You made it through wedding planning and successfully celebrated your marriage! Now what? When you come down from the high of your wedding day and honeymoon and come back to real life, there are some things you need to do. I know what you’re thinking, “More wedding tasks?!” Yep, the fun isn’t quite over yet! Luckily, you have some time to complete these post-wedding tasks, but they should be on your radar. Let’s talk about what they are and how long you have to complete them.
1. Open Wedding Gifts
This is a fun post-wedding task! You finally get to open all your wedding gifts. I recommend having someone there to help you keep track of the gifts and who they’re from. Collect gifts that were delivered from online purchases and ones that were taken to the venue. Keep a record of gifts for thank-you notes. Enjoy opening your gifts!
2. Write Thank You Cards
Next, start to write thank you cards to your guests. It’s your preference whether or not to send a thank you card to everyone who attended, regardless of if they got you a gift. At a minimum, send a thank you card to anyone who gave you a gift. Express your gratitude to guests for attending the wedding and for gifts received. Send personalized thank-you notes within six months of your wedding.
3. Post Reviews for Vendors
Your vendors will likely request a review from you and it’s so appreciated when you take the time to post one. Google, The Knot, and WeddingWire are all great places to post a review of your vendors. Better yet, copy and paste your review to each platform! Take the time to write a detailed review of each vendor and include photos if you can. Think about how many reviews you read when you were researching vendors; provide the same courtesy to future brides by explaining your experience. Your review means the world to businesses!
4. Change Your Name
If you decide to do so, start the process of changing last names. This includes driver’s licenses, passports, and other legal documents. I recommend the site NewlyNamed to help with this process. There’s a lot of documentation involved, and the kit they send you has everything organized and ready to go. It’s also customized to your state and the accounts you have open at institutions such as banks and memberships. There isn’t an official timeline for changing your name, but it’s easier to get it over with!
5. Dress and Suit Cleaning
Decide whether to preserve, clean, or store the wedding dress. Make arrangements for the care of other attire, such as suits or the veil. White dresses will start to yellow around 6-8 months, so keep that in mind as you plan your post-wedding task list.
6. Think About What to do with Wedding Decor
Decide whether to store, sell, donate, or repurpose wedding decor. If you have items you won’t be keeping, make arrangements accordingly. The timeline to complete this task is up to you, but I bet you want to do it sooner than later to clean up your house!
7. Return Rented Items
If you rented items such as attire, decor, or equipment, make arrangements to return them or follow any specific guidelines provided by the rental companies. Check your contract to ensure you aren’t hit with late return fees.
8. Handle Marriage License
Ensure the marriage license is properly signed, filed, and recorded according to local regulations. This may involve a visit to the county clerk’s office. You could also ask someone else to do this for you (hello, delegation!) The timeline you have to complete this depends on your state, but you usually have about eight weeks after the wedding to turn in your marriage license.
9. Order Wedding Photos
Work with your photographer and videographer to select and order prints, albums, or digital copies of your wedding photos and videos. You probably won’t receive your wedding photos or video back for a few weeks or months after the wedding, so you have plenty of time to complete this task. In the meantime, you can consider the sizes you may want to order and how to decorate your house with your wedding photos.
10. Update Documentation to Reflect Marital Status
Update insurance policies, such as health, life, or car insurance, to reflect changes in marital status if applicable. You may also need to complete a new W-2 at your job to reflect the changes.
11. Relax and Enjoy Married Life
Finally, relax and enjoy married life. You put a LOT of effort and work into wedding planning. Now it’s time to enjoy the person you committed to. Take time to reflect on the wedding day and celebrate your new life together. You’ve earned it!
Even though the wedding is over, there are still a few things to do to wrap up this wild experience. Completing these post-wedding tasks will help you transition into the next chapter of your lives with ease. Enjoy your partner and this new life together ❤️
About KR Occasions
Kayce is a certified wedding and event planner and the owner and lead planner of KR Occasions. She’s been working in the wedding industry for over a decade. Kayce started as an event planner assistant and soon found herself working for various venues. She launched KR Occasions in 2013 in Sullivan County, NY. While she has planned dozens of weddings, you can expect the utmost professionalism and confidence. She wants to allow every couple to enjoy their wedding day!
