10 Exciting Things to Do in the First Month of Getting Engaged.
Updated: Aug 13
Congratulations on your engagement! The first 30 days after getting engaged are filled with excitement, celebration, and the realization that you get to plan an incredible day together. Before you dive into every wedding detail, take a moment to enjoy being engaged and celebrate this exciting new chapter.
Whether you are dreaming of a romantic Colorado mountain wedding, an elegant barn wedding, or an intimate celebration surrounded by family and friends, the first month is the perfect time to begin creating a vision for your wedding. This blog will discuss
10 exciting things to do during your first month of getting engaged.
Things to Do After Getting Engaged: Start With These 10 Steps
✔ Celebrate your engagement
✔ Discuss your wedding vision
✔ Set a realistic wedding budget
✔ Decide who will contribute financially
✔ Create a preliminary guest list
✔ Choose a preferred wedding season or date
✔ Research and tour wedding venues
✔ Book your wedding venue
✔ Research priority wedding vendors
✔ Begin wedding dress shopping
✔ Start collecting wedding inspiration
✔ Organize your wedding planning documents
✔ Schedule engagement photos if desired
The most important thing to remember is that wedding planning does not have to happen all at once. Start with the big-picture decisions and enjoy the process together.
Celebrate Your Engagement Before You Start Wedding Planning
Before opening a spreadsheet or creating a wedding Pinterest board, celebrate!
Your engagement is a special moment that deserves to be enjoyed. Have dinner together, invite family and friends over, enjoy an engagement party, or simply spend a quiet evening talking about your future.
An engagement party is another fun way to celebrate with the people who are closest to you. Whether you choose a casual backyard gathering, brunch with family, or a more formal celebration, there is no right or wrong way to celebrate.
The first month of your engagement should include plenty of moments where you are simply enjoying being engaged—not just checking items off a wedding planning checklist.
Talk About Your Wedding Vision Together
Before choosing colors, flowers, dresses, or decorations, talk about what you both want your wedding day to feel like.
Do you picture a romantic Colorado mountain wedding? Maybe you have always imagined getting married in a beautiful barn surrounded by mountains. Perhaps you want an elegant outdoor celebration, an intimate gathering, or a relaxed destination wedding where your guests can enjoy an entire Colorado getaway.
Talk about the experience you want your guests to have and the memories you want to create.
This conversation will help guide many of your future wedding decisions. If you are interested in more information on how to select a wedding vibe you may enjoy this blog: https://www.antlerridgeweddings.com/post/how-to-select-the-perfect-vibe-for-your-western-colorado-dream-wedding
Set Your Wedding Budget Early
One of the most important things to discuss during the first month of engagement is your wedding budget.
Before you begin booking vendors or shopping for your dress, determine how much you are comfortable spending. If family members are contributing financially, talk openly about those contributions and whether there are expectations attached to them.
Create a preliminary budget that includes major expenses such as: If you are looking for more information on how to plan a wedding budget you may enjoy this blog:
Wedding venue
Catering
Photography and videography
Wedding dress and attire
Florals
Entertainment
Wedding cake
Decorations
Transportation
Lodging
Wedding planner or coordinator
Your budget does not have to be perfect in the first 30 days. Think of it as a starting point that you can adjust as you learn more about wedding costs in your area.
If you are looking for more information on how to plan a wedding budget you may enjoy this blog:https://www.antlerridgeweddings.com/post/how-to-plan-a-wedding-budget
Create a Preliminary Wedding Guest List
You do not need a finalized guest list yet, but creating a preliminary list is extremely helpful.
Start by making a list of the people you would most like to have at your wedding. Then consider immediate family, extended family, close friends, and other important people in your lives.
Your estimated guest count can influence your choice of wedding venue, catering costs, seating arrangements, and overall wedding budget.
For couples planning a Colorado destination wedding, guest count is especially important because you may also want to consider lodging, transportation, restaurants, and activities for your guests.
Choose Your Wedding Season and Preferred Date
Once you have an approximate guest count and budget, begin thinking about when you would like to get married.
Colorado offers beautiful wedding seasons throughout the year, but each season provides a different experience.
