So, congratulations! With 5 months to go, how are the excitement levels?

Graham proposed back in November 2010 so it feels like my whole life has been wedding-mania for years now. I go through stages where I am crazy excited and other times I freak out completely about things that are still to be done. All in all I am excited but looking forward to all the hard work being done and being Mrs Lindsay.

What about the organising, what’s still on the to-do list?

I would say I am ahead of schedule however I have heard horror stories from friends who thought the same thing at this stage and then suddenly realised it was not the case. I work off my “Complete Wedding Spreader” spreadsheet. In it there are 7 tabs – Guests / RSVP & Addresses / Budget / Hen list (for the b-maids) / To do (which is sub categorised into tasks for each member of the bridal party / Gift list and Post wedding thank you’s. Currently oustanding on my to do list (for me) is: Buy Head piece Collect vintage family pictures for our card box Cake tasting and meeting with venue on the 23rd Dec Organise dress fittings for b-maids hair and make up trial in Jan Buy candy table sweets Table decor (petals and vintage books) Buy rings I think I’ll stop here.

What’s been the most fun part of planning the wedding so far?

If I’m honest, I think it’s been the excuse to go out with my friends and celebrate each month that passes as it’s another month closer to the big day.

And how about the most difficult part of planning your day?

I think the hardest part of arranging my day so far has definitely been organising others and also transport for the day. I was quite keen to have something other than a Beauford which seem to be extremely popular with Brides these days. After several weeks of surfing every car hire company in Scotland I finally found my car.

How involved has your fiancé been in the planning?

Graham works a lot and plays rugby three times a week so wedding organising stretches as far as watching “don’t tell the bride” for him. Joking aside, he knows I’m quite an organised person and that anything important would of course be discussed with him prior to organising.

What is the one thing about your wedding day that you would never compromise on?

I would have to say for me personally it was definitely the photographer. I think you spend so much time and money ensuring your guests are catered to throughout the day that I felt that it was important we had great memories to take from the day, especially as every bride tells me the day goes so quickly!

Finally do you have any tips for newly engaged brides?

One job at a time! Every time I thought about something I had to do, it grew arms and legs leading to mini panic attacks!

Thanks Serena for answering our questions – wishing you a stress free last few months and a fabulous day on May 5th.

1. Shop around for everything

If you have the time and the inclination, there are bargains out there to be found. If you have a dress or pair of shoes in mind, get the name, the make and get yourself on google to find alternatives. You might just find that perfect thing on another site for a much better price so it definitively to pays to look around. Which brings me on to the second point…

2. Online shopping

The internet is a strange and wonderous place – totally geared up for you to find your perfect finishing touches for the big day – or even the big important things like your dress. Between all the wedding forums and sites like Preloved, you can pick up your own new things or fill the ‘something old’ category by buying items from sellers looking to get a good price for their once loved wedding bits and pieces.

3. Get married on a weekday

We got married on a Thursday and I have to say it was brilliant. It must have saved a good £20 per head on the cost of the venue and gave us a bit extra to spend on other things. The venue is by far and away the most expensive part of the day – unless you are really going to town on your dress, cars, photographer etc. Traditional Saturday weddings are the ones that get booked up in advance and of course that will mean the venue prices are at maximum! The cons of this option are that a week day wedding will mean that there’s a chance some of your guests may need a lot of notice to get time off work but by letting them know in advance, you should be able to make sure your most nearest and dearest are there. Somehow we seem to know all the teachers in the world and all of them managed to get the day off so it is possible.

4. Ask your friends and family for wedding tips

Friends and family who have already been married are a wealth of useful information and creative tips on how to keep costs down. Mining your Mum, Aunts, Grandmothers for tips on their weddings is a great way to involve everyone and might uncover a lovely family tradition you want to carry on. The chances are, since older family members got married long before bridezilla-sytle weddings, they probably did it on a budget so may well have some ideas on how to reduce costs you just hadn’t thought. Likewise of friends or cousins who have been married recently – if they planned their wedding under the same economic conditions, they will definitely be able to suggest something they did to keep costs from spiralling.

