Wedding Decor Checklist: What to Book, and When

A wedding decor checklist approached late runs into availability problems that no budget can fix. In 2026, wedding decor spending rose 16.5% in Australia - the steepest jump of any vendor category - and florists at popular venues are routinely booked 9-12 months in advance.¹ Working through this checklist by phase means first-choice suppliers are still available when you reach each item.

How much does wedding decor cost in Australia?

The average spend on wedding decor and styling in Australia is $2,849 in 2026. The state range is wide: VIC averages $4,201, NSW $2,785, and SA $1,387.¹

Florals are a separate line item. The average cost of wedding flowers in Australia is $2,639, up 8% on the prior year, with NSW couples paying the most at $3,346 and QLD the least among the well-sampled states at $1,977.²

Hire - furniture, styling props, draping and tableware - runs at a national average of $2,203, and was the one decor-adjacent category that fell in 2026, down 9%.³ Of the 46% of couples who hire anything, 45% rent a combination of items, 43% rent decor items specifically, and 10% rent furniture.⁴

Across flowers, decor and hire, a couple at the national average is spending around $7,700 before lighting, signage or stationery. Against the average wedding total of $38,252⁷, decor is a material share - and the share most likely to run over because it is planned last.

What this wedding decor checklist covers

Wedding decor falls into six categories, each with separate suppliers, separate lead times, and separate requirements on the day:

• Florals - ceremony arch flowers, bridal bouquet, attendant bouquets, buttonholes, centrepieces, and petal confetti
• Table decor - centrepieces, tablecloths, table runners, candles, and place settings
• Ceremony styling - backdrop or arbour, aisle runner, aisle decor, and chair styling
• Hire items - furniture, draping, props, tableware, and linen
• Lighting - festoon lights, uplighting, fairy-light canopies, and neon
• Signage and stationery - welcome sign, seating chart display, table numbers, menus, and place cards

Some of these come from the venue, some from the florist, and some from a separate hire or styling company. The key task before booking anything is to confirm in writing what the venue provides and what you need to source externally.

12 months out

• Book the florist. This is the booking most couples leave too late. Florists at booked venues fill their calendar at roughly the same rate as the venue itself. For dates in October, November, March or April, 12 months is not early.²
• Set the style direction. The 2026 Easy Weddings survey found that 41% of couples draw primarily from their own tastes, 30% from Pinterest, and 16% from Instagram.⁶ A locked direction means the florist quote reflects a real brief, not a conversation.
• Confirm what the venue provides. Some venues include centrepiece vases, chair sashes, linen, and table numbers. Others provide the room and nothing else. Get this in writing before quoting hire externally.

9 months out

• Book a hire company or stylist, if you plan to use one. About 46% of Australian couples hire at least some furniture or styling props.⁴ Hire companies book out at similar rates to florists because their inventory is finite - a popular festoon-light canopy or set of ghost chairs has limited availability any given Saturday.
• Decide on real or artificial flowers. The 2026 survey found 43% of couples use real flowers only, 35% a mix of real and faux, and 22% artificial.⁵ This shapes the florist brief and the hire list, so it is a decision that has downstream effects.
• Check ceremony venue restrictions. Some venues prohibit naked flames, aerosol confetti, or candles. Some have load-in windows as short as 30 minutes before the ceremony. Confirm both before any supplier commits to a setup timeline.

6 months out

• Finalise the florist brief in writing. Include the colour palette, specific flower references, and a complete item list: ceremony arch type, bridal bouquet style, number of attendant bouquets, buttonhole count, centrepiece style and table count, and petal confetti. Verbal briefs result in scope disputes.
• Order ceremony and reception signage. Custom acrylic and timber signage from most Australian suppliers requires 6-8 weeks of production time. Popular makers book to 3 months. A welcome sign ordered at 6 months has room for a revision round.
• Confirm lighting requirements with the venue. Festoon lights, uplighting panels, and fairy-light canopies are all venue-specific: some venues have house lighting systems, some allow suppliers to rig overhead, and some prohibit rigging entirely.
• Book a site visit with your stylist or hire company. Walk the ceremony and reception spaces together and confirm where each hire piece will go, where florals arrive, and who manages setup. This is also when to confirm whether the hire company or the venue's own team does bump-in.

