Wedding Blog
Well, my friends, it is now less than a week to my wedding–I can’t believe it. I am totally calm, I kid you not. Almost everything is done. Momma Puff and Puff Daddy are coming into town tonight, and they each have a short list of projects to help me out, but all the big things are DONE!
The one thing that has been a major lifesaver for me throughout this wedding process has been my Mad Crazy Skills of Organization. I am a Virgo and find organization infinitely amazing and loads of fun (the sick thing is that I’m totally not kidding!). Organizing all the details has actually been pretty entertaining for me, but also really helpful for all of our vendors.
First, I’d like to share with you what our house looks like right now. After that, I’ll get into my planning organization. Some of you might not find organization as thrilling as I do, so I expect that there will probably be about two comments on this post. But if this helps two people get better organized, I figure it’s worth the post. 
Moving right along… our house is currently full of boxes–three separate piles of boxes, to be exact. All of the boxes are color coded, using circle stickers from Paper Source.
Purple is for the reception (cat not included):
Yellow is for the ceremony:
And pink is for the hotel:
On each sticker is the destination, and the contents are written on the box:
Inside the box, everything is carefully packed. On top is either a mock-up of the table (in this case) or instructions on how to place things:
All of these boxes will be dropped off with either the caterer (along with the alcohol) or the day of coordinators. The pink pile will come to the hotel with us–it contains things like shoes, our ketubah, accessories for my dress, bridal party gifts, etc. I have already told our catering manager that I’ve done this, and she was thrilled. My theory is this: if you want your vendors to love you, be totally organized so that it’s unlikely they’ll do anything wrong, but don’t get upset if something does go wrong.
Now, onto the more boring stuff (who am I kidding, you guys probably find this entire post boring!): the planning organization.
My friend Amanda has a drawer in her dresser filled with wedding-related paraphernalia. My friend Marianne has outfitted her purple wedding book with her own stuff. My co-worker has an entire room in her house filled with wedding crap. I have a binder.
Said binder is a little bit over the top. I have literally EVERYTHING in this binder.
Inside are samples of all of our wedding paper products, just in case I need to reference them, along with tabbed dividers. I used file folders instead of regular dividers. Inside each file folder was the contact information for that vendor. Behind the divider are all the contracts and papers related to that vendor.
My dividers are: Schedules/checklists, Ceremony Stuff, Reception Stuff, DIY stuff, Caterer, Guestlist, Cake, Band, Rehearsal Dinner, Flowers, Photographer/Videographer, Hotel, Attire, Transportation, Hair/Makeup, Rings, Budget and Honeymoon. In the back, I also have a three-ring folder for keeping various things in.
I highly recommend keeping an envelope with all of your wedding-related receipts in your binder. This has saved me from having to root through the recycling to return baskets that were the wrong size or excess paper.
Randomly, I also recommend a label maker! They’re tons of fun. Anyone else got any organizational tips?
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Dang, I wish there was a pill I could take to become more like you! I’m glad you are feeling calm. Your wedding is going to be amazing
nothing to say except: you are an organization goddess. i totally aspire to be like you (and i’m totally not kidding either!).
you’re in the home stretch, sister! take a deep breath and enjoy…i can’t wait to see pictures!
I’m literally sitting here with my jaw on the desk. Hahaha… it’s like the zen of organization here! Wow. I’m totally going to use your label scheme!
Totally looking forward to hearing about the wedding!
You make my Virgo heart sing. I just finished creating diagrams in power point of how everything in the reception hall should be set up…down to where pens for the wish book go. I keep joking (somewhat) that I’m going to rent a u-haul to truck around all the stuff that needs to go from my house or my Mom’s house to the wedding. GL, next week…can’t wait to see pics of how it all turns out, Mazel Tov!
A-mazing! you are my organizational goddess! I am totally going to copy you, because I would have NEVER of thought of it. Have a wonderful wedding and can’t wait to see pictures of when the Puffs Unite
ps. Liz I think I owe you a coke I just saw we said the same thing!!
Mr. Cookie is also a Virgo! And I must say you put us Geminis to shame! I bow down to the Cream Puff organizational awesomeness!