5. Get married out of high season

More and more couples are choosing to marry outside of the traditional summer season and picking winter weddings to celebrate their big day. This can save massively on the venue hire costs which are geared towards higher charges during the winter months. Money saved on your venue is a big deal as it’s often the priciest thing on your budget sheet.

6. Cut out the non-essentials and pool your resources

Wedding days are about celebrating your love and I guess this point is about making sure you celebrate with some thought on what you really need for the big day. Decide which things you absolutely need, which you would like and which you really don’t need after all.

We saved money on cars as the wedding was in the same place as the reception, we decided against booking transport which although would have been amazing, was really unnessecary and something we were both happy to cut out of the budget. If you can find one or two things in the traditional list that you don’t need to spend a fortune on – go for. We didn’t spend an awful lot on wedding rings, less on his than mine but that turned out to be a good saving because, believe me, even though you think these rings will last forever – they don’t always! My husband lost his within 3 years of the wedding and although I was a little sad, it wasn’t a reflection of our relationship which is still as shiny as the day we said I do

Additional savings can be made by pooling your resources, my lovely Mum and Auntie both helped make and decorate the cake which cut costs and although I think the stress started to take it’s toll the cake was fabulous! You might have friends with amazing skills that you can use to help make savings. My friends Mum made her beautiful wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses, saving a small fortune in the process. Between you and your fiancé, I bet you can rustle up some people out there who would love to contribute towards your big day.

7. Get creative

Even the least creative person can find tips on getting a bit crafty on your wedding. Wedding invites can be super expensive but they don’t have to be. Get a plan together, visit some a Hobby store or art supplies shop and get designing. If you have seen an invite style you like, how well can you copy it by sourcing similar materials? Once the design is in place (and I would opt for keeping it simple), get your girlfriends, Mum whoever around, crack open some wine and get your invites done in a fun evening.

Homemade favours are also a money saver – cupcakes with your guests name on? It might take a bit of organising but will look thoughtful and cute on the tables.

8. Keep your numbers down

The politics of a seating plan is like a dark art for some couples and can cause real stresses. However, keeping guest numbers down to a reasonable figure is essential to stop your costs spiralling out of control. Of course you want to have everyone you know and love at the wedding – equally you want to look out and see the faces of those you share your lives with – not necessarily a room full of cousins you see once in a blue moon and your fiancés Mum’s best friends brother in-law. I would suggest getting an idea of the cost per head at your venue and working out how many you can afford to invite. I guess it’s a trade-off between dream venue and dream guest list – unless you’ve got the cash stashed away, you might not be able to do both. Once you’ve decided on the venue, that will often dictate your maximum numbers anyway so pool your invite lists and see how many people you have. Once you have that in place, you should be able to see whether it’s going to work. Be ruthless if you have to be, invite work colleagues or friendly associates to the evening reception not the whole day. Do your cousins have millions of children? Maybe they don’t need to be at the day either and give their parents a night to let their hair down. Whichever way you choose to do it, it starts to become easier to cut the guest list once you calculate how much per head you are actually paying for everyone there.

9. Budget and then keep track of it

Budget, budget, budget! You need to know what you are working with before you start spending otherwise things can get expensive pretty quickly. If you have saved money for the wedding, or even if you are spending as the pay packets come in, you absolutely want to get the most for your money. The dreaded words wedding spreadsheet might fill you (or your fiance) with dread but it is essential to know what you’re spending and where. Keep track of the cash that’s going out, even on the small things and you’ll be in control of your wedding budget, instead of it being in control of you.

