Planning your dream wedding ...

EVERY bride dreams of the sun shining down on her to celebrate her special day, and with the unusually good weather we’ve been experiencing in Ireland in the last year, it’s almost guaranteed!

But no matter what time of the year you plan to tie the knot, there are thousands of ways to ensure your big day is tailored to your own unique taste.

Whether you’ve just announced your engagement and are planning from scratch, or have had a scrapbook of your wedding celebrations since childhood, the choice has never been wider on how to get married. No longer confined to a church, you and your sweetheart have the world at your feet when it comes to location, and how you would like your ceremony to go.

Of course there are wedding planners available to organise every second of your day, but who wants someone else to have all the fun.

Think about the style you’d like, whether it’s a beach bash, a sit-down dinner in a ballroom or a ceremony on a mountaintop.

While you might not have to set a firm date now, it’s best to have an idea of what month or season you want to marry in. Your wedding’s size determines where you’ll hold the party, how much it will cost and whether travel will be involved, creating a guest list is one of the most important things to do. It’s rare these days that the bride’s parents pick up the whole bill, so decide on your bottom line. Buy a notebook and write down the amount you want to spend. As you near your limits, you can start to figure out how to cut corners without cutting your dreams!