Time to check those timelines!

With spring on its way, it’s a great time for all of you engaged couples to regroup and check where you are on your schedule. For June weddings, we’re just three months out! For fall couples, we’re coming up on six months out!

Review your lists. Take a step back and go over your checklists. Is there anything important you’ve let slide? Now is a great time to assess what you’ve accomplished and what still needs to be done.

Check in with your vendors. Have you stayed up to date on all your deposits? Are you on track with things like hotel room blocks, dinner choices, save-the-dates, invitations, and floral arrangements?

Take a deep breath and enjoy. You’re heading into the home stretch! Your wedding day will be here before you know it! Enjoy the ride!

What are you doing to keep yourself on track for your big day?

Enjoy the Southbury Bridal Show this weekend!

It’s finally here! The annual Southbury Bridal Show is Sunday, March 6 from noon to 5 p.m. here at the Heritage Hotel.

We have a great variety of vendors, from bakeries (who offer samples!) and photographers to florists and DJs. Need help picking a gown or a tux? What about jewelry and hair? We’ve got the best local vendors for you to visit and chat with. Bring pre-printed address stickers with your name, phone number and wedding email address, and you won’t have to stand there filling out every form! You can just add a sticker to sign up for more information.

You can come see what delicious treats the Heritage has to offer, with a sampling of many of our hors d’oeuvres and action stations offered at a typical Heritage wedding.

The Southbury Bridal Show is free to attend! Visit www.thesouthburybridalshow.com for more information. We hope to see you there!

Happy Valentine’s Day to all the engaged couples!

This Sunday is Valentine’s Day and what better way to celebrate it than reconnecting as a couple? With all the stress of wedding planning, Valentine’s Day is a great way to stop and take a step back and remember why you got engaged in the first place!

Revisit the past. Go to dinner where you had your first date; rent the first movie you watched together; go dancing at the club where you first met. Enjoy a little look back at how far your relationship has come!

Don’t overdo it. If you’re in saving-for-the-big-day mode, spending a lot on Valentine’s Day may not be in the cards. That doesn’t mean you can’t find other ways to be romantic. Make a special dinner together. Turn off the TV and put on some music. Light some candles. Turn off your phones. Make it a night not about wedding planning, but about each other.

Turn up the fun. Did you go on fun, silly dates as a new couple, but have left that behind? Why not do something just for the fun of it again? Go bowling, ice skating, or to the aquarium. If you’re reading this from a place much warmer than Connecticut, hit an amusement park, go mini-golfing or on a hike.

Get a change of scenery. Book a hotel room, order room service, and pretend you’re on vacation, even if it’s just for one night.

And Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us!

Tips on creating a wedding website

You have a lot of information you want to get out to your guests: hotels, transportation, directions. But a formal invitation suite doesn’t give you a lot of room to add a lot of details. The solution? A wedding website.

You don’t have to be an amazing graphic designer or technical wizard to create a wedsite. Almost all wedding planning sites offer templates so that all you need to do is type in your information, and they will make it look great!

A quick web search will show you lots of options for templates – almost all of them free. You will, of course, need to sign up with your personal information. I always suggest creating a special email address for just wedding planning, and using that when signing up for anything! That way, all your wedding information is in one place, and it doesn’t get lost in the spam of your regular email. If you’ve already signed up for a site like The Knot or Wedding Wire, you may already have access to a wedsite template.

Think about what your guests need to know. Are you planning childcare? Is there a bad-weather second location? Do you want everyone to wear something green? Are you planning a weekend’s worth of activities? Your wedsite is the best place for all those details.

With so many people carrying smartphones, you can keep your entire guest list informed of your schedule right on your wedsite. Unless your ceremony and reception are taking place in a bad cell-reception area, everyone will be able to access all the details with very little trouble, even on your wedding day.

Did you make a wedding website? Did your guests find it useful? Let us know!

Making honeymoon plans: fun, but details are important

The weather here in New England is cold and wintery this week, so let’s thing about something much more fun: planning your honeymoon. Preferably somewhere warm!

Palm trees and ocean views for your honeymoon?

Looking forward to the two of you relaxing on your honeymoon to celebrate your new life, and recover from all that wedding planning? Of course you are! But you should plan your honeymoon carefully, too, so that it is relaxing and enjoyable!

Do your research. Once you’ve chosen a honeymoon destination, do a little research. Are you going to an all-in-one resort? Read the fine print; there are often options that are not included in your base price. You don’t want to be surprised when the bill comes!

Check to see what documentation you will need. In you’re traveling out of the US, you’ll need a passport. Check with the Department of State to ensure you have everything you need to enter another country as well as come back when your vacation is over. Also check to see if you need any immunizations before you leave!

Pay attention to changes in the area you plan to visit. If you’re traveling abroad, there’s always the chance of a change in political situation, even in a previously-stable country. And no matter where you go, keep an eye on your weather forecasts as you get closer to your departure date.

And, as always, make reservations in the name that is on your identification, even if you’re planning on changing your name. Unless you are delaying the start of your honeymoon for several weeks, or longer, you won’t have time to change your name legally before your trip.

Then, you get to have fun, take lots of pictures, and enjoy the start of your new life together! 

Newly engaged? Here are some tips to get your wedding planning started

Are you one of the lucky couples who got engaged over the holidays? Or, now that the holidays are over, you’re ready to attack wedding planning with no other distractions? I’ve got some tips for you to get your wedding prep started!

Did someone pop the question? 

Figure out your priorities. Sit down together and decide what parts of your wedding are the most important. Is it a religious ceremony? A great reception with an incredible band? Having all of your friends and family with you? Or a small, intimate event? You need to decide what the two of you want before you can start making decisions.

Know your budget. How much do you have to spend? Are the two of you paying for everything? Are either of your families helping? Don’t assume! As awkward as talking about money can be, you need to be clear on what your limits are.

Put together your guest list. This, along with your budget, will determine the types of venues you’re looking for.

Get organized. Whether it’s an app on your phone or a book-style organizer, pick what works for you. Even the smallest weddings need a little organization!

Take breaks. Of course your wedding is going to be at the top of your list, but it’s important to sit back and relax sometimes, too. Don’t let wedding planning get in the way of enjoying your time as an engaged couple. Go out to dinner, and talk about things other than the wedding. Spend time with your friends and family, too. Your wedding organizer will be there when dinner’s over!

What you can expect from the Southbury Bridal Show

Happy 2016, everyone, and congratulations to all the couples who got engaged over the holidays! To help you plan your wedding, the Heritage Hotel is hosting the annual Southbury Bridal Show from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 6.

What can you expect from our bridal show? A lot of information from area vendors, plenty of food, and lots of fun!

First things first: you should pre-register at www.thesouthburybridalshow.com if you’re planning on attending. The show is free to attend, but pre-registered brides and grooms are guaranteed a copy of "The Little Blue Book" to help plan their wedding!  

On the day of the show, you should bring a notepad and pen so you can jot notes about each vendor. If you’re planning on leaving your information with them, print some address labels with the information you want to give out – usually your wedding-planning email address, name and phone number. It will save you a ton of time writing it down, and you don’t have to worry about whether or not your handwriting is legible!

Feel free to bring anyone who’s helping you with decisions: your sweetheart, parents, siblings, wedding party, and more!

We can’t wait to see you there!