TL;DR: I'm worried that all of my decisions are starting to clash and now I can't decide on anything. How did you come up with a vision for your big day?
So I'm getting married at the beginning of September in a state park. Ceremony outside by the lake, reception in an enclosed pavilion. It's a small wedding-- we are expecting 35- 40 guests, no bridesmaids/groomsmen. I've done a lot of the big stuff: photographer, caterer, music, save-the-dates, and dress. But I feel like I've frozen up and can't go any further. We're 7 months away so I know I have time, but I just want to get it done.
I'm mostly worried that as I decide on the "details" the wedding will not be cohesive. I have a very vague vision for the day: a bright, light, classy picnic. I feel like every decision I make has to fit into that and I have no clue how to do it.
There are many decisions that I'm happy with and are pretty much set in stone. We have to be out of the venue by 9, so we're starting the ceremony at 3 and ending the reception at 8. I think this fits the crowd nicely, as we are inviting kids (really toddlers). The catering- we finally found someone willing to do a small wedding on a popular weekend and she is great! We will have hors'devoures for cocktail hour including crostini with ricotta and fresh peaches, and melon wrapped in prosciutto. We're serving dinner buffet-style featuring flank steak (grilled on site) and spice-rubbed salmon, sweet corn salad, greens with strawberries/walnuts, etc. We have some hookups in the "beverage" industry and we'll have a limited bar with local beer, wine, and maybe a hard cider. I've hired a classical guitar player to play the ceremony and cocktail hour, and he is providing speakers so we can have our own playlist as background music for the reception (not expecting much dancing). And we're really hoping to use local wildflowers for centerpieces and my bouquet.
I'm second-guessing myself on everything else. I want to buy real glasses, plates, etc. But I don't know if this is too fancy for the venue. I want everyone to be comfortable and I feel like the dress code should be casual- khakis/dress shirt or summery dress, but I don't want people to arrive feeling underdressed. I also want to incorporate some lawn games during cocktail hour and reception, like corn hole, since many of my guests aren't dancers and it might be fun for the kids. But I'm worried it's too cheesy. And I love my dress, but it is lace and floor-length with a bit of a train. Does this contrast too much with my guests' dress code?
I'm just having trouble finding the right balance. Did any of you get stuck at this stage? What helped?
