November 3, 2021

Hello and happy Wednesday! Whether you’re an OE couple or not, we want to be as helpful as we can to our followers. Thanks for your continued support! We wanted to put together a list of ways to stay organized while you’re planning your wedding.

We do understand it adds extra time and effort to keep your files straight, so that’s why most of these services are offered in our Partial Planning package, and all of these services are offered in our Full Planning & Design package. Those packages are not for everyone though and we understand! So take a few minutes to browse these helpful tips to see if they can continue the planning on a more organized path. Believe us, you won’t regret it in the end!

1. Make a wedding email address so everything in your inbox relates to your big day and will not get lost among SPAM and among work emails. 
2. Take advantage of Google Drive by putting all of your contracts in there once you sign them, or once they are countersigned if that’s an option. We are still fans of the old school way of printing every contract so we have them accessible on wedding day and it’s also easy to reference information. So we think going both routes (google drive and printed copies) leaves no room for error. 
3. Keep a list of everything you’ve paid.
   • Who paid? Bride, groom, parents?
   • How much did you pay?
   • What payment form did you use? 
   • When are the next payments due? You do not want to incur a late fee! 
4. Keep all of your guest information in one excel spreadsheet – Names, relation to the bride/groom (friend, family, work friend, etc.), address, if they got you a gift, entree selections, table numbers, etc. 
5. Keep an online folder of all your wedding inspiration so it’s in the same place. This could be in your google drive or this could be on Pinterest, for example. Some vendors want to see the overall vision to know what way they want to go (stationery, flowers, decor, etc.). 
6. Set deadlines to know when you’re going to look into the next vendor to book before it’s too late. Obviously if you have a planner, you do not have to worry about this, but we understand planners are not for everyone. 
7. Keep an on-going to-do list with every single little task that needs to be completed. 
8. Keep ALL wedding information on your wedding website so guests do not bother you for questions. This may include- Wedding timing and addresses- Registry information – Parking information (including pricing so they don’t have to reach out on their own)
9. Keep a document that has all of your online sites/passwords. You’ll likely be using an email and password for your wedding website, registry login, and any other online portals for vendors (DJ, florist, etc.). Your photographer will make their own password for your gallery which is not always easy to memorize. All vendors do it differently and having all of your access codes in one place will be helpful down the road. 
10. If you ever purchase something for your wedding, make sure to compile it all in one location. We’ve had some couples forget to bring something or even lose something before the big day.
11. Label the items you are bringing to the wedding. By one simple post-it note on each item that says “ceremony” or “next to door”, or “for venue’s gold frame”, that can help your setup team (like us!) fly through placing your items in the right place. Sometimes it’s difficult to set up when there is a lack of direction, even if it’s discussed beforehand.

While there are many more helpful ways to stay organized, we feel if you can follow these 11 guidelines, you should be in pretty good shape. If you’d really like to stay organized and don’t want to go through the trouble of getting there, feel free to reach out to us for help! That’s what we’re here for!

Photo by: Dennis Lee

-Ohana Events