5 Ways to be Productive in Your Planning This Winter

If you're anything like me, and many of our couples, you went gangbusters as soon as you got engaged, booked your venue and all of your vendors, and now you're not sure what you're going to do over the winter.It's inevitable that there will be a bit of a lull in the planning activity if your engagment is a year or longer - there's just not that much to do once all of the 'big' things are ticked off your list, and before you send out your invites and start pulling the final details together.However, I often see couples who've fallen into the 'mid planning slump' (which often happens over the winter, if the wedding is taking place the following high wedding season), and who struggle to get back into 'wedding planning mode'.Here are some tips to help you stay motivated over the winter, and to help set you up for success when you jump back into full planning mode in the spring:

1.  Organize, organize, organize!  If you haven't already been a model of efficiency where your wedding documents are concerned, now's a good time to pull everything together:
   • put all of your contracts, notes and estimates in a binder, organized by section, with like information together (group all catering-related correspondence, everything to do with getting ready, and all of your photographer's communication in individual sections).
   • start organizing your guestlist. Gather addresses for invitations, and set up your spreadsheet for RSVP tracking (let me know if you need a guestlist tracking spreadsheet template!)
   • if you're already gathering decor, group the items and log them so that you don't forget what you've purchased.  Put all of your centepiece items in one tote, all of your welcome table items in another . . . and so on.
2. Take advantage of holiday sales.  Black Friday, Cyber Monday, post-Christmas and January wedding shows are great opportunities to score deals on everything from your wedding rings to decor to discounted stationery!
3. Research guest favours.  You can do this online, in your jammies with a hot cup of tea, if you want.  There are tons of places online to check out options.  My biggest tip: make sure your favours are either useful or edible!
4. Start designing your stationery.  If you're using an online stationer like Vistaprint, Minted, or Magnet Street, you can start a design and save it for future editing.
5. Create a list of music ideas for your ceremony and reception. Snuggle up by the fire, put on some playlists, and record the names of songs you like and their possible use (ie. 'Bride's Processional', 'First Dance', 'Cake Cutting', 'Garter Toss', etc.).  Let me know if you need a full template of all the songs you'll want to specify for your DJ or musicians!

If you're able to keep the momentum going with the above ideas, jumping back into full swing once the snow melts will be a lot easier.That said, don't forget to take some downtime, enjoy the holidays with friends and family, and recharge your batteries.  You deserve it!