Get Planning!

When you first begin to plan your wedding, you start with the fun stuff:  Where will it be?  What will my dress look like?  Who will make up my bridal party?  You go buy wedding magazines and fold down pages with your bridesmaids, while simultaneously pinning more things than you have in, well…ever!  You see potential wedding color schemes on your cereal box, make note of every hair style (good and bad) on your evening TV shows, and start purchasing notebooks like mad woman to list everything you could possibly list.  While the entirety of the planning process should be fun, it doesn’t always work out that way.  If you’re anything like me, you quickly find out how much you do NOT know about planning a wedding.  So, one of those first questions should be, “Do I want a wedding planner?”

There are limitless positives to hiring a wedding planner.  The only question is how it will fit into your wedding budget.  But trust me, it is well worth it!  When you are talking about a once in a lifetime event, it can be worth a little extra to make sure you actually enjoy it.

Read Lauren’s breakdown to help decide which planning services might be best for your big day!

Hi! I’m Lauren, Executive Planner and Lead Designer at Southern Savvy Events. Since no two brides are the same, there are a variety of planning and coordination services. The most common are Full Planning, Partial Planning and Coordination. Additionally, there are design packages, hourly consultations and A La Carte items often available to fit your needs. Though the package descriptions may vary from planner to planner, each service has unique characteristics and it is important to have an understanding of those to find your best fit!

Full Planning - I like to refer to this package as “all inclusive”. When you book a full planning package it includes design, as well as all aspects involved in wedding planning (venue scouting, vendor referrals, budgeting, timelines, etc.). Your planner is in constant contact with you and your vendors. Think of it as a personal assistant - you will most likely see your planner as often as your Maid of Honor! There are no maximum amount of hours or meetings and no part of the planning process we are not a part of. When you book full planning you are gifting yourself with a full time wedding assistant throughout your engagement. Now, go pour that glass of wine and relax!

Coordination - This service acts as a guide to finalize details for wedding day. It is for the bride who has booked almost all of her vendors and has plenty of time to maintain her budget, design/decor and vendor details. Your coordinator’s main role leading up to wedding day is tying up all the loose ends. We handle scheduling for your vendors and wedding party, setup and decor and ensuring that the entire day runs smoothly. The lead time on this package can vary from “30 days”, “60 days” or a set amount of hours.

 Partial Planning - If you feel like you don’t quite need Full Planning, but Coordination isn’t hands on enough for you, Partial would be a good fit. Differing from Full Planning, Partial is based around a set amount of planning hours. For example, with this package I normally attend about 75% of my clients’ vendor meetings. This would be a good fit if you have a vision for your day in mind, but need assistance bringing it to life.

The most important thing to remember when selecting a planning package - everything can be customized to fit you needs.

Cheers!

To reach Lauren and learn more about Southern Savvy Events, visit her website!

Happy planning Ritchie Hill brides!
XOXO Liz

50 Shades of Overwhelmed

You’re engaged! (Congrats!) You thought attending the area bridal shows would be the perfect solution to help kick start your wedding planning. You and your groom (or if your groom was lucky enough to get a pass, then your maid of honor…) geared up to hit the big show in our area and you set out to find the PERFECT wedding vendors.

You attended the show with almost 200 vendors, where I’m assuming you had a blast! You tasted caterers’ food, bakers’ cakes, watched a runway show with fabulous dresses, and got some great design ideas. You arrived home with a 10 pound (cute) bag from the show, stuffed with business cards, handouts and goodies. You sat on the floor, dumped the bag.., and the anxiety set in. You pulled out the goodies, including our Ritchie Hill koozie with delicious Ritchie Hill Bakery cheese straws (wink), and then realize there is a massive amount of information lying on your floor.

What do you do now? How are you going to organize all this info? Should you end the anxiety by just throwing it all away? No. There is hope. Below are just a few tips to help you organize your bridal show material… 

1 – Get sticky notes, a pen and a trash can.

2 – Write a sticky note for each category of vendors: photographers, cakes, caterer, DJ, venue, dress, etc.

3 – Sift through the pile and stack them according to the categories.

4 – If you’ve already decided on a vendor for any of the categories, throw that pile away.

5 – Go through a pile, one category at a time and mark any card of vendors you remember talking to. (If you recall a conversation, amongst the hundreds you probably had, then you may have “clicked” with that vendor, which is a huge part of the planning process.)

6 – Check out the websites of each card in that pile and their reviews on WeddingWire. Only keep 1-3 of your favorites. This will give you options in case one is already booked on your date. Throw away the rest.

 Now that you have smaller piles, you can start your planning! I hope this helps.

 Happy (less stressful) planning!

Jessica