If you are planning a wedding for this year, you might be willing to overlook many of the usual wedding staples, such as white dresses and traditional chapel ceremonies.

“Planning my wedding was really simple and stress-free,” said no bride ever. Truly, this experience is a pit full of anxieties and panic attacks just lurking to get you. Did you know that it is quite possible to have a perfectly planned wedding with minimum stress? Of course, it is. There are people who do that for a living and since they have done it hundreds of times, they have all the right tips and tricks up their sleeves that will help you have a dream-like ceremony. Here are some of the top helpful hacks to make it happen.

Set The Budget First

Planning the finances is the most annoying part of the wedding organization, which is why you should deal with it before anything else. The first thing you should do is calculate an approximate budget you can afford. This will help you decide on the number of the guests, the venue and many other things. You should always add a little extra to the total sum, in case anything unpredictable happens. Pay upfront for everything that can be paid right away, and take advantage of the high cost of wedding organization by signing up for a credit card with a rewards program.

Guests Before The Venue

Your budget will lead you to set the number of guests, and the number of the guests will lead you to the right choice of venue. Choose a wedding venue only after you’ve determined the exact number of guests to make sure there is enough space for everyone. You can follow a general guideline which recommends that the chosen space has about 25 square feet per guest.

Rely On Recommendations

Wedding planning is all about making choices. Sometimes the search for professionals, such as photographers, florists, and DJs can be very exhausting. To make the selection process easier and smoother, rely on warm recommendations of the other wedding professionals. You see, the photographers, florists, catering services, restaurants and others have all worked on many weddings and some of them have worked together. Your restaurant can recommend a photographer who worked on previous weddings there, and your photographer can give you a tip about a good florist, and so on.

Picture A Theme And Let It Guide You

It is very difficult to plan a wedding as a series of single steps, and things can get really chaotic. If you want to have a cohesive ceremony, set the theme and the color scheme at the very beginning, and sync all the other wedding decorations with the dominant theme. Start with elegant wedding invitations and make the venue décor match their color palette. The invitations can also inspire some interesting dress details, and why not, the wedding menu.

Wear What You Love

Being yourself on the biggest day of your life is the most important advice you can get. Forget what anyone tells you about an elegant ball gown for the bride and a tux for the groom. It is important to wear what you feel comfortable in because this day is all about you. And if you feel like wearing a white tux and a pair of red shoes, go for it. Or if you want to put on some sneakers so you can dance the night away, that is up to you, too. The same goes for hair and makeup.

One Step At A Time

Finally, wedding planning is a process, and you should organize by doing one task at a time. The optimal time frame for planning a wedding is one year. The most important thing is to set the date and budget at least twelve months ahead of the wedding. In the following couple of months, you should choose the dress and book the professional wedding services you will require. Three months before the wedding, it should all be about preparing the ceremony and after that, you’re left with the small details like dress fitting, seating plan, writing vows, etc.

These six tips should help you minimize the wedding planning stress and maximize the wedding success.

Written by Emma Lawson