From the moment you receive your engagement ring, many decisions and planning must be done.  The first decision is whether to hire a wedding consultant or plan your own wedding.  This decision should be based upon your personality and needs.

If you feel like planning a wedding would be too overwhelming and time consuming, you probably will want to hire a wedding consultant.  A wedding consultant is a professional who has been trained to see to the every need of the bride from the engagement to the honeymoon. 

The wedding consultant will determine your needs, style, and most importantly your budget.  Your budget should include the fee structure of the wedding consultant as well as all expenses for the wedding.  

If you want to be in complete control of every detail of your wedding, a wedding consultant may not work for you.  If you decide to plan your own wedding, you should make a list of all possible vendors and a budget for each category.  Then you should get an estimate for the same thing from each vendor.  Once you have narrowed your search, face to face interviews should be arranged.  Always make sure to get everything in writing from each vendor you have chosen.  If both you and your fiancé work together to make decisions, you both will be happy with the results.