Tag: Weddings

Event Planning

Emergency Kits for Your Wedding or Event, What You REALLY Need

by Kaitlin Donaldson

Emergency kits are a total necessity, no matter the season, size or style of your wedding or event. You could spend a year (or more!) planning down to the minutiae, and still end up troubleshooting on the big day. While we can’t predict unforeseen circumstances, we can anticipate and prepare for the more common hurdles that are typically encountered on the day of a celebration. Before you buy out everything on Amazon, consider these essential items, and use the venue, time of year, and flow of the day to inspire other items that you or your guests might need. In the following list, I’ll share the staple products that I find myself reaching for time and time again at weddings and events. Keep reading to discover what you REALLY need in your emergency kit!

Medicine

When someone is feeling under the weather, it can prevent them from fully participating in your celebration while affecting the mood of those around them. More often than not, I’ve found that the client (bride, groom, or host of the party) or the people closest to them (bridal party, family members or friends) are the ones who tend to request medicine the most.

Maybe it’s the pressure of the day, dehydration, or something they ate the night before. In any case, it’s extremely helpful to anticipate your own needs and the needs of the people around you. You know your crowd best, so if aunt Becky is notorious for complaining about her headaches, pack a lot of Advil!

Pills on pink background

If it’s not the host or someone in their immediate circle, a guest may fall ill. The last thing you want is for someone to feel unwell and unable to enjoy your event. Get ahead of it, and pack these items in your emergency kit to treat common symptoms that may arise.

Pack pain reliever like Advil, Tylenol, Aleve or Alka-Seltzer for all of those headaches, sore feet, cramps, and random aches and pains. Folks will go through these quickly, so be sure to stock up. Also include Pepto Bismol, Tums or Imodium for upset stomachs. Finally, pack Benadryl, in case of an allergic reaction or seasonal allergies.

Pro-Tip: If you’re hosting an event at a location that requires guests to travel together for a lengthy amount of time, or if your celebration is taking place on a boat, include non-drowsy Dramamine or other medication to offer motion sickness relief.

Cosmetic Supplies

Cosmetic supplies are most frequently used during formal photos to put a stray hair in place or blot an oily patch. Keep items like bobby pins in various colors, hairspray and hair gel, hair ties, blotting sheets, tweezers, and a comb close by.

When it comes to makeup, to each their own!

Bride's hair with flowers in it

First Aid

This includes your standard first aid kit items: bandages in various sizes, Neosporin, sterilizing wipes, hand sanitizer, antibiotic ointment, burn cream, gauze pads and latex-free gloves. Make it easy for yourself; purchase a pre-filled pack like this one to include in your emergency kit.

First aid kit

Garment Gear

Garment Gear covers a lot of random bits and bobs to include in your emergency kit, but trust me when I say that it’s necessary.

We all know that weddings and events traditionally entail dressing in a fancier attire, which means that many people will show up to a party in an outfit they’re wearing for the first time. Or, in an outfit that they’ve only worn on a handful of occasions. Since it’s not the normal everyday apparel people are familiar with, things can go awry fairly easily.

Bride and groom

I’ve sewn the entire inner seam of a groomsman’s pants during a wedding (while he was wearing them, I might add). I’ve safety pinned the backs of more bridesmaids’ dresses than I can count. I’ve also removed plenty of stains from deodorant, drinks and makeup from guests’ outfits. Which is why I’ve found all of these garment care items to be absolutely essential.

While getting ready, you’ll want an iron and an ironing board, as well as a hand-held steamer. In your emergency kit, you’ll want: safety pins, a sewing kit, deodorant remover pads, lint rollers, Tide To Go Pens, Hollywood Fashion Tape (get the double-sided kind, it works magic at keeping dresses in place), and finally, static guard.

Menstrual Products

Tampons (the ones with applicators tend to be most popular), panty liners, and pads. Don’t feel the need to stock up on a ton of these. There’s usually plenty leftover at the end of events.

Pads and tampons

Miscellaneous

This is the part of the blog post where I list significantly more items than any other category, but I promise you’ll thank me later!

Here we go: Scissors, Q-Tips, lotion, mints, eye drops, deodorant, disposable razors, disposable tooth brushes, mini toothpaste, Listerine strips, baby powder, tape, envelopes, sharpies, pens and a pad of paper.

The last thing I want to do is make you feel like Mary Poppins, but I have tried and tested many emergency kits at many weddings and events, and have found all of these items to be extremely useful, frequently requested and fully tapped into. Use this post to stock your kit with only the essentials, rather than barreling through Amazon without knowing which products will actually get used!

