The Master Checklist

Check List for a Perfect Wedding: The Indispensible Guide for Every Wedding
by Barbara Lee Follett, Loulie Hyde Sutro

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The following checklist is your secret to a perfect wedding. Keep this book handy-even carry it with you.

I want you to feel comfortable that everything you will need is contained here. Consider spending time browsing through the entire book to give you a sense that you are in good hands and "all will be revealed."

You will often use the sections titled "Important Contacts" and "Notes" as convenient places to record special names, addresses and telephone numbers.

The Checklist items in bold type are discussed in depth; just refer to the section of the book in which they are included, or look up key words in the index. Items not bolded speak for themselves.

ANNOUNCING YOUR ENGAGEMENT

(See pages 17 to 26.)

• Tell your parents and your fiance's parents.

• Arrange for your families to meet.

• Announce to your friends.

• Contact your local newspapers.

GETTING STARTED

(See pages 27 to 41.)

• Decide what type of wedding you will have, the degree of formality and the approximate size.

• Engage a bridal consultant, if you wish.

• Set the date and hour for the wedding.

• Reserve the venue for the wedding and rehearsal, and make certain the officiator is available.

• If it is to be a church wedding, arrange a time for you and your fiance to talk with the clergyman.

• Plan church arrangements.

• Reserve the reception venue, one that is large enough to hold a 75 percent rate of acceptance.

GETTING YOUR TEAM IN PLACE

(See pages 42 to 60.)

• Engage the caterer and make preliminary plans.

• Engage the florist and set a date for a conference.

• Engage the photographer and a video camera person, if you plan to have one.

• Arrange for music at the wedding.

• Engage musicians for the reception.

Arranging the Wedding Party

(See pages 61 to 80.)

• Select the bridesmaids, maid or matron of honor, ushers, best man and others.

• Ensure the groom is aware of his responsibilities.

• Confer with the groom's family concerning their participation and responsibilities.

A LITTLE PAPERWORK

(See pages 81 to 94.)

• Copy all wedding party names, addresses, phone numbers, faxes and e-mail addresses into the back of this book and into your computer or card file.

• With input from both families as well as the bride and groom, begin to put together a guest list in your computer or card file; set a deadline for final lists.

• Make a detailed calendar for the months preceding your wedding date.

• Purchase a notebook in which to record wedding gifts as they arrive.

• Plan activities for out-of-town attendees.

• Announce your engagement in the press.

• Prepare your home for house guests.

GETTING INTO IT

(See pages 95 to 130.)

• If the reception is to be at a home, begin planning logistics, decor and any necessary refurbishing.

• Select and purchase (or order) your wedding gown and veil.

• Select and purchase wedding shoes and break them in.

• Select and arrange for attendants' dresses and headpieces; advise them about shoes, jewelry, makeup and accessories.

• Advise the mothers on dress colors so they may make their selections.

• Decide on the men's attire.

• Whether hiring limousines or using friends, contract (or arrange) all wedding party transportation to the ceremony and from the ceremony to the reception.

• Order stationery.

• Select and register for silver, china, crystal and housewares; list the stores in the back of this book, as well as in your computer or card file.

• Readvise all family members of the invitation list deadline.

• Select and purchase your going-away outfit and trousseau.

• Plan for your married living arrangements.

• Follow up with bridesmaids and ushers in terms of what they will wear and the fittings that will be involved.

• Make appointments for medical and dental checkups; have a blood test if required.

• Order wedding invitations and announcements.

• Calendar a date to mail invitations six to eight weeks before the wedding.

• Decide upon the particulars of your wedding reception.

GIFTS AND APPOINTMENTS

(See pages 131 to 144.)

• Promptly open and catalog all wedding gifts as they come in, and plan for them.

• Keep up with your thank-you notes.

• Check your calendar and pace the timing of your appointments, parties and engagements.

• Arrange for bridal gown fittings as necessary.

• Prepare guest lists for those who have offered to entertain for you.