10. Be realistic

This is possibly the most important tip of all, be realistic. Honestly ask yourself if you can afford what you are about to blow on that £5,000 wedding dress – is it going to impact the spend you have for the rest of the wedding? If you have prioritised the things you absolutely need and done it with clarity, this shouldn’t be a problem. Of course you are excited and of course you want to have things perfect on the day but as long as you do it with one smidge of a toe on the ground you can achieve the most fabulous wedding without the financial headache.

Supposedly when the minister calls for silence, everyone at the wedding raises their glass and takes a swig – sounds like you’d need to be a whiskey fan and be ready for a slightly messy wedding dance! For more slightly bizarre drinking culture facts take a look at article here.

If you don’t have THE tune in mind already here are a few ideas for lovely pieces of music to top the walk of your life…

Traditional music pieces – these will sound lovely played from a recording or on a harp, strong quartet – whatever you fancy…

• Bridal Chorus (Here comes the bride),  Wagner
• The Marriage of Figaro, Mozart
• Spring (from The Four Seasons), Vivaldi
• Canon in D, Pachelbel
• Air (from Water Music Suite), Handel
• Procession of Joy, Hopson
• Trumpet Voluntary, Clarke
• Te Deum, Charpentier
• The Prince of Denmark’s March, Clarke
• Rigaudon, Andre Campra

Contemporary – likewise for contemporary songs, there are so many and so many will sound wonderful on a recording or as a musical piece.  Let your imagination run wild!

• Greatest day, Take That
• Unchained melody, Righteous Brother
• Can’t help falling in love, Elvis Presley
• All you need is love, The Beatles
• At last, Etta James
• Walking on sunshine, Katrina and the waves

I guess the main thing to do is pick a song that reflects both your personalities.  If you have a wedding theme and it fits, then perfect.  If it’s just a song you both love then it’s probably right.

Family or friends

If your Dad is not around and you’re Mum is up for giving you away, then this is a beautiful alternative.  The idea of someone accompanying you down the aisle is, for me, about support so a relative, brother, cousin, best friend that you feel very close to can be that someone to give you that morale boost on the aisle walk.

With your partner

Walk half way up the aisle and be met by your fiance halfway to complete the walk together. Symbolic of the journey you’ve taking as individuals so far, and will be together into the future.

Involve others and collect your bouquet

Involve more people in the ceremony as the you walk alone down the aisle but have special people placed at the edge of the walk, each handing you a flower to make up your bouquet.

Wedding pooch

If your dog is important to you, involve him or her in your special day walking you down the aisle or acting as the ring bearer.

Sing your way to wedding bliss?

Sweet but not sure this will catch on in Scotland…

Groom singing his wife down the aisle

Singing bride

And another singing bride

Dance it out!

If you are feeling particularly ready to start the party for your guests early, take a tip from the couples below and dance your way to the aisle – not for everyone I’ll agree but definitively sets an upbeat mode for the day!

Groove is in the heart

Dancing groom

I gotta feeling in Liverpool

So many ways of getting your way down that aisle! Let us know if you’ve got any others

There are some fabulous ideas out there and given the current economy, it helps that some of the most special are actually the least expensive.  I saw a lovely summer wedding which used the favours as table decorations and place names in one.  Lovely crunchy green apples with a bay leaf tied to the stalk and guest names written on the leaves in gold pen – simple, elegant and fresh.  Search ‘green apple wedding favours’ for some ideas on this theme.

Another lovely idea which I would do if I’d only come across it before I got married – a little tree seedling, with a personalised message – what a cute idea that guests can plant as a reminder of the day, cute and carbon reducing!

We picked the sweet option for our day, going for New Zealand chocolate treats from my childhood – chocolate fish – totally random and not well known in Scotland so it probably made a few people wonder what on earth I’d picked but it meant something to me and that’s why we picked them!  I guess that might be the moral of the story – pick whatever the heck you like for your favours.  If it makes you happy, then it’s for you!

A big thank you also to all the couples who have reviewed their wedding venues so far. We’re very excited about the site and judging from the feedback, it’s doing the job! Long may it continue