If you’re going to take pre-wedding advice from anyone, we think your day-of coordinator should be at the top of that list. Since the wedding coordinators at our events are so great, we want to share some of their wisdom with y’all! Today on the blog, we’re so excited to introduce our featured day-of coordinator for The Big Fake Wedding Charleston, Karen of Winey Blonde Events. There isn’t any kind of wedding or event Karen hasn’t coordinated, so we asked her to kick off our new blog series where we’ll be featuring our day-of coordinators for our upcoming events! Since you all know how much we love lists, Karen from Winey Blonde Events will be sharing a list of 10 must-do’s for your wedding day. We hope you enjoy!
Hello! I am Karen and I am the owner of Winey Blonde Events Company and yes it is pronounced “whiney” and not “Winnie.” My mother always said I was from the “Winey” side of the family which is partly why I named my company after my grandmother’s maiden name. I am passionate for all kinds of events and have coordinated over 200 weddings in Atlanta’s most prestigious wedding venues, as well as destination weddings in Hawaii.
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10 Things You Must Do For Your Wedding
1. Make sure you don’t binge on your big day.
Your wedding day nerves may lead you to have a few drinks or power down some burritos, but be careful, no one wants to spend their wedding day in the restroom or have to use their wedding DVD to remember how much you enjoyed your big day. In the industry, we typically see brides and grooms having a couple of drinks to loosen up before the ceremony and a few more after with friends and family, but always keep in mind your limits. You’re the main attraction – it is your wedding after all – and what’s the point of spending all the money on your wedding day if you can’t remember how it was?
2. Don’t overspend to show off.
You want to have a gorgeous wedding, but keep it within your means. Of course you’ve seen some ideas on Pinterest or a friend who had an over-the-top wedding, but that doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune to have a gorgeous wedding. Keep in mind your budget when planning and designing a theme. At the end of the day you want to make sure everyone had a good time, but in 50 years is it really going to matter how extravagant your wedding was?
3. Hire or assign someone to be your day-of coordinator.
Of course I recommend hiring a professional, but if that is not within your budget I highly suggest having someone to keep the ceremony organized. In the industry we’ve all heard of horror stories involving the bridal party waiting for 15 minutes because they couldn’t hear the music to cue them to walk down the aisle and a guest having to get up to give them the cue. You don’t want your poor groom, who is already probably anxious, wondering where his future wife is or if she will be on the 7 o’clock news as the runaway bride.
4. Have a rain backup plan.
Outdoor ceremonies have become increasingly popular in the past decade which means you must have a backup plan. Make sure you ask the venue what their recommendations are and when is the last chance to make the rain call, as most venues will not reschedule your wedding day due to rain. Trust me, you would much rather have a tent with dry guests and a dry wedding dress than cold, wet guests who blame the venue and staff for being wet. It gives a bad reputation for the venue, even though you decided to have an outdoor wedding and chose not to have a rain contingency plan.
5. Pick vendors wisely.
A bride should never book her venue or vendors online before at least seeing them or meeting them once. Even in the case of a destination wedding you still want to have at least one site visit or an opinion from a person you trust, such as a wedding planner. If a bride can’t make a trip to the venue or meet with the vendors in person, she should at the minimum do proper research and ask for referrals, see how often they do weddings, and what their response time is to questions you have. Talking to the vendors or scheduling a Skype/FaceTime call can also help when making decisions for the big day.
6. Invite your favorite people.
There is no need to invite every single person you know or that you work with. Be realistic when creating your guest list, and think of it this way: would you take them out to dinner? Because that is basically what you are doing – wining and dining your guests.
7. Incorporate what matters most.
Too often have I seen a family member try to take control of the bride and groom’s wedding day. For some reason, parents especially, feel obligated to give their opinion on almost everything including wedding traditions, which have changed. If you don’t want to have toasts at your wedding or do the bouquet and garter toss, then say so! If you and your groom are big music buffs make sure you invest and pick a DJ or band that comes highly recommended or you have seen before. I tell brides to pick one category that means the most to them and splurge a little on having the best if possible.
8. Take pictures of everything.
This includes having the photographer take a picture of your centerpieces and the room before your guests enter. This is something I always ask photographers to do because the bride and groom may not necessarily get to see the big room reveal before they actually enter.
9. Hug and thank your parents before you leave.
As a planner, I always make sure that mom and dad are the last ones the couple sees by the getaway car. You definitely do not want to leave your wedding without giving them a hug and saying goodbye at the end of the night.
10. Enjoy your wedding day.
Even if things don’t go exactly as you thought they would you need to remember to enjoy your day. Don’t let the little things get in the way of you having a good time and most of all, remember you are marrying your best friend and that in itself is a reason to celebrate.
Photo Credits:
Christy Parry Photography
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