Essential Wedding Hacks: Easy Wedding Tips and Tricks for Every Bride

Start early. One of the biggest mistakes brides make is trying to squeeze the wedding planning process into a short amount of time. If you have the time, use it! Most couples are typically engaged for about a year, and although that sounds like a long time, you'll need time to get all your ducks in a row.

Plus, having a longer engagement ensures you can do the research required to hire your dream vendors. Instead, you may feel rushed to hire the first florist you meet. Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life, so give it the time and respect it deserves.

Establish a budget. One of the first tasks of the wedding planning process (and perhaps the most important) is to sit down and establish a clear-cut budget. Wedding costs can quickly get out of hand if you don't have a firm number in mind. All those little costs add up and you don't want to be eating ramen noodles with your new husband for the next two years simply because you blew all your money on an epic bash.

The wedding industry is big business and prices are often inflated, so be a savvy customer and don't be afraid to negotiate. If you stick to your guns and stick to your budget, you will be much happier in the long run. It is absolutely possible to have the wedding of your dreams with any budget.

Set reasonable expectations. In the Pinterest world we live in, it can be very difficult for brides-to-be to have reasonable expectations for their wedding. Yes, we all want our big day to be magazine-worthy, but it's important to keep in mind the images you see on the Internet do not always align with reality.

That's not to say you can't reach for the stars, but if you make sure your expectations match your budget, the wedding planning process will be much more enjoyable from start to finish.

Surround yourself with an all-star bridal party. When it comes to your bridal party, it's ok to be selective. At first, you might want to ask every close friend to be a bridesmaid, but do you really want to coordinate the schedule of 12 women scattered across the country? Keeping your bridal party small will save you a lot of time and prevent a lot of stress.

Your friends will understand it's impossible to ask all of them to stand up for your wedding, so don't worry about friendship politics. At the end of the day, who you include in your bridal party is your decision and your decision only. You should feel free to ask the most important women in your life without fear of hurt feelings or retaliation.

Start the venue search early. One of the most important decisions you will make during the wedding planning process is where your nuptials will be held. Country club? Rustic barn? Grand ballroom? Converted loft? Whatever you envision, it's imperative to tour potential venue locations soon after you get engaged.

You will quickly realize popular locations book FAST. We're talking years in advance! If you have your heart set on a particular spot, reserve a tour as soon as possible and prepare to be flexible in terms of your wedding date.

Organize the guest list. Many decisions cannot be made until you have a tentative guest list and know roughly how many people you plan to invite. Begin drafting your list of invitees as soon as possible in order to have a better idea of the size and scope of your event.

In other words, touring an intimate garden venue with the hope of comfortably fitting your 300 guests is probably a waste of time. When meeting with potential vendors, come equippred with as much information as possible. It will make everyone's life easier and your time spent together will be much more productive.

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