Spring brings fresh greenery and changing mountain weather. Summer offers long days and beautiful outdoor celebrations. Fall provides gorgeous Colorado foliage and cooler temperatures, while winter can create a romantic mountain atmosphere.
If you have your heart set on a particular venue or Saturday date, start your search early. Popular wedding dates can book well in advance.
Tour Colorado Wedding Venues
One of the biggest decisions you will make during the first month of engagement is choosing your wedding venue.
Your venue establishes the location, atmosphere, guest experience, and often the overall style of your wedding.
For couples searching for a Western Colorado wedding venue, Antler Ridge Weddings offers a unique combination of mountain views, natural beauty, privacy, and rustic elegance.
Located just outside Montrose, Colorado, Antler Ridge Weddings provides a beautiful setting for couples planning a Colorado mountain wedding, barn wedding, or destination wedding. The venue is convenient for guests traveling from Grand Junction, Ouray, Gunnison, Delta, and other Western Colorado communities.
The property features a beautifully restored barn, mountain views, sunsets, city lights, and the unique experience of elk roaming and bugling in the surrounding pastures.
For couples looking for a wedding venue near Grand Junction or a Colorado destination wedding venue with a more private and relaxed setting, touring Antler Ridge Weddings during your first month can be an excellent place to begin.
Book Your Wedding Venue Before Choosing Every Other Vendor
Once you find a venue that fits your vision, budget, guest count, and preferred date, consider securing it before booking many of your other vendors.
Your wedding date and location will affect nearly every other decision you make.
Once your venue is booked, you can move forward with confidence when choosing your photographer, caterer, florist, DJ or band, baker, rental company, and other wedding professionals.
At Antler Ridge Weddings, couples can enjoy the peace of knowing their wedding location is secured while continuing to plan all of the personal details that will make their celebration unique.
Start Your Wedding Planning Journal
A wedding planning journal can be a simple notebook, binder, digital document, or wedding planning app.
Use it to record:
Wedding ideas
Vendor information
Budget notes
Guest list ideas
Questions for your venue
Favorite flowers
Color combinations
Dress inspiration
Photography ideas
Important deadlines
Keeping your information organized from the beginning will make wedding planning much easier as your list of decisions grows.
Create a Wedding Vision Board
Now comes the fun part!
Start collecting photographs, colors, textures, floral arrangements, dresses, table settings, ceremony ideas, and wedding venues that inspire you.
Pinterest can be a great place to create a digital wedding inspiration board. You can also save images from wedding magazines, blogs, and social media.
As you collect ideas, look for patterns. You may discover that you consistently choose natural colors, romantic florals, mountain scenery, candlelight, rustic details, or elegant barn settings.
Your vision board can help you communicate your style to your wedding planner and vendors.
Research Wedding Vendors in Western Colorado
Once your venue and date are becoming more certain, begin researching the vendors who will help bring your wedding vision to life.
Western Colorado has talented wedding professionals serving communities including Montrose, Grand Junction, Delta, Ouray, Telluride, and surrounding areas.
Consider researching:
Wedding photographers
Florists
Caterers
Wedding planners
DJs and musicians
Cake designers
Hair and makeup artists
Rental companies
Transportation providers
Read reviews, look at portfolios, compare pricing, and ask questions before making decisions.
You can also follow Antler Ridge Weddings on social media to discover wedding inspiration and see local vendors featured in real weddings and events.
Schedule Your Engagement Photos
Engagement photos are not required, but they can be a wonderful way to celebrate this season of your relationship.
Choose a location that feels meaningful to you as a couple. Colorado provides countless beautiful backdrops, from mountain scenery and open landscapes to charming downtown areas.
Your engagement photographs can also be used for save-the-dates, wedding websites, invitations, guest books, or displays at your reception.
Antler Ridge Weddings has also hosted engagement photography sessions. If you are interested in taking engagement photos at the property, contact the venue to learn more about available options.
Begin Thinking About Your Wedding Attire
You do not necessarily need to purchase your wedding dress during the first 30 days, but it is perfectly fine to begin looking.
Save photographs of dresses, suits, bridesmaid attire, accessories, and shoes that you love. Pay attention to the styles you repeatedly gravitate toward.
