Here are the top ten things newly engaged brides should do right away! P.S. First things first, subscribe for the latest!
p.s. A cute wedding planning mug is a must!
‘Tis the season for engagements, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaaaa! A friend of mine had a really cute engagement story a few years back. Stephanie and Chris have an Advent calendar (like this) where you open a new box every day to reveal a note or small gift. On Day 21, lo and behold there was an engagement ring inside! (How cute is that?) It is one of my favorite proposals to date. With engagement season here (and through the holidays), we wanted to share the top ten things newly engaged brides should do right after the proposal. If you’re thinking I’m engaged, now what? we’ll show you what’s next. Read on for the list!
Things Newly Engaged Brides Should Do
1. Call your parents.
TELL MOM AND DAD. Before calling your BFFs, posting a pic of your ring on Instagram, and changing your status to “engaged” on Facebook, tell your parents! They should be the first to know.
2. Get a manicure.
If you want your new engagement ring to look its best, your nails must follow suit. I love having my nails done or painting them at home, but they *always* chip within a day or two. I’ve tried topcoats, multiple layers of polish, gel polish, etc. but with two kids and bathtime and dishes and cleaning, my nail polish never lasts. What works best for me? Nail wraps. Nail wraps are adhesive nail coverings that go right over your nail bed. You apply them with heat (I use my hair dryer), trim to fit, then file it down to stay put. They are 1) EASY, 2) look amazing all the time, and 3) really, truly last. I wear them as often as possible. I’ve tried a widely-known nail wrap brand in the past, but these nail wraps from SoGloss are way more affordable (and to be honest, the designs are super pretty for brides and bridesmaids!)
P.S. I spy a sale: **Buy 4 get 1 FREE! Enter coupon code BUY4GET1 at checkout**
3. Get an awesome wedding planning notebook.
You never know when inspiration will strike, so be prepared with a wedding planning notebook and a pen.
This one is formulated especially for the bride (from Hello Bride):
This one is more general for everything you’re planning in 2017, but cute nonetheless! By Susana Cresce.
4. Budget.
Unless the sky’s the limit, you’ll need to start with a budget. It will keep you on track and sane while you plan. You can get clever spreadsheets to help from Designs By Emma Jane to organize and get started right away.
5. Pick a theme.
Pick a wedding theme, or at least decide on what kind of feeling you’d like your wedding to have. Bohemian? Vintage? Rustic? Outdoor or indoor? Summertime? Winter? In the woods? Local? Destination? Beach? Night wedding? Mountain wedding? I know, it feels like a lot of questions right now but most likely you already know what kind of wedding you’re picturing. Once you identify the feel you’re going for, you can pinpoint the venue, season, and pick out a perfect wedding theme to go along with it. And once you’ve secured your venue and set a date, you can finally start counting down (and telling everyone with save the dates!)
6. Pick your wedding party.
Now’s the time to pick your wedding party, and make it awesome: choose people who are supportive of your union and won’t add to your stress level. P.S. You don’t have to pick someone just because they picked you to be in their wedding. Moreover, you don’t have to have the same number of bridal party attendants on either side.
You can call them up, ask them in person, or present them with a cute “Be My Bridesmaid” gift, any of these bridesmaid gift ideas, or card. Same applies for groomsmen — you can give them one of these groomsmen gifts or send a funny groomsmen card.
7. Subscribe to favorite wedding blogs.
Subscribe to your favorite wedding blogs so you can take them to-go. When you subscribe (via RSS, usually), new posts are emailed to your inbox. This means you’ll save time on clicking around to every wedding website and you’ll get inspiration right at your fingertips. (Subscribe to Emmaline Bride here!)
8. Grab a wedding planning book.
It always helps to have a wedding planning book at your fingertips to flip through while you sip on a cup of coffee.
9. Read these.
Wedding planning doesn’t have to be stressful. Read: 50 Wedding Acts of Kindness to keep things in perspective. Read: 8 Secrets to a Stress Free Wedding Day to keep yourself sane. Read: 10 Rules to Keep Bridesmaids Happy. Your Maid of Honor should read: 12 Secret Rules Every MOH Should Know, while the Best Man should read 12 Things the Best Man Needs to Do At Weddings.
10. Start shopping for your wedding gown.
It’s never too early to start hunting for the perfect wedding dress! Grab your mom, your maid of honor, and your bridesmaids and start browsing the racks. If you want to get a head start in your pjs, check out some wedding dresses online. You won’t believe the prices, either: see 30 Best Wedding Dresses on Etsy Under $800 and, if you’re worried about buying online, see 7 Tips for Buying a Wedding Dress Online for some helpful pro tips.
Here are some gorgeous dresses on BHLDN right now, too. The dress above (named Ariane) is my favorite; the dresses below are close runners-up!
Ah, so gorgeous.
What do you think of these?
Tell us your favorites, add to our list, etc. in the comments section.
Happy Planning!
xo
-E.
