By Oscar Mejia Garcia
After getting engaged, you may want to think about having an engagement party. It’s usually the first wedding celebration, and it can be as relaxed or as formal as you want it to be. You have choices when planning your party, whether it’s held in a restaurant or your own backyard. Having your most common questions answered can ensure you have the party of your dreams.
Create Your Budget
If you are paying for all or most of the wedding-related events, you’ll need to create a budget before you do anything. Don’t stop at your engagement party budget. You’ll want to think about all the expenses you will have until the wedding, and even later, for the honeymoon. Spend some time crunching the numbers to determine how much you can afford to spend on each event. However, if you are a little cash strapped, don’t let that stop you from having the party of your dreams. You can get a personal loan to help cover the costs of the engagement party so you don’t use up all your reserves at the start.
Deciding Who Will Come
Traditionally, everyone who is on the engagement party guest list will also need to be invited to the wedding. Still, not everyone who will be invited to the wedding needs to be invited to the engagement celebration. This is a good way to reduce financial anxiety in terms of the size and scope of your party. Often, the engagement party is where you can celebrate with your closest family and friends. But smaller weddings have become more popular, so you might not be able to invite everyone to the wedding but still want to celebrate with them. Remember that if one family is putting on the event, it’s a good idea to invite both sides, even if not everyone will be able to attend.
Pick Your Venue
This celebration is usually more intimate, and it is not usually as formal as a wedding. It can be fancy if you like, so you should spend some time thinking about what you want. You have many opportunities when thinking about venues. If the event is more low-key, you can do it in a home or restaurant, or even a beach or backyard. If you want a more formal event, you can rent a ballroom, a larger room at a restaurant, or other event space. No matter which option you decide on, the celebration should be hosted in an area that feels right to both of you.
Understanding Gifts
Gifts are not usually given at engagement parties, but many guests won’t want to arrive empty-handed. People are inclined to give gifts to family and friends for nearly every wedding-related event, so you may want to create a short registry with some lower-priced items. If the parents of the bride are in the picture, they can send the link to any guests who want to give a present. If your friends are throwing a less formal celebration, your guests may arrive with only flowers or a bottle of wine, so you may not need to worry about creating a registry.
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