Some gorgeous tents

We have had the luck of creating some gorgeous tented weddings for our clients. To view a fun time lapse of a tent set up, visit our website, Build A Tent

Love Is In The Air Evening

The first of many images from our bridal showcase with STARR events. It was an incredible show with my favorite vendors. Our table designs were based upon a detail of the bridal gown. I staged the dresses next to each table inspiration. The evening could not have been better.

More images to follow soon on the blog!

Images by  Phil Kramer Photography

Catering and Event space by STARR Events

"Day Of" is never just "Day Of"

When a client calls me for "Day Of” services, I know what they want. A "Day Of" Wedding Planner is supposed to swoop in and be the organizational side of the bride so the bride can get to the altar on time and enjoy her day. Because of all of the tedious details and countless hours of work the bride has put into her wedding, she wants to see each detail come to life (perfectly executed). To assure that it all happens just as planned, she will hire a “Day Of Planner”. She will hand off some notes and the Wedding Planner will take it from there. Because it is "just day of", it will be easy and not cost a lot of money. That is the first misconception.

It does not work for a Wedding Planner to walk into a wedding and suddenly become the voice of the bride when there has been no prior connection between the Wedding Planner and the Wedding Vendor. The band is not going to turn down the music when asked by some person they have had no contact with before. The caterer or hotel is not going to correct the table setting unless they hear it from the person they have been working with for months who is paying their invoice. A "Day Of Planner" carries no clout.

Your Wedding Planner will be successful if your Wedding Planner has established relationships at least one month prior to your big day.  Why not budget some dollars for the ability to find out information quickly and confirm your decisions during the planning process.  A meeting with you and your planner should take place many months before your wedding day and as details are established and vendors hired, your Wedding Planner can be in the loop. Your Wedding Planner needs to know “the who and the what” of all of the details and review them to be sure nothing is missed. A professional who does planning for a living will help insure you have the perfect plan by reviewing each and every detail. Your Wedding Planner should attend the wedding rehearsal to get acquainted with the bridal party and parents. That will help establish a relationship so come "Day Of" they know who to turn to rather than bother the bride.

Therefore, "Day Of" is always more than “just day of" if it is to be successful. And in the end, isn’t that what you want?

Why hire a Wedding Planner

A bride is given the enormous task of planning the most important day of her life having had no experience in this arena and no need to do it more than one time (fingers crossed).  Even the most organized Type A personality can be unsuccessful at wedding planning. In this Google world, one would think it would be easy to go it on your own. In reality, it makes it more difficult because the choices are endless. The opportunities to DIY and Pinterest yourself to death are out there. The new relationships that have to be researched reviewed and established takes hours, weeks and months to organize. Where to begin? Who can you trust with the most important day of your life having never had this task before? Think of it as a business. You would not entrust your business to anyone you did not “know”. Building these relationships takes time.

When you want photos of your wedding, you hire a professional photographer. When you want music at your party, you hire a professional band.  When you want a video, you hire a professional cinematographer. When you want to plan the biggest day of your life, you go at it alone not having any knowledge or experience. Does that make sense? Wedding planners exist for a reason. If all people could successfully do it on their own, they would.

A wedding planner should be the first person you call after the engagement ring is on your finger. Imagine the ability to find out everything you need to know without searching the web for countless hours thereby adding to the stress of planning what is supposed to be the most important day of your life. The multitude of questions that arise include: should we send a save the date, how many people should we have in the wedding party, where should we host the reception, where do we block rooms for our out of town guests, how do we get everyone transported and the list goes on and on and on. A professional wedding planner can answer all of those questions easily and keep you from second guessing your choices. What a wedding planner owns is intellectual property, much like any other consultant; be it attorney or financial planner. A Wedding Planner has done the research, has the knowledge and has the professional connections that you need. The Wedding Planner also has the ability to organize a winning team to insure your wedding weekend is exactly what you wanted and paid for.

Planning the average wedding from beginning to end requires about 600 to 800 hours of work. (15-20 weeks full time) Planning your wedding can become your “job”. A wedding planner is not a luxury item; a wedding planner is your "General Contractor”.  You certainly would not build a house without a GC, why would you plan your wedding without a Wedding GC?

Think of it as an investment.