1. Dedicate a night for you and your fiancé where you don’t talk about the wedding. Remember why you got engaged in the first place. Cook dinner at home, open a bottle of wine and just enjoy each other without mention of the big day.

2. So while we recommend setting aside to NOT talk about the wedding, we also recommend setting aside time to talk about the wedding. Make sure your fiancé is as in the know as you are. If you hired a wedding planner, make sure they are sitting down to go over your wedding, including the budget, on a scheduled basis.

3. Set and stick to a budget. No matter what the number is you will always be able to spend more. Keep all your receipts and log them in promptly so you always know what you’ve spent.

4. Pick your top three priorities for the wedding and allocate money accordingly. Is your photography the most important piece of the big day? Or is it the food? Determine what you will not sacrifice on and set aside budget according to those priorities. Better yet, have a wedding planner do that for you and help you find the perfect vendors that are within your budget.

5. Don’t sign the first florist you meet. Make sure you do some research on each vendor. It may seem like a lot of work, but ultimately you want to find the right vendors for your big day. Wedding Bells has a great forum where you can see reviews from other brides in your area of specific vendors.

6. Stay organized – keep all documents, receipts, ideas, and all other details in one spot. Purchase a binder and keep all of it together so you know exactly where to find that contract for the DJ when it comes time to pay him.

7. Do things early – hiring a DJ or florist last minute can cost you some big bucks and not to mention stress you out. The more items you check off your list early in the game the better off you’ll be. Good venues book up quickly, so unless your budget includes $100 or more per plate, better book one early.

8. Advice – you’re going to get a lot of advice from your coworkers to your family to perfect strangers. So what do you do with all this advice, thank them and move on. One person will tell you a wedding gown shop is awful and the next will swear by them, everyone has good and bad experiences, so listen, take notes, but do what’s best for you.

9. Guest list drama – the guest list can be a soar spot for couples and their family, but ultimately it’s your wedding day. If you haven’t spoken to cousin Bob in 5 years, inviting him is up to you. But you want people at your wedding that mean something to you and your fiancé. After all they are witnessing one of the most important days of your life. Make sure your family knows that.

10. Ask for help – your friends and family and bridal party are there to help you out. So recruit them to help you address invitations and make your cute favors. Find a wedding planner who includes some of these tasks in their list of services and hand it over. You have better things to do – like visit the spa with your bridesmaids!