Getting hitched? Here's 16 useful tips from a wedding planner

Planning your dream wedding can either be a breeze or a major headache. More often than not it's the latter. How do you make your big day special? Here are some tips from Jennifer Brisman, an event planner on how to plan your wedding. [caption id="attachment_146524" align="aligncenter" width="338"] Photo: Instagram grab[/caption]

1. Budget - The most important thing before you start is to see if you have enough to cover for expenses. Jennifer shares, "It's so important to identify a good wedding budgeting tool and work to outline the big-picture-costs. When you do budget, leave about a five to 10 per cent cushion. You'll need it!"

2. Ditch the small stuff - You'll be surprised that you can skip out on a guest book! Jennifer says that many people buy it but there is no long-term purpose for it. Also those mini emergency kits curated for brides should be ditched too. 3. Plan on special moments - Writing vows for each other and giving a toast to your guests makes these moments memorable 4. Go easy on the invitations - "While I love luxe, traditional paper invitations, its OK to be economical here," Jennifer said. "At the end of the day, whether you go a bit 'budget savvy' on your invites or do a digital invite, the invitation process happens before the wedding day. I always propose that the majority of money spent on the wedding is harnessed for the actual wedding day." 5. Let the destination wedding be about the destination - You cut costs on decor when you have a destination wedding. [caption id="attachment_146530" align="aligncenter" width="413"] Photo: Instagram screengrab[/caption] 6. Make your dining experience unique - You don't have to stick to the rules! Have sushi for your wedding dinner or eat desserts first. Jennifer shared, "The client was a sugar nut, and we served these incredible desserts first and then danced the night away, only serving a sit-down dinner — but a very gourmet, petite one — late at night along with international cheeses and charcuterie." Make it your own! 7. Thank your vendors - In our culture we are not used to tipping so the next best thing is to make sure your vendors feel appreciated. It's better to have positive vibes before, during and after your big day! 8. Find ways to make your guests happier - Providing transport to and from your wedding venue eases the minds of your guests.  "It's great when people arrive at the wedding feeling really taken care of, putting transportation behind them so they can move on and enjoy it all," Jennifer said. "Alternatively, valet parking and/or general guest parking is the second best option." 9. Go easy on the DIY projects - Don't go crazy with your DIY projects. If your Pinterest wedding board is bursting at the seams, do simple things like table seating place cards. [caption id="attachment_146533" align="aligncenter" width="420"] Photo: Screengrab from Instagram[/caption] 10. Get a wedding binder - "It's such a simple, traditional, uncomplicated tool to keep all of your documents and communications regarding the wedding handy," said Jennifer. 11. Store digital documents too - "Create a Dropbox folder that you and your partner can share that has subfolders of the categories of your vendors and venue," Jennifer advised. "Save every digital document when it comes in over email, giving it a clear name and date, and then place it in the corresponding folder. Save the email itself in a special wedding-themed folder on your computer." In short, save it all, but make it organised. 12. Keep everyone posted - "Shoot your wedding party an email or PDF no less than two months out with details of the wedding itself," Jennifer recommended. This will help answer any questions that your bridal party has to avoid confusion and make sure everyone's on the same page. [caption id="attachment_146535" align="aligncenter" width="326"] Photo: Instagram screengrab[/caption] 13. Schedule time to dine - The couple needs time to eat and sometimes with so much going on, there isn't time to enjoy the meal so it's best to plan ahead when to eat. 14. Practice eco-friendly habits - "One way to make sure your wedding is as eco-friendly as possible is to find out how your caterer or venue is dealing with waste and to ensure that all bottles and other elements are being recycled," she said. 15. Keep the kids entertained - Make sure you have some activities planned for the kids so that everything will go according to plan. You wouldn't want rowdy kids causing a ruckus. 16. "Its so important to plan for the wedding you can afford now, not the one you hope you can afford come the wedding day," Jennifer said. That doesn't mean you can't have everything you dream of, so long as you plan accordingly and wisely — and potentially with the help of a really, really good wedding planner. -/TISG