First off, here's a quick checklist to see if you really can do it yourself:
You love crafting, and do not mind hand making 250 individual pieces of scented (messy) candles, hand-labelling them and packing them into nice little boxes.
You're unemployed, money is not an issue, and you have ALL the time in the world to do this. Lucky you!
You have at least 127 Pinterest mood boards, each related to different aspects of your wedding.
Your mood is always chirpy, you break out into songs randomly, and is able to command a squadron of forest critters to sew a gown for you through the power of your shrill voice.
Absolutely NOTHING can faze you on your wedding day. Not a ripped gown just seconds before you march in, not your uncle's insufferable goldfish, and certainly not a pimple breakout the night before.
You fancy the idea of scouring through the World Wide Web for its endless possibilities of shit that can go wrong during a wedding.
You do not mind making your friends suffer through the process of all of the above.
Did you check all of the above? Well if you did... you should lay off those mushrooms.
Oh and whatever you're smoking... we'd like some too.
Step 1: You Need A Venue
We ain't gonna judge you if you wanna host your wedding at the train station, a nice gardeney-lawney garden lawn, in your car, or at a Hawker center. Hey, whatever fancies your pants right?
But securing a venue for your wedding isn't always easy. There're literally thousands of venues available in Singapore, and yet there's almost always a good chance somebody else is eyeing the same spot you are.
But seeing as it IS the first thing you have to secure for your wedding... sometimes the trick is not to be too picky.
Step 2: Hiring Vendors
Well let's see, here's a number of vendors you will likely need for your DIY wedding:
Photographer
Videographer
Bridal Gown
Suit
Make Up Artist
Florist
Entertainment
Decorations
Catering
Officiant
Stationery
Gifts
DJ
But there’s a catch; you're gonna be managing all of these vendors by yourself, even on the actual day. Unless you're one of the heartless friends who think friendship is equivalent to torment via wedding planning, then sure, don't hire a wedding planner.
ALRIGHT ALRIGHT, I'LL STOP SELF PROMOTING. GEEZ.
Step 3: The Details of the Day
We hope you're a genius at Microsoft Excel!
There's like a ton of things you can do with it.
And the first thing you should do, is to create a budget spreadsheet to keep track of your expenses, well... not that it matters anyway since you're clearly unemployed and have 20 years to learn.
Next, use it to create a draft of how you envision the programme to flow, and work it out from there! Include tiny details like which of the 19 gowns you will be wearing for each segment, and the exact words your cousin Emcee will be speaking, because god forbid he steps out of line.
But what it is truly a lifesaver in, is the pure technological prowess in creating guestlists and seating plans. Sure, it may not look all fancy enough to be displayed on an easel stand, but it really, really and we cannot emphasize this enough, really helps when you need to tabulate the total number of vegetarians, Vegans, "coriander- allergic", Halal, No Beef, No chicken, No-pork-no-chicken-no beef, No fish, No raw food, No onions, No onions-alliums, No garlic, No protein, Whole-meal only, No shellfish, No seafood but yes to fish, No shellfish but yes to abalone, No hum, Liquid diet, No poultry, and No-food dietary restrictions.
… wait. What was that last one again?
I ain't even kidding, this list above doesn't even begin to cover half of what we have experienced. While I'm sure many of these restrictions are legitimate... I also suspect some of them are simply preferences, in which you will never be able to please everyone with. And that certainly includes deciding where everyone should be seated… including your uncle’s abhorrent goldfish.
Asides from the marvellous capabilities of Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, there are also other factors of your wedding day to consider and plan out, such as the colours of the flowers you’d like.
Step 4: Do Not Panic
or do. Since you brought it upon yourself to DIY.
It's probably about this time that you begin to experience waves of anxiety attacks whenever someone brings up anything wedding related, and all you can do to look like you still have your sanity is to do this
8 out of 10 times right before a march in, the looming, impending tidal wave of anxiety begins to set in from the deep recesses of your mind. And that’s when you feel the mighty grip of foreboding perturbation pull away your sense and reason, leaving you with a mind as empty as your uncle’s goldfish.
Step 5: Realize You Were Way In Over Your Head and Need Help
If you made it to this step without harbouring any thoughts of strangling someone, there exists a nice, special cozy little lounge for you in the afterlife.
You may be able to plan the deets of the wedding all by yourself, diving head-first into the myriad of conversations with vendors, friends, families, sort through hundreds of RSVP, and chasing after answers, purchasing all the little stuff you need from 273 different shops in a single day, spending 8 weeks hand crafting wedding favours, trying on hundreds of different gowns...
But you will NEVER be able to coordinate your own wedding by yourself. (unless you're a professional)
We've always encouraged couples to have a coordinator on the day itself. You don't always necessarily need someone to plan your wedding for you, but you should most DEFINITELY have a coordinator.
Although, you might quickly realize that a professional one, vs your bridesmaid who got married last month pretty much has a very drastic difference.
... You guys know where I'm going with this... right?
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