Inspired Wednesday

Spring color inspiration board #3

The colors: Silver peony and silver cloud...

This board presents a very country, vintage and casual wedding for spring time. Great for a garden wedding and a casual atmosphere that is fun, relaxed, and feminine.



Photo Credits:
Wedding Flowers, Santa Barbara Chic Blog, Elizabeth Anne Designs, Sara Gray Photography, Oh So Beautiful Paper, Wedding Inspirasi, Life with a little cheers blog, Erica Obrien Cake

~Jenn

The Knot - 12 Worst Pieces of Wedding Advice

Reading today on MSN Lifestyle and found something interesting for the newly engaged couples when planning the special day. Here's the article:

12 Worst Pieces of Wedding Advice
Brides share the most awful tips they've been given while planning their wedding.

By Anne Roderique-Jones

1. Bad advice: "My grandmother told me that I must wear a white dress or else people will start thinking that I'm not a virgin. I'm a 30-year-old bride who has been living with my fiance for six years."

What you should do: This "rule" is completely antiquated. In fact, there are probably quite a few engaged virgins out there who will choose to wear ivory (gasp!) on their wedding day. Wear whichever color you love that looks best with your skin tone. In fact, white works best on darker skin tones, and ivory shades flatter lighter skin.

2. Bad advice: "It's YOUR wedding, and this day is all about YOU!"

What you should do: It is your wedding day, but don't forget the little people. Treat your wedding party (and guests) with respect. For instance, let your bridesmaids help choose their dresses, and don't have a cash bar.

3. Bad advice: "Type up and print generic thank-you notes ahead of time, and just slap a label with your names on them instead of signing them."

What you should do: Your guests took the time to choose (yes, even if it was on a registry!) and pay for your gifts, and it's your job as a gracious couple to get your thank-you notes out in a timely fashion (it's easiest to write them right when the gift arrives). Make sure they're handwritten and heartfelt.

4. Bad advice: "You don't need a wedding planner; let your mom handle it."

What you should do: Unless you want your wedding to be officially mom-themed, ask your mom to help you plan some of the important and personal details, but leave the big stuff to the pros.

5. Bad advice: "Send invites to people you know will not come."

What you should do: Those hopeful no-shows may decide to make an appearance. You may get the gift, but you'll also be over capacity and over budget. Invite the people whom you actually want to be at your wedding, and enjoy the day with those who matter most to you.

6. Bad advice: "If it's not a diamond, then it's not a real engagement ring."

What you should do: Kate Middleton rocks a sapphire, and ladies in Greece wear pearls. Bottom line: Wear what you love ... or at least what was given to you.

7. Bad advice: "Someone told me to ship the gown to New Jersey to avoid paying NYC taxes. Umm, no, that's tax evasion, and I don't look good in stripes."

What you should do: If you're planning to have your dress shipped, then inquire about discount codes. But picking it up at the salon is usually the most cost-effective option.

8. Bad advice: "My future father-in-law said not to bother getting my wedding band sized down to fit because I'll just have to get it sized up one day."

What you should do: There's no reason that anyone has to gain the "newlywed nine." Plus, if you don't size it properly, you're much more likely to lose it!

9. Bad advice: "My mother suggested having the cocktail hour before the ceremony."

What you should do: Do that and your guests will be sauced before you exchange your vows. Instead, open the bar after the ceremony, and serve nonalcoholic bevs like lemonade and cucumber water beforehand.

10. Bad advice: "Take out a loan for the wedding!"

What you should do: Instead, save diligently and have a personal and meaningful wedding that you can afford. Money fights are no fun, and debt is not the way you want to enter into marriage.

11. Bad advice: "You'll want a short engagement so the groom doesn't change his mind."

What you should do: Shorter engagements leave you less time to find vendors. Most engagements are over a year long, and planning a wedding is stressful. If your groom runs away during this time, he'd never last the entire marriage. It's a good trial.

12. Bad advice: "Cut back on costs and have a potluck and BYOB reception."

What you should do: A wedding is an event that you host, and these are your guests. Don't expect them to provide their own food and drink. If cost is an issue, look into having an early brunch with mimosas or having your event catered by a local restaurant, which is often more affordable.

Watch this video on 5 wedding tips from David Beahm

Have a great planning!
~Amy

Hiring a planner just for the day of?

I recently read a blog entry from the planner guru, the world famous - Preston Bailey on "Hiring a Planner Only for the Day of Your Event". He gave some good points (Pros and Cons) on why people want to hire someone just for the day of the event. I'm sure there are planners out there would provide service just for the day of; however, I think it would be the client's own risk on hiring someone that doesn't know much about the background of the wedding/event and wanted to have the event run perfectly with just the little information that the day of planner received.

Here is the full article from Preston on his thoughts, and also my thoughts on the pros and cons for hiring a 'day' of planner.
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Common Mistakes: Hiring a Planner Only for the Day of Your Event by Preston Bailey

I know I’m going to ruffle a few feathers with this one. There are several reasons clients may opt to only hire a day-of planner, but usually it’s because that’s what their budgets allow. In my humble experience, and please feel free to disagree with me, there are pros as well as cons to hiring a planner only for one day.

Pros

1. Planners get work. In these difficult economic times, it’s essential to stay in motion. Every time you do a job, regardless of how long or short the job is, you meet potential new clients and make new connections that may prove to be very valuable in the future.

2. At a wedding or any other big event, it’s important to have someone who can keep things on schedule. Even though many event spaces employ wonderful banquet managers, a planner you’ve hired personally will have a deeper understanding of what you want and what makes your event unique. A banquet manager is first and foremost the employee of the event space.

3. A day-of planner makes it possible for clients to relax and enjoy their event.

Cons

1. I do not understand how a planner can follow up properly on all of the intricacies of an event in a single day, especially because it usually takes 3 to 6 months to plan an event. For example:

* With the florist – Will a day-of planner know what the florist promised the client? What time are the flowers being delivered? What time are they breaking down?
* With the venue and food – Will a day-of planner know what was promised at the tasting? Has overtime been negotiated?
* And this is only the beginning – What about what was promised with regards to photos, video, music, lighting, cakes, etc…

2. I can’t tell you the number of times clients have come to me and said that since they’ve already hired all of their vendors and therefore done all of the “leg work,” I should lower my rates. But it’s not that simple:

* If clients choose to hire their own vendors that’s their choice. Unfortunately for them, a good planner might have been able to negotiate a better contract on their behalf.
* Hiring vendors is only a small portion of the service a good planner will provide. MANAGING vendors is at the heart of a planner’s work.
* Following up on seating arrangements and handling priority guests such as the guest of honor and important family members is also a lot of work. Often, there is essential information about these guests that a planner needs to be told in advance. It’s hard to learn everything in one day.

3. Client expectations. I hope that if you’re a planner who does day-of events, you realize that your clients are still expecting a very well-run event. This is not impossible, but it’s definitely a challenge if you don’t know all the details. Remember, good planning is about having as much information as possible.

I have a suggestion for both clients and planners that might help this system work more effectively. What if you, as the planner, encouraged your clients to hire you for the entire month of their event instead of just the day? Of course, this also means PAYING you ACCORDINGLY. A full month will give you the opportunity to familiarize yourself with every aspect of the event and will help you do your job more effectively.
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After all, it's your wedding/event. Our goal is to make sure you have a well planned wedding/event and run smooth. This way you and your guests can enjoy every moment of the celebration. =)

~Amy