If you already know your wedding date, you can also begin researching bridal boutiques and appointment timelines. Wedding dresses can take several months to order and alter, so starting your research early can help reduce stress later.
Start Thinking About Your Wedding Style
Your wedding style does not need to be finalized during the first month.
Instead, begin identifying the elements you love.
Maybe your ideal celebration is a romantic mountain wedding with soft florals and elegant details. Perhaps you envision a rustic barn wedding with long tables, warm lighting, and a relaxed atmosphere.
Your venue can also influence your design choices. A mountain setting, beautiful barn, natural landscape, and Colorado sunset can provide much of the atmosphere without requiring excessive décor.
Make Time for Each Other During Wedding Planning
This may be the most important item on your first-month wedding planning checklist.
Wedding planning can quickly become a second job if you let it. Make sure you continue having date nights, taking walks together, enjoying dinner, and doing the things you loved before you became engaged.
Put the wedding planning binder away occasionally.
You have plenty of time to make decisions. Your engagement is a season of your relationship that only happens once, so make sure you enjoy it.
If you are planning a Colorado wedding, consider making a weekend of it and exploring some of the beautiful communities throughout Western Colorado. From mountain towns and scenic drives to restaurants and outdoor adventures, there is plenty for couples and their wedding guests to experience.
Why Antler Ridge Weddings Is a Unique Colorado Wedding Venue
If you are searching for a Colorado mountain wedding venue, Western Colorado barn wedding venue, or destination wedding venue near Grand Junction, Antler Ridge Weddings offers a setting that is unlike many traditional wedding venues.
Located near Montrose, Colorado, the venue provides easy access for guests traveling by car or through the Montrose Regional Airport. Guests can find hotels, restaurants, golf courses, outdoor adventures, and other attractions throughout the area.
The property combines privacy and natural beauty with beautiful mountain views and city lights. One of the most memorable features is the opportunity to see and hear elk roaming the ranch.
For couples planning a destination wedding, your guests are not simply attending your wedding—they are visiting Western Colorado.
That means your wedding can become part of a larger Colorado experience your family and friends will remember long after the celebration is over.
Start Your Colorado Wedding Planning Journey at Antler Ridge Weddings
The first month after your engagement should be exciting, not overwhelming.
Celebrate your engagement, talk about your wedding vision, establish your budget, create a preliminary guest list, choose your preferred season, and begin touring Colorado wedding venues.
Once you have your venue and date secured, the rest of your planning can begin to take shape.
If you are dreaming of a Colorado mountain wedding, a premier barn wedding venue, or a destination wedding in Western Colorado, we would love to introduce you to Antler Ridge Weddings.
Located near Montrose and convenient to Grand Junction, Ouray, Gunnison, Delta, and other Western Colorado communities, Antler Ridge Weddings offers mountain views, a beautiful barn, privacy, natural beauty, and a truly memorable Colorado setting.
Ready to see if Antler Ridge Weddings is the right place for your wedding day? Contact us to schedule a tour and start planning your Colorado wedding.
Follow Antler Ridge Weddings on Instagram and TikTok for wedding inspiration, venue updates, and ideas for your Western Colorado wedding.
The Start of Your Wedding Adventure
The first month of your engagement marks just the beginning of an exciting journey! By embracing these ten activities, you’ll not only connect with your partner but also create a vision for your dream wedding in Colorado. From discovering local venues in Grand Junction, Montrose, Ouray and Gunnison to documenting every sweet moment, be sure to make the most of this special time. "While checking off items on your to-do list is important, remember the importance of planning date nights. read our blog on our website called "Date Night Resturants in Ouray".. I love this quote written by another wedding venue owner......." Be sure to take ake fun engagement photo shoots, and cherish every moment you two have as you celebrate the love of this new journey together". Be sure to read Cornerstones blog on what to do the first 30 days after getting engaged at https://www.cornerstoneranchevents.com/post/newly-engaged-here-s-what-to-do-in-those-first-30-days-after-getting-engaged
Here’s to love, laughter, and the thrilling adventure ahead—happy planning!
Antler Ridge Weddings is a locally owned wedding venue located 60 minutes from Grand Junction Co .We would like to shout out to other locally owned wedding venues Nation Wide.
Comments