• Schedule bridal showers and parties with your friends.

• Coordinate other parties

• Send a schedule of shower and party dates to the bridal party.

• Remind the groom to get a blood test if required.

• Select the groom's ring if it is to be a double-ring ceremony, and have it engraved.

• Select a wedding gift for the groom (optional).

• Select keepsake-type gifts for the bridesmaids, flower girl and ring bearer.

• Remind the groom to select gifts for his ushers.

• Order thank-you (hostess) gifts or flowers for those who entertain for you.

• Remind the groom to reserve rental suits for the male members of the bridal party.

• Check your luggage and plan your packing for the honeymoon.

• If you choose, plan a family champagne/wine tasting party to make appropriate selections.

• Change your name on all important business papers (insurance, credit cards, bank accounts, legal documents, driver's license), if applicable.

• See your attorney about making a will.

• Make an appointment for hair, manicure, pedicure and trial makeup early in the week before the wedding.

• Schedule hair and makeup appointments for yourself and your bridesmaids the day of the wedding.

IT'S GETTING CLOSE NOW!

(See pages 145 to 165.)

• Address and stamp wedding invitations and announcements.

• Research where you want your wedding publicized and the publication policy of each newspaper. (See pages 26, 87 to 89.)

• Plan housing arrangements for the out-of-town bridal attendants. (See pages 89 to 91.)

• Arrange for valet parking, shuttles and/or an off-duty policeman to direct traffic and provide security, if necessary.

• Keep the groom's family up to date on the guest list and wedding gifts received.

• Arrange a place for the bride and bridesmaids to dress on the wedding day.

• Arrange a venue for wedding photographs. (See pages 55 to 56.)

• If you are a member of the officiating clergyman's church, or if you know him, arrange for your mother to hand-deliver a wedding invitation to him and his wife.

• Calendar a time to go with the groom to get a marriage license.

• Arrange a bachelorette party for your bridesmaids.

• Save some ribbons from gift and shower packages for your bridesmaids to make into mock bouquets to use at the wedding rehearsal.

• Arrange for a rehearsal dinner party to be given the night of the rehearsal.

• Send reserved-pew cards to special guests and family members, or tell them to identify themselves to the ushers so they can be seated in front pews.

• Select a responsible person to handle the guest book at the reception.

• Design your wedding program and have it printed.

• Plan for something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue!

• Recheck all purveyors by phone, including caterer, florist, photographer, video person, musicians, stationer, drivers and parking attendants, wedding dress delivery, church arrangements, cake delivery.

THE HOME STRETCH

(See pages 166 to 175.)

• Deliver "weekend packets" to hotels where out-of-town guests will stay.

• Think about the wedding rehearsal and make your decisions as early as possible.

• Count acceptances for the reception and estimate the number of late responses; notify the caterer.

• If you are using them, be sure someone has alphabetized and properly arranged your seating cards at the reception.

• Gather in one place everything you will need to dress for the wedding; remind the groom to do the same.

• Remind the groom to arrange for the best man to drive the getaway car and check it for gas, or to order a car or taxi.

• Remind the maid of honor that it is her duty to inform the bride's parents and the groom's parents when the bride and groom are ready to leave after the reception.

Excerpted from Check List for a Perfect Wedding, 6th Edition by Barbara Lee Follett; Loulie Hyde Sutro Copyright © 2003 by Barbara Lee Follett; Loulie Hyde Sutro. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

About the Author

The late Barbara Lee Follett wrote the first Check List for a Perfect Wedding following the marriage of her daughters in the 1950s, drawing on reader comments for the next four editions.

Loulie Hyde Sutro is a writer and recent mother-of-two-brides. Loulie was delighted when her offer to revise and update Check List for a Perfect Wedding resulted in an enthusiastic "high-five" from Lee Follett. Loulie enjoys tennis, gardening, group singing, and hiking the hills of Marin County. She and her husband, Jack, have been married for 36 years and have three grandsons.