I am printing your extremly helpful post right now so I can remember your AWESOME organizational skills for my wedding
i love it. i am a huge organizational person and had already planned on separating items with mockup pictures/instructions to help with the setup, but color coded labels is genius…
so brilliant….maybe you should be a professional organizer. i would hire you!
OMG– I think you are my long-lost twin sister. The boxes, the labels, right down to the photos of what things should look like. LOVE IT!! I have to show my honey that I’m NOT nuts, and am in very good company 
As a girl who color codes her whole closet AND shoes collection, I can totally relate to you. I still don’t understand how the rest of civilization survives without a perfect color-coding skill.
This looks like my wedding closet. Only yours is WAY better! I am impressed beyond words.
I aspire to be like you! I was not that organized on my wedding day, but things somehow fell into place. I do find organization the key to relieving anxiety. Good for you! And I can’t wait to see how it all turns out - gorgeous I’m sure… Chrissy Field is one of my all-time favorite places.
Miss CP, you are my hero. I am EXACTLY the same way. While I do not have the color coded stickers, yet. I have things organized to a T. You are awesome and I can not believe your day is almost here!! How exciting!
I was the same way, but wasn’t brilliant enough to have the color coded sticker.
Freakin. genius.
I am so stealing that idea! As a wedding planner, you are my ideal client =)
Holy crap, you are brilliant. I must learn from you. I haven’t even THOUGHT of doing photo mockups so people can set up easily. How simple, how genius, how I am stealing that idea…
So now I have to know if you’re like me and basically have to carry that binder with you everywhere? Okay, not everywhere. Not to the grocery store or anything, but to and from work every day (just in case I need to do something or someone asks something, etc. you know?), to every vendor meeting, on all our wedding-related shopping trips, meetings, etc. My binder is just as stuffed and over-the-top-organized. I love it, i love it, i love it. My FI calls me the bag lady (b/c I carry so much stuff every day to and from work). I’m excited to know my vendors will thank me. And that, hopefully, it will help me be as calm as you when it’s my turn.
That said, the stickers for the boxes?! — You are a—-mazing. I am so freakin’ dang darn excited to see your wedding pictures
I bow to you! You are my idol! I hope I can be as organized as you for my wedding, but at least for me it will be easier b/c all I have to do is copy you
@Miss Gingerbread: It still says you are a MISS and not a MRS!
Fellow Virgo here, and I thought I was organized! From making up an itinerary for my own 30th b-day party to having a Bridesmaid Newsletter, people thought I was crazy and had too much time on my hands. My answer is you can never be too prepared.
You go girl!
from one organizational girl to the other, i love your system. you sound just like me! though i’m a leo and not a virgo. ha. everyone gets on me for being so organized but it’s a lifesaver!
Love the large color coded stickers, very easily recognized!
My totally fav, is the picture with the layout! Just. Plain. Brilliant.
I bow down to your organizing powers. We’re just starting our planning, and my organizing to date is a small binder with dress pictures ripped from magazines, and a bookmarks folder in Firefox that might explode. 
My wedding is the same day as yours and i have done the EXACT same things as you - labeled all the boxes, I have a binder - so weird. You will have a great day!
Boy are you wrong, I am in love with this post!!!!
I think others have said the same, but MAN was this post awesome! I’m not even getting married and i can use some of these tips!
Love, love LOVE! I had this system pictured in my mind - especially w/all the DIY projects - to make things easier for myself and the army of helpers I’m going to need on the big day.
I had thought of the color coded labels - but not using the gigantor Paper-Source ones! Totally stealing that idea!
I’ve already added this post to my Google notebook for reference in a few months! Thanks.
You’re so much better than I!
We were packing those boxes an house before (if we were lucky!) we left for our rehearsal dinner.
From one Virgo to another… I applaud your organizational skills (and secretly say “Whew! I AM normal after all!” :)) I’ve already purchased a “wedding binder” along with cute folders and dividers to go inside and keep everything in its place! I’m so glad to see that all the organizing pays off and am so excited to hear all about how it all goes on your big day! Have a great rest of the week!
i love you.