Have a question about something specific? Ask it on my Q&A page!

Read more Event Planning advice.

Spotlight

Anna-Jill Gierhards, Kiss from Fleur

by Kaitlin Donaldson
Anna-Jill Gierhards
Photo by Kai Weissenfeld

Anna-Jill Gierhards

Founder

Kiss from Fleur

IG: @kissfromfleur

About Anna-Jill

After studying fashion design at the Akademie Mode & Design in Germany and working for an international fashion brand for ten years, Anna-Jill decided she wanted to bring her sense of style to the next level. Leaning on her background in fashion and intuition for pure aesthetics, Anna-Jill developed Kiss from Fleur. She now offers luxury wedding styling and boutique event planning services for clients looking to celebrate their milestones in European destinations.

Anna-Jill is passionate about reimagining weddings and boutique events to create an extraordinary visual journey for her clients and their guests. She predicts trends before they hit the market, modifies them, and gives them her own unique design spin. Employing the highest standards for excellence in design, Anna-Jill produces events that are personalized and curated for her clients’ needs and preferences.

Throughout her career, Anna-Jill has procured a network of high-quality vendors, which now extends beyond German borders. Her rolodex of partners and numerous projects in Greece enables Anna-Jill to specialize in Greek destination weddings and fulfill modern brides’ dreams of an exclusive and intimate wedding experience. Whether Anna-Jill is generating concepts for editorial shoots, producing weddings, or styling boutique events in Germany or Europe, her unexpected approach to visual imagery evokes sentimental moods that create unforgettable shared experiences.

As a destination wedding stylist with recognition from major publications like Vogue UK, you offer unique, luxury wedding styling services for couples that envision something extraordinary. How do you begin the design process with your clients?

We start the design process with a very unromantic yet important conversation, the budget 😉

With over 15 years of experience in design and set styling, my goal is to create an enchanting visual journey for the bridal couple and their guests. I design unforgettable atmospheres that reflect the personality of my couples, but do not distract from the significance of the moment itself.

Bride holding floral arrangement

Using my clients’ answers from their couples questionnaire, I begin scouting the venue. As a designer, when I see the location as well as the style of the bride’s dress, these two main factors provide the most design inspiration for the wedding.

Bride wearing wedding dress holding white balloons

Then, I begin designing. My goal is always to create an authentic environment, and to achieve this, it is very important to have a specific concept in mind. Together with my clients, we determine the design highlights, which are often the major focal points of the event, bearing in mind that less is more. Stylistically, the design scheme is often a nod to the beauty found in nature, with personal touches, and timeless decor that doesn’t lean too heavily into what’s trending.

Tablescape design with tall white feather centerpieces and pink rose gold accents

Your wedding design style has a bespoke signature look. What advice would you give to couples that want to achieve a similar wedding aesthetic?

I am always on the hunt for newness and inspiration. Many years ago before the times of Pinterest while I was working in the fashion industry, I started an “inspiration bible.” I always return to it for visual language that inspires the signature look of my clients’ weddings.

Wedding invitation
Wedding invitation suite

I combine many different influences of inspiration and aesthetics into my wedding designs that I started collecting years ago. Though, I never want a wedding to feel like it depicts the work of a specific designer, because at the end of the day, the wedding design is truly about representing the couple.

Couple at alter with natural decor elements like leaves and pampas grass

As my background is in fashion design, I am trained to detect trends before they emerge. In order to develop an eye for the aesthetic you’re drawn to, and find the right feel for your big day, I suggest collecting as much inspiration as possible from different influences, which can be found on your vacation, from a movie or a song, and of course from Instagram and Pinterest, as well as fashion and architectural magazines.

Couple kissing and holding boho chic white bouquet of orchids

Then, there needs to be some braveness to decide on the one direction that you want to proceed with. If you feel a bit unsure about that direction, or if you aren’t sure about how you should bring all of your inspiration to realization, this would be the right time to consider working with a wedding stylist 😉

Many of your weddings take place throughout Greece in hotspots like Mykonos and Santorini. How do you maintain the integrity and authenticity of these locations while curating personalized design concepts for your wedding clients?

That is exactly my mission. It’s a delicate process to find the right venue that reflects the couples’ personality, and to find a style concept which emphasizes its natural beauty without overloading it. I strive to give each location its own unique look, by playing to factors like lighting and the flow of the day to inspire the desired mood we want to have! 

