Things to do BEFORE Choosing Your Wedding Party

A smiling bride surrounded by her bridesmaids. They all show off their beautiful and colorful bouquets. The bridesmaids dressed in slate blue, and they all hold bouquets with shades of orange, peach, and blush.

It's engagement season! And if you're recently engaged, I KNOW one of the first things you want to do is ask your wedding party to stand by your side, but... wait! Here are a few things to do before asking your wedding party to be apart of your big day!

Location, Date, and Budget

You need to have finalized a few major details before asking someone to be apart of your wedding party. For starters- the location and date. They can't really commit to being there if they don't know when and where it's going to be.

It's also important to know your budget. If you plan on getting gifts, you'll want to know how much you can budget for this. You'll also need to know if you have it in your budget to purchase their attire, hair and makeup, etc. If you aren't able to, which is perfectly fine, you can let them know this information when you ask so they have all the details.

A bride and groom are surrounded by all of their wedding party. They all cheer in celebration of the newlyweds! Their wedding was a beautiful estate wedding. The ceremony took place in front of a lake and the reception took place outdoors under beautiful lights. Their spring wedding included shades of slate blue, orange, peach, and blush.

Make a list and check it twice

Choose people you truly want to be by your side! They will be a big part of your day and may even be apart of the planning process. Chances are you'll see more of them than your partner on your wedding day.

This is also a very emotional day for you. You'll want the people by your side to be ones you can trust to fully support you through the emotions of planning and know they will be there for you on your wedding day.

Next, you'll want to choose who will be your honor attendant (aka Maid of Honor, Matron of Honor, Best Man, etc.) This is an easy decision to make if you're closer to one person over the others! But sometimes that isn't the case. Think about who will be able to handle the extra responsibility, and who will be able to help communicate with the other's in your party.

Prepare the details they'll need before you ask

We discussed finalizing the date, and location, but there are a few other details they'll need before saying YES! For some people it will be a "yes i'll be there no matter the place, date, cost, etc." But most people will need a bit more information-

Attire Details and Cost
Hair and Makeup Details and Cost
Travel Details for the Wedding
Other Events Taking Place the Weekend of (Rehearsal, Welcome Parties, After Parties,Next Day Brunch)
Travel Details for Other Events (showers, parties, bachelor/bachelorette)
Responsibilities They'll Have Before and After the Wedding

A bridesmaid helps the bride put on her accessories before her wedding ceremony. The ceremony took place in front of a beautiful lake.

Other things to consider

It's your wedding! You do what you want to do.
It's ok to not have a wedding party at all.
It's ok to not have honor attendants.
It's ok to include a Man of Honor, Bridesman, Best Woman, or Groomswoman (?).
Consider having a house party.

What is a house party?

The wedding house party is a group of friends and family that are either not as close to the couple as the wedding party, or aren't able to commit to the other responsibilities that a wedding party typically would handle. They often have responsibilities or tasks that they help with during the wedding. Some couples still choose to include them in pictures or include them in the morning activities.