True Confessions of a Wedding Planner
I’m not really a saleswoman. Not crazy about handing out my card unsolicited. I understand that not every Bride is going to see a need to hire me, no matter what I say. People get married every day with and without a Wedding Planner. Some couples say everything went fine, no problems or hangups whatsoever (really?), while others say if they were to do it all over again they’d hire a Planner in a heartbeat.
I thought I’d share with you some things that happened at a recent wedding. Yes, every one of the following things happened during the same wedding. Things that, had I not been there, making sure everything was taken care of and that the Bride knew little (if any) of the mishaps, the day could have been a disaster.
- Day before Wedding: I call rental company to verify & confirm a change in pick-up procedures, when rental company realizes they can’t find an invoice for the wedding. Yes, we had discussed the order several times on the phone, but suddenly there is a glitch. Apparently the order has been inadvertently canceled. Thankfully rental company owner rocks and is willing to reinstate order on good faith since they know and trust me.
- Day of Wedding: Makeup Artist/Hair Stylist from out of town has left her emailed directions to the wedding site behind but is confident she can rely on her trusty GPS. Unfortunately, the site is not recognizable to the GPS and sends her 45 minutes in the wrong direction. Thankfully, I had scheduled her to be on-site 2 hours earlier than she originally said she’d need to be there AND I was able to figure out where she was and get her back on track. When the Bride started wondering what the hold up was, I was able to reassure her that everything was under control without causing any alarm.
- Beach ceremony chairs were to be delivered to the end of the boardwalk. Unfortunately, when we went to check on the ceremony site, we discover they were delivered to the “end” furthest from the beach! Thankfully my assistant and I are able to lug them all down the longest boardwalk ever (!). At the end of the night we find some help from the rockstar videographer who helps us and lets us use his dolly to haul the chairs back to where they will be picked up.
- Prior to the ceremony, one of the Flower Girls is terrified her Mommy is going to go sit down and leave her alone. Upon being tipped off about this, I immediately go to her, and tell her two “very important things she needs to know”. One, my daughter is her EXACT age. Two, I used to teach first grade, which, unbelievably, is the EXACT grade she is in! Amazing! So, of course I will be needing her help and don’t you know little girlfriend was all over it! Mommy disappeared to the ceremony and Flower Girl never even noticed. She was my Special Helper all night long!
- Upon lining the Wedding Party up, Groom picks up Ring Bearer, only to have his beautiful orchid boutonniere get caught and disinegrate into what seems like 100 fragrant petals everywhere. A collective gasp of the wedding participants ensues. “It’s OK, let me see it” I say. A quick clip off another arrangement, a twist of some floral wire, and it’s re-pinned, good as new.
- When the processional begins, right before the Flower Girls are to start walking, one says “Oh No!” and shows me her lovely pomander ball has become disconnected from the satin ribbon it was hanging from. In the blink of an eye, I grab the pomander ball, tie a quick knot in the end, pull out a floral pin holding in some of the flowers and reattach the ribbon in less than 20 seconds flat.
- As the 3 year old Ring Bearer is about to make his grand entrance, the one he has eagerly anticipated for months, he suddenly develops a case of stage fright, sets down the rings, and runs back to the Bride. I quickly duck down behind the boardwalk, grab the rings, whisper loud enough to get the attention of one of the Flower Girls (already proceeding down the boardwalk, almost to the aisle), and hand off the rings without anyone noticing. Then back to the Bride, reassuring her it is fine, let him walk with her, the rings are safe, relax and smile.
Additionally, the Bride needed to sew her Mom’s wedding rings to the underside of her wedding dress for good luck at the last minute and asked to reserve 4 seats at the ceremony. Thankfully I had everything she needed in my a-MAZ-ing Emergency Kit (including little white “reserved” cards and some double stick tape for the chairs!).
My favorite part of the night? When the Bride, the Groom and their families say things like, “We could NOT have done this without you” and “You didn’t forget anything all night!” and “We can never thank you enough for making this wedding go so smoothly!”.
Oh yeah, smooth as silk.
Tags: , hire wedding planner, wedding disaster, wedding mishaps, wedding planner, why wedding planner
April 7th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Loved reading this post. You Rock!!!
April 7th, 2009 at 11:29 am
Robyn, I had no idea that even more issues had come up than I was aware of! Girly, you are a rockstar. Kate and I were saying over and over again how amazingly pleasant you were despite trying to keep everything together. Usually when I’m managing something of a much smaller scale, you can see the strain clear across my face…but you were cool as a cucumber! I will always be happy to give my recommendations for you should you need them! It was great to meet you!
