First steps after getting engaged: a Yorkshire Wedding Planner's guide
Congratulations, you're engaged! Whether it happened last night or last week and you're still coming down off the high (totally normal, by the way), there's a good chance you're already feeling the tiniest flicker of "so... what now?"
Take a breath. You don't need to have anything figured out yet. But if you're the sort of person who feels better with a plan (hello, that's most of us), here are the first genuinely useful steps to take, in the order that'll actually save you stress later. As a wedding planner based in Yorkshire, these are the same first steps I talk through with every newly engaged couple I work with.
1. Just enjoy it for a minute
Properly, I mean it. Ring your people, get the fizz out, let yourself be excited without immediately opening a spreadsheet. The planning will still be there tomorrow, and you'll make better decisions from a place of joy than panic.
2. Talk about your priorities before you talk about dates
Before you look at venues, before Pinterest boards, have an honest conversation with your partner about what actually matters to you both. Is it an intimate day with your closest people, or a big celebration with everyone you've ever loved? Somewhere abroad, or somewhere that feels like home, whether that's a Yorkshire barn, a country house, or a city hotel?
This conversation is worth its weight in gold later, because almost every decision you'll make flows from it. Skipping it is the single biggest reason couples end up overwhelmed six months in.
3. Set a realistic wedding budget (and who's contributing)
Not the fun bit, I know, but an essential one. Have the conversation early with anyone who might be contributing financially, so you're working with real numbers rather than guesses. It's much easier to build a beautiful wedding day around a clear budget than to fall in love with something and then have to scale back.
4. Get a rough sense of your guest list
You don't need a finalised list yet, but a ballpark number matters hugely. It affects which venues are even possible, what catering will cost, and how big (or small) the day will feel. A "roughly 80" versus "roughly 150" changes almost everything downstream, especially if you're considering some of Yorkshire's smaller, more intimate wedding venues.
5. Think about timing before you fall for a Yorkshire wedding venue
Season, day of the week, and how far in advance you're planning all affect cost and availability. Popular Yorkshire wedding venues can book up well over a year ahead for Saturdays in peak season, so if you have your heart set on somewhere specific, it's worth finding out their availability early, even before you've nailed everything else.
6. Start gathering wedding inspiration, loosely
Pinterest, Instagram, your favourite magazines, whatever you're drawn to. Have fun with it, but try not to let it become prescriptive this early. Save what genuinely makes you feel something, rather than what you think a wedding is "supposed" to look like. You'll start noticing patterns in what you're drawn to, and that's genuinely useful information for the choices ahead.
7. Decide how much wedding planning support you want
This is the bit people often don't think about until they're a few months in and quietly drowning. Some couples want to handle everything themselves and just want a wedding coordinator for the final run-up and the day itself. Others want support from the very beginning: helping find suppliers, keeping timelines and budgets on track, being the calm, organised presence when things get overwhelming.
There's no right answer, but it's worth deciding early rather than realising halfway through that you need more help than you planned for.
If you're not sure how much support is right for you, that's honestly one of the most common conversations I have as a Yorkshire wedding planner. No pressure, just a chat about where you're at and what might help. Wherever you are in the process, congratulations again. This is a genuinely lovely bit of life, and I'm so glad you're in it. x