This entry is from our Expert Guest series where wedding and honeymoon professionals share their best tips on creating memories that last a lifetime.

If you’re remotely human, the thought of handling the nightmare of a canceled wedding will make you cringe and shed a few salty tears. Canceling a wedding is not an easy feat or a pleasant one.

In our history as a company, we have witnessed a total of four canceled weddings, with one being less than 30 days away. For a minute, we had to channel in on finding a right balance of empathy and professionalism. We will never totally understand why things don’t always go according to our plans.

Insurance For A Canceled Wedding

We encourage all of our clients to purchase wedding insurance. Wedding Insurance usually covers wedding postponement, your photographs, the wedding day attire, gifts, additional wedding-related expenses for a small fee, more like a tiny fee. We like to recommend The Event Helper to our clients as they have been tried, true and trusted.

What Do I Need To Do Now That The Wedding Is Canceled?

Basically, you will have to undo all that you have done. Here’s a checklist we created for you:

If the wedding is canceled after you mailed your invitations, then you will have to personally call each guest. We highly recommend that you create a script and stick with it especially since you’re going to be nervous. Please know that you do not have to share the details and the reasons why the wedding has been canceled. Some may argue and say that you should send a letter or formal announcement, but we believe a phone call is better. What if that person moved or the announcement gets lost in the mail and they show up to your venue being the only one there?

Review your contracts between you and your venue, caterer, and other vendors to understand their cancelation clause is a much with handling the nightmare of a canceled wedding. We recommend that you contact them via telephone and follow up with an email to create a paper trail. I would ask each vendor if there are any documents that you need to complete. Please make sure to collect a confirmation email from each vendor. Do not expect a refund from most of your vendors or the venue as they may have turned away other business on your wedding date. There are some vendors that have a clause in their contract that requires you to pay the full balance whether or not your wedding is canceled. Other vendors or venues will charge 50 percent or more of their estimated fee for this cancellation.

You will need to reimburse your wedding party for any money they spent towards their attire. You also need to reimburse them for any money they spent on the wedding festivities such as the bachelorette or bachelor party, the bridal show and so forth.

You will need to return any wedding gifts you received. In addition to returning the wedding gift, you should also include a note to thank them for the gift as well as letting them know the wedding has been canceled. Let’s say that you already used the gift, and then you will have to purchase an identical replacement to send back to them.

Who Keeps the Ring?

Handling the nightmare of a canceled wedding also includes who gets to keep the ring! We believe the ring should go back to the person who gave it. Others may argue that the ring is a gift. Let’s be real, why would you want to keep the ring if you did not pay for it? Now let us say that he canceled the wedding without good reason or because you caught him red-handed, girlfriend, you deserve to keep the ring and sell that damn thing with all of its bad ju-ju. The Lord said to forgive, but there’s nowhere in scripture that says you have to forgive and give him back the ring.

Bio: More about Events By Seven

Events by Seven is your destination for luxury weddings + events. We cater to the fashionable girl with an eye for intricate details and posh design. We are Orlando’s Luxury Wedding & Event Planners. We have set the standard for creating beautiful events by offering innovative ideas and creative approaches throughout the entire journey.

We are passionate about helping our couples secure their wedding venue at five-star resorts, private estates, castles, mansions, and museums in the United States and the Caribbean so their guests can receive an extraordinary experience. We tell all of our clients to relax, breathe, and don’t worry about all the (behind the scenes) details, just have fun and enjoy your special day.

Top Seven benefits of hiring us to plan & coordinate your Wedding or Event:

We are professionals.
We are driven by integrity.
We can save you time and money.
We love style & current wedding trends.
We can carry out your vision.
We allow you and your loved ones to be a guest.
We are FUN!!!

Help finance your wedding dreams with a Honeyfund honeymoon registry.

This entry is from our Expert Guest series where wedding and honeymoon professionals share their best tips on creating memories that last a lifetime.

It’s a common problem, really. A bride-on-the-fly picks up a wedding workbook or bridal magazine. She quickly flips to the planning guides promised within. She scans the text eagerly, then sighs with disappointment. Looks like the short engagement she’d hoped for can’t be crammed into the 12-18 month timetables listed within. Doesn’t anybody want to actually get married these days? she asks herself, wondering if she should give in, extend her engagement, and stay in pre-marital limbo for two years while planning a huge blowout event.

