I spend alot of time thinking up wonderful ways to give the best advice when it comes to wedding planning. I recently shared some great tips with Award Winning wedding photographer Laura Babb , who is also founder of SNAP Photo festival. This piece was centred around the things you should consider in order to maximise the resources you have available to you when planning a wedding specifically.

1. Be clear on your vision and priorities for your the day and stick to this!

Having meaningful and honest conversations with your partner about what you want the look and feel to be , will guide you towards making the right decisions about what to wear , how you want your ceremony and receptions to look and what kind of experience you want to provide for your guests.

Real life couple and favourite clients. Photo by Tom Weller

2. Once you’ve decided what your priorities are, apportian money in your budget accordingly.

If you want to have a great food , drink and entertainment experience and aren’t too concerned with heavy flora or decor styling, move that cash money to the ‘entertainment ‘section of your spreadsheet knowing that you will get the band/Dj and catering you really want.

3. Don’t spend on small (especially disposable) decor items.

Pinterest is a wonderful tool but also a curse to the ‘about to be wed.’ The temptation to want to fill your wedding spaces with ALL the DIY trends often proves too much for some. As a stylist I always seek to create a focal styling point, a statement piece that will draw the eyes of the guests straight away. Spend more on your floral arrangements which can elevate a room so beautifully without the need for too many other ‘bits’. If flowers are not your bag, then go wild with lighting or a ribbon canopy but don’t try and make a multitude of party favours or table decor knick knacks which guests may not really pay attention to and will end up being waste.

4. Use your network.

I mean this literally. Identify friends and family who have talents and skills which you can use in your planning and ask for their help. This doesn’t mean you can assume you will get freebies across the board , unless they specifically offer it to you as a gift, don’t look horrified when they give you a price (with family discount). However, the obvious benefit here, is that if you have a cake baker, hairstylist, makeup artist etc in your close friend or family circle- you can really save on these often major costs.

5. Hire a professional wedding and event planner.

‘ Wait a minute, that’s just spending more money isn’t it?’ . Well, their job is to deliver your vision within your budget, giving you , your time back to focus on your life, relationships and work. Time is money. Many couples to be don’t feel comfortable relinquishing control in this way granted, but for those who are time poor or live in a different country to where they will be married etc this makes good sense. As professionals, planners and stylists won’t have the same level of emotional attachment which often leads couples to make allowances for things not accounted for in their initial plans, only to find their budgets busted by more than a few hundred pounds. A good planner will guide you in all the above, a great planner will do their utmost to ensure that ‘sticking to the budget’ doesn’t feel like a chore and will always manage your expectations with honesty.