Being a DIY bride has its perks but I’m slowly learning it is much more complicated than tying a few ribbons and folding a few invites! It has come to my attention that there are so many details that need attending to beyond the decorations, such as a timeline. There are many websites that can give you a sample timeline such as www.weddingchicks.com.
I have no problem designing my invites, creating centerpieces, and making an iPod play list in lieu of a DJ, but without a DJ, you don’t have an announcer, without an announcer you don’t have structure, without structure you don’t have a real timeline.To fix this dilemma, I thought of whom I would want to announce my wedding. Who has the clearest voice, who can I trust? The first person that came to mind was Steve, my maid of honor’s boyfriend. He has a deep voice and good enunciation. When asked, he was happy to do it.
Now that I had an announcer, it was time to figure out the logistics. How would he know when to announce what? Since he isn’t a pro, the best idea is to have songs as cues to announce each thing. For example, when Michael Buble’s song, “Save the Last Dance” starts, that is his cue to start announcing the wedding party. This would mean my play list would have to be very accurate time wise. A timeline was created to figure out about how much time each stage would take and what type of music would be playing as well as which songs would be “cue songs.”
Sample Timeline
PRE WEDDING PREP
Hair/Makeup 2:00pm
Prep Photos 3:00pm
CEREMONY
Guests Arrive/Seated 4:00pm
Wedding Party Entrance 4:10pm
Brides Entrance 4:15pm
Mr. and Mrs. 4:30pm
RECEPTION
Mingling/Wedding Party Photos 4:30pm
Wedding Party Entrance 5:30pm
Dinner/Toast 5:35pm
First Dance/Dancing 6:30pm
Cake Cutting 7:15pm
Dancing 7:20pm
Last Song 10:00pm
Creating this timeline has helped immensely. Not only will this help the flow of the wedding but also it will help me create my play list and give the photographer an idea of what is coming next. Of course, the timeline is just a draft and, in all honesty, will change dramatically before the big day. There are still people that will play a part in how things flow including the officiant, who we have yet to meet with.
