Let's start with my story:

Growing up with older friends who were getting married and hosting private events, I always found myself being involved in helping not just plan the event, but also, carry out tasks throughout the day that helped make the event a success and most importantly easy for the host to enjoy. I hadn't realized that when a large majority of people offer to help, they find that they had no idea how much went into planning a big event, especially a wedding, as it seemed to come naturally to me.

So when I was getting married, I thought my friends who lovingly offered to help would be great  just like me! Afterall I had been doing this for years for everyone else, why couldn't they do it? This is all too common of an occurrence and often ends in many things not going as you had wished, I found this out the hard way. Now, please don't misunderstand, I love my friends for helping me the best they could, but when it came down to the day, the one thing I wished I had done, was hire a coordinator. My husband,who spent his entire day trying to make everything happen that wasn't happening, instead of enjoying his wedding day, wished we had too.Why didn't I do it all ? Because when you are a bride, you not only shouldn't have to work on your wedding day, you have many other things you need to do that prevent you from being there and doing those things.

​

 

 

 

 

 

​

​

​

​

You spend months sometimes more than a year planning the day you envisioned, I know I did, it was heartbreaking to say the least when so many things I planned and paid for, did not make it to see the big day , not because people had bad intentions but because they often times don't fully understand what it takes to truly plan and coordinate an event. 

 

What does a planner do? 

A good planner can help you make the most of your wedding budget. We can stretch your budget because we know what's more important.  An example of this was mentioned in Brides magazine "We recently had a bride who wanted bagpipers, and we just did her day-of coordination. We learned that she spent over $1,000 on five bagpipers, and bagpipers are so loud you only need one. We could have saved her $800 in that small decision. Even small decisions can add up to big savings when you have a planner who knows what they're doing."

​

In addition to helping with budget and supervising sticky details like legal contracts, the most important perk of a planner, is having someone who'll fight for your event vision from start to finish. A planner is focused on your day and will make sure everything goes according to your unique plan.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

​

From a vendor's perspective, working with a planner and coordinator, instead of directly with the bride or groom or their parents, can keep things streamlined and stress-free. As the day gets closer, vendors can contact the planner to iron out last minute details than worry an already-stressed couple directly. Planners often have built-in relationships with vendors, which can also potentially cut costs.

Full and partial planning packages aside, a day of coordinator is ideal, if you can handle the planning on your own. For example, if your celebration involves complex orchestration like flipping the ceremony space in a short time period so it's ready for the reception.

It is important to have someone who can bring in vendors who are familiar with the space and who are familiar with what they're doing. 

A wedding  or event that is divided over multiple venues with their own coordinators may require less overall coordination. But even if a venue offers an in-house coordinator, remember that that person will likely only be coordinating the specific details that venue is responsible for providing, like food or the space itself. They may not be focused on helping you juggle all the little details that will make your special day so special.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

" I have a really good friend or coworker who is super creative and organized, can't I just have them do it?" 

I completely understand this, most likely more than most. In fact, I was this person for many of my friends! It's actually how I got my start! With that in mind, there are some things you should know before you decide to go with this idea. First and foremost, as I said before,there is more than meets the eye when it comes to planning and executing events, this often times becomes very wearing on your relationship with your friend(s), even if they don't tell you because they don't want to let you down. Next, your friends and family want to enjoy the day with you, they don't realize that this is unlikely given the amount of work that needs to happen when running a fine detailed event that means the world to their friend. All of this and, they have to stay sober too? I'm afraid so. It is for this reason that I simply don't recommend using "friendors", in the name of protecting your day and your relationships.