3 months out

• Place orders for table stationery. Menus, place cards, and table numbers from most Australian print suppliers take 3-5 weeks. Revision rounds can push this out to 6-8 weeks. Ordering at 3 months provides room to correct errors.
• Confirm hire delivery and pickup windows with the venue. These go into the run sheet as separate rows: hire arrival time, and hire clearance time. Confirm the windows with your venue event coordinator before they go into the vendor brief.
• Plan the ceremony-to-reception floral move. Reusing ceremony florals at the reception is among the most common ways to reduce overall floral cost - Easy Weddings 2026 notes it "has become a common consideration as couples look to maximise value."⁵ Tell the florist during the brief, not after the flowers arrive, so they design for double use.

6-8 weeks out

• Confirm final centrepiece count with the florist. Guest count often shifts between the 3-month and 6-week marks, and centrepiece count follows table count, which follows guest count. A 5-table change at this point is still manageable; 2 weeks out, it is not.
• Finalise the seating display. A seating chart, escort card display, or mirror board depends on the confirmed guest list. Get the display from your maker in this window so corrections are possible before it is framed or finished.

Week before

• Confirm setup times with every decor supplier. Florist arrival time, hire delivery window, lighting rig time, and stylist setup block all go into the run sheet. Each vendor needs to know the exact window they have access to the venue.
• Write a vendor brief for the florist. Even if you have spoken repeatedly, the florist should arrive with a written document: delivery address and contact name on site, what goes where in the ceremony space, and when and how the ceremony florals move to the reception.
• Prepare a styling kit. Clear tape, double-sided tape, fishing line, scissors, spare candles, a lighter, an extension cord, and zip ties. Setup days run out of these reliably, and being able to solve a last-minute problem on site is worth more than an extra centrepiece.

Day of

• Walk both spaces before guests arrive. Check that every item has arrived and is placed as planned. Do this with a copy of the vendor brief and a checklist of every expected item.
• Add supplier rows to the run sheet before distributing it. The florist and hire company each need rows for arrival, for any mid-day moves, and for clearance. PlannedBy's run sheet templates include a florist column with 12 pre-built rows covering setup through to post-ceremony clearance. Distribute it with those rows filled.
• Photograph the full setup. Before guests walk in. This is the documentation if anything is missing or damaged, and the reference point for next time.

Frequently asked questions

When should you book a wedding florist?

Book a florist at least 9-12 months before the date if the wedding falls in October, November, March or April - the peak booking windows in most Australian states. For off-peak dates, 6-9 months is workable in most cities, though NSW florists average $3,346 compared to QLD's $1,977, and popular suppliers fill faster regardless of season.²

Can you style your own wedding?

Yes. 54% of Australian couples style the wedding themselves, with 20% using a professional stylist, 16% having the venue manage it, and 10% delegating it to the florist.⁶ The practical constraint is not ability, it is time: whoever handles styling needs to be available during setup, which typically means they cannot also be getting ready or greeting guests.

What is the difference between decor and styling costs?

In the 2026 Easy Weddings survey, wedding decor and wedding stylists are costed separately: $2,849 and $2,809 respectively.¹ In practice, how suppliers invoice varies. A full-service stylist may roll hire, florals, and styling labour into one quote. Others invoice each line separately. Confirm the scope in writing before signing, and ask specifically whether florals, hire delivery, and setup labour are included.

Do you need to hire furniture or props?

About 46% of Australian couples hire at least some furniture or styling props; the other 54% use what the venue provides.⁴ Ask the venue for an itemised list of what is included in the room hire before approaching an external hire supplier, so you are not quoting for items you already have.

What goes on the run sheet for decor suppliers?

Each decor supplier gets a row at their arrival time and a row when they finish or clear out. The florist needs a row for arrival at the ceremony space, a row for the ceremony-to-reception move, and a row for final clearance. The hire company needs a delivery row and a pickup row. A stylist needs a setup start row and a sign-off row. PlannedBy's run sheet generator builds a florist column from the ceremony time down, so vendor rows are pre-positioned rather than manually placed.

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Summary: what to book and when