April 7th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Planners are such unsung heores! Great job!
April 7th, 2009 at 1:34 pm
My sister is a wedding planner and I have helped her on many occasions. Her favorite saying is when someone hears what she does for a living and says, ‘Oh my gosh, that must be so much fun!”. It makes her laugh. Don’t get me wrong, it is obviously something you must enjoy but as she says, it is WORK. I have personally NEVER heard anyone who didn’t have a planner say they would do it w/out a planner again if they could do it all over. I would never do without one!
April 7th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
I think I hear a collective cheer from wedding planners across the world today!
April 7th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Anna’s right, we were gushing over what a wonderful job you did! Bravo!
April 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Seriously…you AMAZE me girl…YOU are smoooooooth…and your passion obviously has complimented your success! Go gettem girl! xoxo
April 7th, 2009 at 11:39 pm
You are amazing, and of course it’s all in a day’s work right? Your fiasco is similar to the inside of my purse; lots of stuff that one day will be useful, but you never know when, and then when you desperately need something you’re like, ah, so glad I have that!
April 8th, 2009 at 11:11 am
So many things can - and do - go awry at weddings. I find that brides often neglect the two things that are the most important in planning their weddings: a wedding planner and a GOOD photographer. Neither of these items should be overlooked or put on the bottom of the list. Both of them, if they are good, are going to be a good chunk of the budget, but if you don’t have someone with good ideas, helpful planning tips, keeping the day running smoothly AND someone to document all those beautiful details you spent so many hours and dollars on, what’s the point?? The key is to put these two professionals in place FIRST and then start planning the details from there! Thanks for such a great post!
April 14th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
We did not have any room to play with the budget… so we didn’t get to hire a wedding planner
Luckily for me it is a <3 of mine, otherwise I would have pulled my hair out by the end!
I had to order dresses for my bridesmaids from a *chain store* so that I could get all of my girls dresses in Ohio, Cali, and Indiana…
My cousin called me in a panic from Cali, *are your dresses to the floor and Straight with a slit?*
No! Indeed they were tea length with an A-line cut!
The week before the wedding I was told that they could *order* the chairs for me for the patio were we were to have the ceremony….
*I was told that the chairs were free and came with the facility*
That policy had been changed between deposit time and W-day
When calling about my table vases (which I was to provide) I realized that there were to be three roses on every table!
*No! Indeed it was to be one stem Calla with greenery*
It is amazing to me how you pay so many people to do all of these wonderful things for you on your wedding day, but things still NEED to be checked on, on the regular!
I can definitely see why hiring a wedding planner is a great investment!
Good thing I aspire to be one, and didn’t want to fire everyone by the end of my wedding
April 14th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
I think I *might* be the bride in this post, hehe… You ROCKED our wedding day and the day would not have gone as smoothly without you. Besides for a few minutes at the boardwalk when people in swimsuits kept walking in front of us, I managed to get through the day with minimal stress - ALL thanks to you. I know you had an assistant and some amazing help throughout our day, but you were the hero of the day (and the months leading up to our wedding). I absolutely 100% agree that a wedding planner (and an amazing photographer) should be on the top of any bride’s list… more importantly, a GOOD wedding planner because any other wedding planner is a waste of money. We had some (big) bumps in the road early on, and you promised that I’d forget all about it - and I did! We had an incredible time & I can’t stop gushing about it to everyone we know. Thank you so much, Robyn! MIX MINGLE GLOW ROCKS!!!
August 27th, 2009 at 3:24 am
this is hilarious, and why i want one to help me with my wedding, but it’s not a normal one, at a ballpark, all in informal but he and me.. me in a destination gown, him in a suit with a tie of the team on.
all others will be in blue jeans, t-shirts the color of the team, the ring bearer is the groom’s daughter, and we’ve a a celtic ring to tie them to…
i want a pomander of bachelor buttons, and him a bout of the same, and we will stay for the game with all, and the kids are picked up by their moms then, and we are off to a B & B for our honeymoon! i got my dress for $80, My barette will be almost as much… the girls carry bags of pot pouri, so they can use it later… just beer, hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts and soda fort he reception, with cupcakes for the feeding ceremony. that is all!
nothing so elaborate as your story, i love it!