Glad to know I am not crazy after all. I had everything labeled, pictured, pictures were labeled, boxes were labeled with all inventory. I made diagrams and folders for everyone involved in decorating with all layouts and pics and instructions and complete instructions on how everything went together.
It was very helpful to everyone. My photog said he had never seen any bride so incredibly organized. CHEERS to you!
You are effing sick.
Block off the entire month of October, because you’re coming with me.
Thank you for the post! I would love to have your skills girl. Have an awesome wedding, I can’t wait to see your pics and read all about it!!
Oooh brilliant idea to include photos of the table mockups in the boxes! I would never have thought of that!
I’m sooo glad to see that I’m that the only crazy one that had labels on every box. Mine were not as nice nor were they color coded though. I did put down (Box XX of XX) though on each one so we knew that we had every box.
A suggestion that I think worked well w/my wedding is also to have a sticker for what should happen after the events. Example) XXX (Coordinator) put out sign in book, pens, money box. Night - XXX (Coordinator) put sign-in box, pens and money box back in box and give to Bride’s brother to put in car to take home.
i’m so amazed my your skills… i will have to steal your idea on the color coordination part!
OMG I already have the binder with color-coded dividers, but the color-coded boxes with MOCK UP PHOTOS???
As the Guiness commercials say, Brilliant!
This post is going into my favorites (confession: I have a whole favorites folder devoted to weddingbee idea posts)
ah, i love you. and i am now ordering bulk quantities of large stickers for everyday things.
i’m a capricorn but i adore orginization. i mean it. i admire my filing cabinet. i love the mockup pictures idea. i have a picture of an organizing dream– a seperate binder for each category. it was a-m-a-zing. (conrfession: my favorite posts on weddingbee almost always consist of folders, spreadsheets, and labels).
You are totally my inspiration. I love being organized and the box labels with the list of contents and the mock up pictures are genius.
Oh I’m so impressed with you! Can I please please have 1/10th of what you have?
You’re organizing with the efficiency of an assault team!!!
So I just got engaged like 2 days ago, and I’m already starting to feel overwhelmed with the immense piles of “stuff” that a wedding requires, especially because I am a fellow organizing addict. Your post has totally given me the courage to kick my wedding’s butt.
Thank you!!!
Too funny. I just did almost the same things with my boxes. I thought I was nuts or at least going a little too far printing lists for each box w/it’s contents, assembly instructions, and mock up pics. Nice to know I’m not alone
I live in OH, but will be getting married in WI so I LOVELOVELOVE your sticker organization idea!! Thanks.
When you said Virgo, I said, I understand. But seriously, the Virgo in me is the same way. My binder has sections for each things, with mock-ups for my wedding that is just under a year away. Each page has a page protector. It is sickening to some, but oh so pleasant to me. I love it all Miss Cream Puff, but I especially love you. I can’t wait for your wedding! Is it weird that I have been waiting for it since you started blogging?
Im an organizational freak too. Incidentally, also a virgo! (Aug 28th)
I LOVE the sticker idea. We are getting married out of state, so hopefully that will help keep things where they are supposed to be!
Excel spreadsheets have also been my godsend. I have the binder (i get picked on because its SO organized), but my vendors have said the same thing, YAY for organized brides.
I’m going to try getting Mamita Pom to let me borrow her labelmaker - but MAN that is a genius use of those circle stickers! I love it!
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Mrs. Cream Puff, San Francisco Bay Area
Age and Occupation: 25, Illustrator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Merchandise Planner
Engagement Date: May 27, 2007
Wedding Date: August, 2008
Blogging Since: February 7, 2008
Venue: Ceremony at Crissy Field and Reception at the Green Room
About Me: I never dreamed about my wedding as a little girl because I was too busy playing in the mud or pretending to be Martha Stewart–but now that it's here, I'm having a fabulous time DIYing everything in sight! We’re planning a very fun multicultural wedding (I'm Jewish and Mr. Cream Puff is Chinese), filled with as many personal details as I can muster.
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