While there are millions of things that you have to consider for your actual wedding day, there are still things to think about when your wedding is finished and you are officially married. The best thing that you can do is to consider these things before you have your wedding day happen so that you don’t have to stress about anything on your wedding day or when your wedding day is finished. Here are some of the things that you need to do and think about for after your wedding day.

Submitting your Marriage License

This one is probably the most important task after your wedding day is over! Depending on the county that you are having your ceremony at, there are different rules and timeframes you need to follow in order to have your marriage license successfully submitted. Many people will opt to simply mail their signed marriage license to the county clerk’s office and then go and get your marriage certificates later - especially if you are planning on going on a honeymoon immediately following your wedding day or weekend. You can also both go in person with the signed copy and get your marriage license right then and there to know that everything is taken care of, but typically you must do this within about 11 days of your wedding day. Make sure to check your county’s rules on their websites!

Honeymoon Planning

If you’re planning on going on a honeymoon after your wedding day, there are a TON of logistics that go into planning a trip. Make sure you dedicate some of your wedding planning time to planning the trip the way that you want it!

Preserving your Dress

Some people will simply opt to not do this, and I actually have a blog post here that is 7 things you can do with your wedding dress after your wedding if you’re interested in alternative routes. In many cases, your local dry cleaner will be able to do this for you. Definitely make sure to get your dress cleaned after the wedding at the very least so the stains don’t set too much! But preserving your dress will ensure that it has a long, clean life for whatever you would like to keep it for.

Preserving your Bouquet and Other Decor

All of your items from your wedding day that are personal decorations or even your florals will need to have a home and a plan! Whether it is to trash them, sell them, or keep them, it’s good to know what you’re planning on doing. You also need to plan months before your wedding if you’re planning on preserving your bouquets because otherwise you may not be able to find the available vendors or supplies when you actually need it!

Game Plan for your Last Name

Many people plan to keep their last name instead of changing it, which is definitely a simple, sentimental choice that you can make. If that is not your plan, you need to figure out the logistical process that will be easiest for you. Typically, you can use your marriage certificate to obtain a new social security card and then get your driver’s license changed. After those two things, it’s a lot easier to change your name everywhere else. If you are planning on changing your last name, please keep in mind your name that is on your honeymoon reservations and make sure you stick with that name until the honeymoon is over! You can definitely find yourself in a pickle if your name on your passport or driver’s licensedoesn’t match your name in the reservations.

Writing Thank-You Cards

You can definitely kick it old school and handwrite all of your thank yous for your wedding shower/wedding day gifts, but remember that this will take quite a bit of time! You likely will have to dedicate a few months to this task and to do it when you have time throughout your next newlywed chapter. Some people opt to print their thank yous to save your hands as well - or you can make one simple message for everyone to receive and maybe add a personal note to each!

Leave Reviews

Your vendors will love you forever if you go ahead and write them some reviews for Google or The Knot! I’m sure while you were looking for your wedding vendors that you probably looked through their reviews, and they truly are like gold for your vendors and their businesses! If you have the time, I definitely would recommend writing a 5 minute review to your vendors - it is extremely appreciated!

Hopefully while wedding planning, these things can be simple to add to your to-do list to think about. Whether or not you do really any of these (besides the marriage license - that’s kind of the only necessity to the wedding!), it’s definitely at least things that you need to consider before the wedding planning comes to a halt. You don’t want to look back and wish that you had considered these things sooner, so at least making sure you know what you might need to do is really important to making sure you have everything covered for your wedding day!

If you need some help figuring out the logistics of your wedding day, you can go here and I would love to help you plan a wedding that you’re excited about!