a barn or The Ritz - the point of the wedding is obviously down to two people coming together... but the point of this thread is that OP was getting fed up of people stressing at her for planning two years in advance, when in reality if you are 'a planner' as you say - ultimately you need to get things in place and secured as quickly as possible (for example, securing the venue you would prefer as otherwise if you hold off until you are finally ready then you won't be able to get it). Obviously you as an individual didn't have this as a big issue, or you were happy to take the risk which is obviously fine, but in regards to the OP which this thread was all about - two years in advance is ultimately a reasonable planning period to secure certain aspects of the day.

sugarwalsh

Op asked is they were wrong to book a wedding 2 years in advance. I was just voicing my opnion on it. I don't see the need to book over 2 months in advance and if you can't even get insurance cover that far then I think it could be a costly waste. Also registrars will only let you book a year in advance - I know OP is a Church wedding - but to me a year seems more than a reasonable amount of time.
As I said, we are unlikely to understand each other on this, but as long as the OP gets the wedding she wants that is all that matters!

YoungBaker

sugarwalsh wrote: »

Op asked is they were wrong to book a wedding 2 years in advance. I was just voicing my opnion on it. I don't see the need to book over 2 months in advance and if you can't even get insurance cover that far then I think it could be a costly waste. Also registrars will only let you book a year in advance - I know OP is a Church wedding - but to me a year seems more than a reasonable amount of time.
As I said, we are unlikely to understand each other on this, but as long as the OP gets the wedding she wants that is all that matters!

Definitely Fair enough lol

AutumnBride85

I got engaged December 2009 and started planning my September 2012 wedding straight away- at first just flicking through wedding mags and eventually started booking things in.

This, I must stress, is a good thing for you. I have just over 6 months to my wedding and I am so glad I got alot out of the way. Im all done with booking people now, so I can concentrate on the 'fiddly' things- the little bits and bobs, the extra expenses, and importantly the whole organising of everything. I wouldnt have had time to do it all now.

Secondly, its giving you time to shop around and save. Were paying for our wedding outright with no borrowing/debts whatsoever- becuase we have shopped, budgeted and saved up since the engagement.

I would recommend a long engagement to anyone. Its not easy, I know when people say 'why you doing this so early?', and it feels like an eternity to the big day, but time flies, and soon you'll wish you had a little more time!!

AB X

scrumpy78

We rang up today to book our wedding night accommodation for April 13, but the last misheard us and told us the suite was already booked for aug 13. That's like 18 months away. Venues do get booked up. We booked ours instantly as it's the middle Saturday of the Easter school holidays so could be a popular date