You Can Complete Wedding Planning In 6 Months Or Less

A word of encouragement if the above scenario sounds familiar: Don’t throw out the bouquet with the bathwater just yet. Believe me, I get it! When confronted by the time constraints and expectations of Traditional Wedding World, it can be easy to lose sight of the heart behind your hurry. But is it impossible to plan a wedding in six months or less? Not even close!

To compensate for your time deficiency, you’ll need the following in your bag of tricks: a clear vision for your Big Day, the ability to make quick decisions under pressure, and a flexibility level that rivals that of an Olympic gymnast. Listed in order from call-the-day-you-get-engaged to give-yourself-a-week-and-then-hop-to-it, here are six standout To-Dos that deserve special attention once you begin the planning process. Just remember: The shorter your engagement, the higher these items should rise on your priority list. (And if you’re really tempting fate—as in, you’re trying to pull off a wedding in two weeks or less—then adhere to this list and forget everything else. Except your fiancé, of course.)

Managing The 6 Big To Dos

1. The Guest List

With your fiancé, decide how many people you’d like to invite to your wedding, plan on about 70 percent of those people showing up, and commence with list-making. A word to the wise bride: Do not delay. So many things stem from the guest list. Namely, more lists. Think engagement parties, bridal showers, invitation orders, catering estimates, chair rentals…the list (see?) goes on.

2. Ceremony and Reception Locations

This should happen so fast it should be like a reflex. Get engaged, book your venues. Breathing can happen later. Having trouble finding an available Saturday evening in the next century or so? Consider saying “I do” to an alternative wedding day and time. If you’re open to hosting your wedding on a Friday or Sunday, or even just slightly adjusting to a Saturday morning, you are likely to find that a whole new world of venue availability opens up before you…and since venues and caterers are ever-anxious to fill empty spots on their calendars, there may be discounts to be scored, too!

3. Caterer

When on a tight schedule, it can be helpful to look for reception locations that provide in-house catering. Two birds, one stone—you know how the saying goes.

4. Wedding Gown

Read closely: You do not have time to try on 300+ dresses like your girlfriend who had an 18-month engagement, or those women toting binders full of magazine clippings on TLC’s Say Yes to the Dress. It generally takes six months for a gown to arrive, although there are workarounds to this “traditional” timeframe. Know what you like, place an order, prepare to pay a rush fee, then stop perusing Pinterest. (No, seriously—stop right now.)

If you’re worried about finding a gown quickly, make a proactive phone call to four or five salons in your area and ask if they’ll be hosting a sample sale at any point in the near future. Also up for consideration: buying from online retailers such as Grace Loves Lace, renting a gown from sites like Rent the Runway or Borrowing Magnolia, and off-the-rack shopping.

5. Invitations

Save-the-dates, formal invites…as soon as the all-important master guest list has been made, get them ordered. Even if you choose to order online from providers like Minted or Wedding Paper Divas, it will take a few weeks for your invitations to arrive in the mail. Next, you’ll have to address, assemble, stamp, and send them a minimum of 6-8 weeks prior to your wedding date. Note: If the aforementioned two-week scenario is your reality, stick to emailed invitations. Period.

6. Photographer + Videographer

You spent so much time on all the little details. Don’t you want them permanently documented? If your answer is yes, keep in mind that most professional photographers require deposits 90 days in advance of your wedding date. Additionally, photographers who are in high-demand have been known to accept a limited number of gigs each year, with bookings confirmed up to 12 months in advance.

Flexibility is key here, so I highly recommend building an A, B, and C list of creative professionals you would be comfortable working with. All the professionals have their calendars full? Proposition a friend with a fancy Nikon who’s working toward building a professional portfolio and pray for the best. Something’s better than nothing!

Let a Honeyfund honeymoon registry help you accomplish you wedding dreams.

Bio: Karley Kiker is a former speedy bride, current happy wife, and the author of How to Plan Your Wedding in Six Months or Less. She graduated from Pepperdine University in 2011 with a degree in Creative Writing and, to her parents’ great joy, she actually uses it. In addition to running the wedding planning blog ashortengagement.com, she co-owns a boutique creative content + marketing company called Writefully Said with her husband, Taylor. Learn more: ashortengagement.com | On Instagram: @ashortengagement

Wedding planning

Handling The Nightmare Of A Canceled Wedding