Feb 15, 2016 | Weddings
Some of the members of the GWA, doing what we do best.
I’m a member of the Green Wedding Alliance, and our biggest wedding event of the year is Committed. While I won’t have a booth at this year’s event (due to a prior commitment, not for any other reason), I’d like to encourage you to go if you are on the lookout for the best wedding vendors.
Committed is a wedding show unlike most. The vendors are all the eco-conscious members of the Green Wedding Alliance and are pretty uniformly awesome. The show has a more laid-back vibe, and I hear there will be some fun activities. There is always a fashion show, and there may be mini workshops, too, at no extra charge.
Here are the details:
When: Sunday, March 13, 2016, 12-4 p.m.
Where: Greenhouse Loft, 2545 West Diversey Ave. 2nd Floor
This is a wedding show friendly to all couples. There is a nominal charge in advance or at the door. Check it out!
Feb 8, 2016 | Weddings
The more pieces there are of the puzzle, the more challenging the project! Photo by T & S Hughes Photography.
I got a notification from LinkedIn the other day that a colleague had endorsed me. It’s always nice when someone goes to the trouble of letting the world know they think you have qualifications or special skills, so I checked out what he had said.
I am not surprised when people endorse me for event planning and things of that sort, but this was something different: He endorsed me for “Doing the impossible in a short time frame.” And I have to say, I loved that! Because that is definitely one of my unique skills.
Remember that last-minute wedding I coordinated? (The professional photos are here.) That was definitely “the impossible in a short time frame.” I’ve talked to other planners who decided not to take on that job because of the short notice, but I had fun with it. I don’t necessarily want to do a lot of “the impossible,” but I certainly don’t shy away from a challenge.
Jan 25, 2016 | Weddings
It’s the intangibles that make for great event and wedding planning. Photo by Magical Moments Photography.
When potential clients interview me, they usually have a lot of questions. One of my favorites is, “What sets you apart from other wedding planners?”
There are plenty of obvious things you probably know about me already if you’ve looked over my website. I like working on non-traditional weddings and I’m interested in everything eco-friendly, for example. But the big differences are experience and temperament.
I’ve been working on events, one way or another, since sometime in the mid-1980s. That gives me about three decades of experience. I have also had a huge variety of experiences, everything from cocktail parties to operas to street fairs to (of course) weddings. I won’t claim to have seen it all, but I have dealt with an extensive variety of challenges in my career, and I have learned how to manage them.
I am also fortunate to have a temperament that is suitable for event planning and management. I can handle stressful situations without giving in to the stress. I have excellent, unflappable problem-solving skills. And I know how to deal with all kinds of people.
So, that answers one question. If you have more questions about why you should hire me, feel free to give me a call and you can ask me in person.
Jan 20, 2016 | Weddings
If you tried to read my blog or look at photos on my website in the last two days, you got an annoying error message. I apologize! My dear husband fixed it today in about 1/100 of the time it would have taken me. Ain’t marriage grand?
Jan 18, 2016 | Eco-Friendly Events, Weddings
Bouquets look so much better when they don’t lie flat.
What makes a wedding planner eco-friendly? Among other things, this does:
The night before a wedding I had planned, the florist called. He was planning his delivery of personal flowers for the next day and wanted my input. He could lay the bouquets flat in a cardboard box for delivery, but, he said, that tended to make them come out flat on one side. His preferred method would be to stand them up in vases, which would then be secured into a re-usable crate. The only catch was that he needed to get the vases and crates back if there was to be no charge to my clients. For aesthetic reasons, I thought the vase-and-crate delivery method was superior. Also, it was less waste, which I also prefer. That’s the first thing a green wedding planner does: reduce waste. But it gets better.
A few days after the wedding, I went about the business of returning the items to the florist. I got out my trusty bike and the bungee cords, strapped the crate with four glass vases in it to the back of my bike, and rode–very carefully–the three-and-a-half miles to deliver them. Because that is also what a green wedding planner does. No matter what aspect of wedding or party planning I am working on, I am always thinking about how to reduce waste, reduce emissions, and have a greener party.
Jan 4, 2016 | Day-of Coordinating, Weddings
I am asked sometimes why anyone should hire a wedding planner or coordinator.
Beautiful wedding day. Photo by Magical Moments Photography.
After all, you can probably do all the planning yourself. With some time, a few organizational skills, and the ability to see the project through, you can plan your wedding by yourself. Of course, it is a large job that takes a lot of time and attention. Most people find the process momentarily frustrating. At the same time, it can be very rewarding. You might even find that it is a lot of fun. (Of course, if you can’t even think about doing all the planning yourself, I’d be happy to help you!)
On the other hand, when it comes to day-of wedding coordination, almost everyone needs someone to do the job. In the past when brides were typically younger, the mother of the bride often took care of the coordinating. Sometimes the Maid of Honor does all the work. These days, though, most couples want to allow their families and friends to enjoy the wedding day and not have to deal with the details.
Even if your wedding is simple and straightforward, if you hire a day-of coordinator, you are also hiring a professional consultant who can help you with the planning. It’s well known that a so-called Day-Of Coordinator is really a Month-Of Planner. When I am working with a couple, I tell them that once they hire me, they can call me or send me an e-mail any time if they need guidance or a vendor referral or just someone to bounce an idea off of. And that’s just a start. You have access to my extensive vendor list and all my experience in planning and coordinating. My true function is to make sure that the wedding goes smoothly, and that means that I start working toward that goal as soon as I am hired. If I can prevent costly mistakes or solve a problem months in advance, then I am doing my job as day-of coordinator.
Also, I have resources that you might not have. Especially if your wedding is non-traditional or if you want to make sure it is environmentally friendly, I have access to vendors and other resources that you might not know about.
Maybe you have been to a wedding and thought it all went so smoothly that there was no need for a coordinator. That is actually the highest compliment you can pay to a day-of wedding coordinator. From the point of view of the guests, it should all look effortless, and that means that someone has put all the details together into a beautiful wedding day.
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