Process
User Research
I began with secondary research to understand the wedding planning industry and shape my hypothesis. Then, I conducted decontextualized user interviews to uncover key pain points, motivations, and behaviors to guide my design decisions.
Rising Wedding Costs
Costs have soared to nearly $50,000 due to inflation affecting living and wedding expenses
DIY Weddings Rising
Increasing number of couples choosing DIY weddings planning using online tools and apps
Planning Challenges
About 60% of couples, struggle with budgeting, and 54% feel unsure how to start the vendor search.
Shifting Market Trend
Decreased demand over the next five years as couples turn to self-planning or seek cost-effective alternatives.
Hypothesis
I hypothesize that couples planning their weddings are likely to feel overwhelmed due to the challenges of vendor selection and decision-making fatigue. This hypothesis will be considered validated if at least 2/3 of the participants in my study confirm feeling overwhelmed by these factors, as indicated through their responses.
User Interviews
I spoke with three engaged individuals to understand their wedding planning experiences firsthand. Through in-depth interviews, I explored their pain points, goals, motivations, and behaviors, uncovering the challenges they faced and what they truly needed in the planning process.
Participant Criteria
Currently engaged and actively planning their weddings
Wedding within the next 6-18 months
At least one or both partners involved in the wedding planning process
Planning a formal wedding ceremony and/or reception
Kiana, 25
Underwriter
“Comparing different vendors can be hard. I want to see things at the same time but I can’t.”
Sarah, 29
Physicians Assistant
“I want a clear picture of the wedding costs.”
Emily, 32
Accountant
“I want to plan my wedding without it giving me decisions-making fatigue and it affecting my personal life.”
Designing The Wedding Atelier:
User-Centered Approach to Wedding Planning
Problem
Planning a wedding is supposed to be one of life’s happiest moments, but for many couples, it quickly becomes overwhelming. Rising costs and the endless search for vendors turn excitement into stress, with hours spent comparing prices and options—only to feel more confused and frustrated.
Watching friends go through this process, I realized there had to be a better way. The goal was to help couples plan with confidence and actually enjoy the experience.
Solution
I set out to create more than just a planning tool—I wanted to give couples peace of mind. Through secondary research and user interviews, I uncovered the frustrations of countless hours juggling spreadsheets, comparing vendor emails, and websites, trying to piece everything together. Couples needed a simpler way to manage it all in one place.
Role
Guided by these insights, as the creator of The Wedding Atelier, I designed a digital platform that streamlines vendor comparisons and task management. The journey from concept to solution followed an iterative design process where I spearheaded each task including user research, creating a user persona, mapping the user journey, and sketching out ideas that evolved into wireframing, prototyping and finally user testing.
Affinity Mapping
User Interview Insight
Vendor Research & Comparison
3/3 Participants seek efficient comparison tools to confidently align choices with their budget and style
Budgeting & Hidden Costs
2/3 Participants seek financial clarity and control in wedding planning
Decision Overload & Time Management
3/3 Participants feel decision-fatigue and seek effective ways to plan without feeling overwhelmed
User Persona
Drawing from user interviews and insights, I crafted a persona that highlighted the key pain points, motivations, and behaviors of engaged individuals. This deepened my understanding of their needs and priorities throughout the wedding planning journey.
User Experience Map
Diving into the user’s experience, I explored how they navigate the search for vendors, uncovering their frustrations and decision-making process. This helped me pinpoint gaps in the process, revealing opportunities to improve the experience of searching for and selecting vendors.
Task Flow
Mood Boarding
After completing user research and having a better understanding of user pain points and needs, I collected visual inspiration—everything from Apple’s iPhone comparison UI to existing wedding apps on the market. By piecing everything together in a mood board, I identified best practices and pinpointed what frustrated users in other apps. These insights guided the creation of my initial layouts and design elements.
Solution Sketches
Mid Fidelity Wireframes
When I conducted user interviews, I had open conversations with engaged couples. The need for a simpler, more efficient way to compare multiple vendors became clear. The biggest challenge was making vendor comparisons feel seamless. Couples wanted to quickly view prices, availability, and reviews, but managing all that information felt overwhelming. That's when the "aha" moment struck: introduce a side-by-side comparison tool, allowing couples to effortlessly evaluate their top choices without getting lost in a sea of data.
Design Prioritization Matrix
After the first round of user testing, participants shared valuable feedback on improving the app and its flow. The points are mapped on a Design Prioritization Matrix to assess their user impact versus effort required to change. These insights will then be incorporated into the high-fidelity prototype.
High Fidelity Prototype
Effortless Wedding Planning Starts Here
Wordmark
The wordmark for The Wedding Atelier reflects elegance and sophistication, aligning with the brand's focus on curating meaningful wedding planning experiences. The choice of Cormorant Garamond represents timeless grace with its classic serifs, perfectly balancing tradition and modernity.
Application Icon
The diagonal line separating "W" and "A" symbolizes the connection and balance between the couple's vision coming to life as they plan with The Wedding Atelier. The deep plum background communicates luxury, romance, and creativity.
Outcomes
Once I handed the prototype to engaged couples, I could see the enthusiasm in their faces. They immediately recognized how these features would free them from the endless spreadsheets they’d been juggling.
Early testing showed couples felt they could be more organized and confident in their decisions, signaling that the design was on the right track. By tackling their biggest pain points, there was a strong interest in an all-in-one planning solution. Users appreciated how it could save them time on vendor research and help them stay organized, indicating a real market need.
By consolidating vendor comparisons and task management into a single platform, The Wedding Atelier significantly cut down on the scattered spreadsheets and back-and-forth emails couples had relied on. Testers described the experience as more intuitive and less stressful, pointing to a successful design intervention.
If I had a chance to do it all over again, I’d start user testing even sooner, refining each feature step by step. Still, I’m thrilled to keep pushing the boundaries of what a wedding planning tool can be!
Key Learnings
User-Centered Design is Critical
Understanding the user's needs, challenges, and emotions through research helped in tailoring the design process to meet user expectations and experiences.
Iterative Design Process
Iterating wireframes and prototypes allowed for continuous feedback in developing a user-friendly product.
Communication and Clarity
Clear, concise content and intuitive navigation emerged as key factors ensuring that users could easily understand the app, minimizing potential frustration.
Next Steps
Feature Expansion
Develop additional features that could enhance the user experience. e.g. more collaborative features to keep couples and families in sync with real time updates
Cross-Platform Optimization
Develop responsive web app to allow planning on larger screens and availability to plan on any device
Cultural Expansion
Adapt the app for different cultural and regional preferences to cater to greater global market through supporting multiple languages and cultural customizations
Final Thoughts
Working on The Wedding Atelier showed me how essential it is to truly immerse myself in the user’s story. Each conversation with couples—listening to their budgeting woes, their endless vendor tabs, and their hopes for a perfect day—revealed insights I never anticipated. I learned that even the smallest design tweaks, like reorganizing a filter or adding a clear call-to-action, can dramatically change how users feel about a product. Staying flexible and open to these discoveries made my design stronger and more empathetic, ultimately helping couples focus on what truly matters: celebrating their love.