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Plan Before Wedding
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3 Months Before Wedding
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Decide on the venue and the caterers. Catering is included if you go in for a wedding at a five star hotel and or Chinese Restaurant but you would still have to plan the menu and stage decoration.
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Some marriage grounds may have their own caterers and decorators.
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Check their menus and photograph albums respectively and sample the food if possible.
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Will you be decorating the exterior of your building or bungalow? If so, decide how and who will do it.
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Draw up a guest list of relatives, friends and acquaintances.Inform relatives and close friends over the telephone - follow up with the card later.(Tips for Listing Guests) |
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Decide on dates for the engagement, 'me-hendi', 'sangeet' and other ceremonies. Also make arrangements for venues, catering and other religious requirements, the priest, rings, etc.
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Have the wedding cards printed as soon as the auspicious time has been set.
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Buy stamps in bulk.
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Request out-of-town relatives and friends to let you know soon if they will be attending, so lodging arrangements can be made. Also request the boy's parents to let you know how many people would be requiring accommodation from their side. Additionally, make arrangements for the catering of breakfast, in the least; the rest of the meals can be served in the served in the respective wedding houses.
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Arrange for conveyance for out-of-town guests; better still, organize a transport pool.
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Buy the gifts you need to give relatives according to custom in advance now; especially if the sales are on!
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Involve your domestic help in the wedding preparations - it will make them feel included and more cheerful when the going gets hurried. Small gifts after the wedding from the bride would not be amiss.
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Christian marriages require the reading of 'banns' in both the potential groom's and bride's churches before the nuptials can be performed. Arrange for these with your parish priest. A no objection certificate has also to be sought.
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Christian weddings have a master of ceremonies and a toast master; have the couple decide who these are to be, and ask them if they will so honour them.
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Catholic couples are also required to present the parish priest with a certificate stating that they have undergone an 'engaged encounter' session, which is simply a workshop with premarital counselling to ready them for marriage. Ask your parish priest for details of upcoming workshops.
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Decide on whether you will have a live band, taped music or 'shehnai' players at the wedding and make the booking.
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Decide on the weeding week's menu in the house and the snacks to be served. Put two people in charge: One to do the shopping and one to supervise.
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Stock up on massive amounts of tea leaves, coffee powder, sugar and milk.
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Make arrangements now to video tape and photograph the different occasions.
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Make tentative arrangements for the honey-moon. Check up on hotel and travel bookings.
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Check about marriage registration formalities.
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Now is the right time to do any minor interior decoration or carpentry work at home.
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2 Months Before Wedding
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Post invitations.
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Reconfirm with out-of-town relatives and friends about their dates of arrival and departure so you can make the necessary reservations.
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Find out how many 'baraatis' are expected. Request a detailed list of reservations to be done; although, nowadays, people prefer to look after their own relatives. Still, it is the gesture of enquiring which is important.
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Personally distribute wedding invitations to relatives and friends in town, f possible, accompanied with sweets or a gift according to raditional custom. If this is not possible, ring and explain how tied up you are. People usually understand.
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This is the time to recheck food menus for the wedding week. Add or delete item at this point.
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Recheck the bookings of the priest, caterer, decorator, music, 'mehendiwalli', videogra-pher and photographer; reconfirm venue, hotel and airline bookings for the newly weds.
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Buy all presents to be given prior, during and after the ceremony.
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Make and reconfirm return reservations for relatives and friends.
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Have the bride try on the wedding outfits, if ready. Alterations can still be done!
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Keep shopping for that trousseau!
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1 Months Before Wedding
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Update your lists, records and receipts. As far.. as possible, avoid buying on credit.
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Recheck: The priest, venue, caterer, decorator, 'shamiana', music, 'mehendiwalli', still and video shooting, exterior decoration for your building or bungalow, accommodation for relatives and 'bar-jattri'.
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Go to the reception venue and look at the doorways, the sitting arrangements, etc. Now visualize how your decorations will look. Do you have enough of them?
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Hire chauffeur driven cars for a few days before, during and after the wedding.
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If hiring empty premises for guests, hire furniture too. Also arrange for mattresses, bed linen, pillows, blankets, drinking water, etc.
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Arrange for a cook to prepare breakfast at the guest houses.
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Arrange for extra help at home for at least a week to cope with the additional cooking and washing.
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Hire to meet additional requirements of cutlery and crockery.
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Also make arrangements for chairs, tables tablecloths if required.
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Hire big for ice to cool soft drink bottles and crockery.
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Also make arrangements for chairs, tables and tablecloths if required.
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Hire big tubs for ice to cool soft drink bottles and fix up with the local ice factory to send a certain amount of ice morning and evening.
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Arrange for a 'selected' to iron clothes for the different ceremonies of the wedding.
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Do you have enough cooking gas in the house? Keep hot places at hand as standby.
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Order the wedding cake.
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Arrange for the decorated bridal car.
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Remind the master of ceremonies and the toastmaster about the date of the wedding again.
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Recheck on any more air or rail reservations to be done.
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Have you bought gifts for everyone according to status and custom? Do it now!
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Check your guest lists once again. Are you certain you have not left out someone important? It's still not too late to post or deliver an invitation card.
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Where have you kept the rings?
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Recheck on sweets, gifts, venue, catering for the engagement ceremony if just before the wedding.
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Have you completed all arrangements for the various ceremonies? ('Gaye Halood', 'Mehendi' etc.).
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Stock upon non-perishables (rice, dals, ghee, oil etc.).
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Put one person - with a car at her disposal - just in charge of purchases everyday.
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Buy lots of paper napkins and tomato sauce.
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Recheck travel and hotel reservations for the soon-to-be-married couple.
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Put one person in charge of who has to picked up from where as they arrive. Have him make lists of different parties' arrival points (airport, railway station, etc.) and timings.
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Have one person take responsibility for getting packed meals arranged for the guests' return journeys.
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Have a family meeting to decide who will take charge of what. Who will receive guests, who will see to seating arrangements, who will supervise that the catering is going smoothly?
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Assign two people received at the reception and before and after.
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Two persons should look after the bride's valuables.
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Request close relatives to mingle with guests.
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Have electrical and plumbing repairs done a week before the wedding.
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