Be Prepared

Something awful happened this past weekend. A Lovely Bridal Blooms team member was dispatched to a Sydney Chapel to setup decorations for one of our gorgeous Brides. we arrived at our designated time of 2.30pm for a 3.30 start, not much time, but we can make it work.  2.30pm, chapel is locked... Mother of the Bride and Groom arrive..still locked... Frantic calls are made.... still locked. 3.30 rolls around the ceremony should be starting, and here we are, the Celebrant, Photographer, Videographer, Groom. Groomsmen, mums, and all the guests are standing outside while no one comes to open the Chapel. Finally at 3.45pm, 15 minutes after the ceremony was meant to start, someone arrives to open the Chapel. Craziness ensues to setup and prep the Chapel, while I'm sure the Bride has been doing laps in the car for the past 30 mins..

Bride rage! fully understandable in this case..

WOW

Now I'm sure that the Bride would have had a contact number for the Chapel, but what happens if they don't answer?? How can you my lovely reader avoid this mess??

1. Spend the time to talk to each of your vendors to find out the specifics of their service for the day. Who is delivering/setting up? When will they arrive? Their contact number, and the contact details of the person in charge of that business in case of difficulties. For example, we send an email the week of the wedding with all these details so you have all the specifics.

2. Make a table up with all your vendors, contact names, phone numbers and details and print a few copies, give one to the MOH, groom, and the mums so if there is any problem, the numbers are close at hand for follow up.

3. Trust your gut. I cant stress this enough.. Have you had a bit of trouble with this vendor in the lead up? Having trouble getting hold of them or pinning down details? Please don't assume it will all be OK on the day. A great vendor will provide you with top service from the start to the end not just the day of your wedding.  Unfortunately there are bad apples in this industry, be pro active and if your gut is screaming at you, take proactive action!

So pop your boy scout cap on and Be Prepared!

The Pinterest Curse

Now please don't get me wrong I frikken love Pinterest, I have boards full of recipes I'll never bake, clothes I would never fit into and a million Supernatural and Walking Dead memes but anyway...

Go home Pinterest you're drunk.. 

There is no doubt Pinterest is an amazing tool to use for your wedding planning, a fantastic way to inspire you, help you decide on colours/ themes and to find new and interesting decoration ideas. 

But here lies the problem, it's too good! You are probably pinning away all these amazing ideas and decorations and then trying to fit them all into your wedding.

A few years ago we set up reception tables with a vase of flowers, 3 decorated birdcages, 4 bird statues, a love sign, and heaps of candles , on each table.  In fact there was no room for the wine glasses. ALARM BELLS we all know wine is more important than bird statues!! This is a classic case trying to fit all these good ideas into one wedding and falling victim to the Pinterest curse.

Remember the golden rule with wedding planning .. Simple and elegant will never go out of style!

The other major pitfall with the the Pinterest Curse is falling for amazing floral designs or decoration/styling pictures when your budget isnt in sync with the look you have fallen in love with. See this picture below

Stunning yes, but sooo pricey  

gorgeous yes!! I would estimate this would be about $1000 for each tall vase without delivery/instillation costs. I have had this picture emailed to me so many times with brides wanting these but having a budget of less than $100 a table. Then I always get the next question of .. Can you make it look like that but in my budget .. The short answer is no, we can create something amazing for your budget but we can't make a $100 arrangement look like a $1000 arrangements, the Pinterest curse strikes again!

So my top tips for Pinterest are

1. let it inspire you and guide you with themes colours and decorations   
2. Don't try and include every good Pinterest idea into your wedding  
3. Use it to show your vendors what you want, but realise that some pictures may not be able to be replicated exactly.
4. Dont set your heart on images of OTT decorations if your budget doesn't allow it.