You’re getting married and have some things in order, but where do you start with planning your day of timeline? We’ve got you covered with our tips for building your wedding day timeline with ease!
One of the most important things when planning your wedding day timeline is to build in extra time for every section of the day. That way you will have plenty of cushion if (when) something takes longer than expected. And having this extra cushion time built in will make it easy to roll with the changes in schedule without creating extra undue stress on your wedding day.
Schedule with a “First Look”
Here’s and example timeline which works great for most couples who opt to have a “first look” and finish most of their formal portrait photos with family and the wedding party before the ceremony.
- 11am – Ladies begin hair and makeup (always consult with your beauty professionals on how much time they need to ensure you’re ready when it’s time to get dressed)
- 1:30 – Ladies’ hair and makeup complete
- 1:30 – Maids & Moms get into their dresses (this is suggested so anyone helping the bride into her dress is already dressed and feels good having their photos taken while helping)
- 2pm – Bride/Groom get dressed
- 3pm – First Look followed by portraits of the couple
- 4pm – Wedding Party Formal Photos
- 4:45 – Family Formal Photos
- 5:30 – Couple and wedding party hide away and relax before the ceremony
- 6pm – Ceremony
- 6:30 – Post Ceremony, sign certificate, eat appetizers, chill while guests enjoy a cocktail hour. Take a few “newlywed” romantic photos. Many couples join cocktail hour to mingle with all their guests more.
- 7:15 – Guest invited to be seated at reception
- 7:30 – Grand Entrance for Newlyweds. Often the whole wedding party is introduced prior to the Newlywed’s entrance.
- 7:45 – Dinner
- 8:30 – Toasts/speeches
- 8:45 – Cake Cutting
- 8:50 – First Dance, followed by Special Parent Dances
- 9pm – Dance floor open for guests party celebration. Bouquet and Garter tosses can happen anytime during the party dancing!
Schedule without a “First Look”
Or if you are not wanting to see each other prior to the ceremony, here is a sample timeline which works great for saving most of the formal portrait photos for after the ceremony!
Note, we still suggest doing what we call “split formals” prior to the ceremony to speed up the after the ceremony portraits. You will still need more time away from your guests after the ceremony than if you were to go the route above, but it will be quicker than if you had to do all the portraits after. If you’re wedding is not in the summer, keep in mind what time the sun sets if you wanting portraits outside in the daylight and plan your ceremony time accordingly!
- 12:30 – Ladies begin hair and makeup (always consult with your beauty professionals on how much time they need to ensure you’re ready when it’s time to get dressed)
- 3pm – Ladies’ hair and makeup complete
- 3pm – Maids & Moms get into their dresses (this is suggested so anyone helping the bride into her dress is already dressed and feels good having their photos taken while helping)
- 3:30 – Bride/Groom get dressed
- 4:30 – Bride, her wedding party and immediate family Formal Photos
- 5pm – Groom, his wedding party and immediate family Formal Photos
- 5:30 – Couple and wedding party hide away and relax before the ceremony
- 6pm – Ceremony
- 6:30 – Post Ceremony, sign certificate. Guest are sent to cocktail hour so you can take photos.
- 6:45 – Family Formal Photos
- 7pm – Wedding Party Formal Photos
- 7:15 – Newlywed’s Formal Portraits
- 7:30 – Guest invited to be seated at reception
- 7:45 – Grand Entrance for Newlyweds. Often the whole wedding party is introduced prior to the Newlywed’s entrance.
- 8pm – Dinner
- 8:45 – Toasts/speeches
- 9pm – Cake Cutting
- 9:10 – First Dance, followed by Special Parent Dances
- 9:20 – Dance floor open for guests party celebration. Bouquet and Garter tosses can happen anytime during the party dancing!
We hope this info for planning your wedding day timeline is helpful in your planning process. Want more planning tips check out our FREE WEDDING GUIDE here!
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