Couple getting married at Athenian Riviera

You’ve introduced a spin on boudoir shoots that captures wedding details while telling a bride’s personal story. What is your philosophy behind this fresh take on bridal boudoir, and how does it come to life?

Boudoir shoots are an empowering gift to yourself, or to your fiancé, especially if you want to build anticipation before your wedding day.

Bride sitting on bed unbuttoning the back of her dress
Photo by George Stratigis

For years I was thinking about how to create a new kind of boudoir shoot that would balance bespoke aesthetics and authenticity. Last July, I found this beautiful new hotel, and I knew this space would make my vision a reality. I’ve always had plenty of ideas in my head about these unique boudoir shoots, but bold ideas require some patience until you find all of the right ingredients to make your vision come to life.

Bride sitting on bed looking back at camera
Photo by George Stratigis

Also, I needed the right photography and videography techniques to bring my ideas to life! The photo & video team are essential to the vision. They’re invisible observers that capture our brides in these special moments of celebrating themselves without judgement. We can see their confidence and comfort levels by the visual language told in the pictures.

Bride laying on velvet couch lifting left up, surrounded by roses
Photo by George Stratigis

For me, it is very important that this artistic storytelling is captured in the photo or video techniques. I want to seduce on all levels, in an authentic style, that tells my brides’ stories.

Heart shaped cake that says "be naked when I come home"
Photo by George Stratigis

What are your top five tips for planning a destination wedding in Greece?

Tip No. One: Choose a venue that you have visited before. You want to fall deeper in love each time you visit, and also be sure that this is really the place you want to celebrate your big day. Also, try to spend a full day there, so that you can see all the lighting and sunset on that venue!

Small outdoor church in Athens, Greece, set up for a micro wedding ceremony

Tip No. Two: Be relaxed on your wedding day. Try not to put the responsibilities on family members or friends, because you want the people around you to also be stress-free and enjoy your day. What does this mean? Hire a wedding planner; somebody who can fulfill all of your wishes for the wedding day, and take the stress away from you, your family, and friends, so you can all live this day to the fullest. A wedding planner will let you concentrate on what really matters – your future partner!

Bride and groom holding hands walking away from the camera

Tip No. Three: Trust the local vendors! Especially for destination events, your vendors live in this location and know the environment best! They know how to act and who to call if something goes wrong or something unexpected happens. They have the insider tips to get the items you want, and don’t outsource them from far away, which can save you money.

Bride at ceremony alter holding bouquet

Tip No. Four: Choose the vendors that you feel the most connected to. It’s extremely important to me that I develop close relationships with my clients, and ensure that we have the same mindset and values. When you speak with your vendors for the first time on the phone, it should give that same “zsa zsa zsu” feeling, like when you met the love of your live for the first time. 

Bride sitting on groom's lap on motorcycle

Tip No. Five: Embrace every moment! Give your partner a hot kiss and enjoy the most amazing day that you have ever imagined!

Bride and groom kissing

Before entering the wedding industry, you worked in fashion, advertising, and e-commerce. Do you draw inspiration from your prior work experience while designing and planning weddings?

Yes, with every single project! My background gives me a unique perspective, and the ability to understand the style and personality of my couples and translate this into their look for the big day.

I also appreciate the work of every vendor who is working in corporate business. Workflow, team spirit and professionalism is something that I really value, next to the design and planning process.

Anna-Jill Gierhards, Kiss from Fleur
Photo by Marie-Tzagaraki

If you were to leave us with something to think about, what would it be?

What I often see, is that many couples come into the planning process feeling confused about what they want for their wedding. Some want a celebration of love, some want an intimate event with their closest family, and some want a very perfect and highly organized party, like a corporate event! To find the right vendors, it is most important to know how you want to experience your big day.

Every couple’s story is unique. My wish, is to narrate your special moments in my visual language 😉

Anna-Jill Gierhards
Photo by Marie-Tzagaraki

To learn more about Kiss from Fleur, click here.

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Event Planning

20 Things To Share With Your Wedding Planner

by Kaitlin Donaldson

Once you hire a wedding planner, the planning process can pick up speed very quickly. Before you know it, you’ve already invited your wedding planner to 3 Pinterest boards, booked your band, and shared the name of your maid of honor’s cat because it came up in conversation. It’s easy to become so wrapped up in the excitement of the planning process that you overlook small but important conversations to have with your planner. Which is why I’ve composed this list of the most important things to communicate, in order to prevent these key discussions from getting lost in the shuffle. Keep reading to reveal 20 things to share with your wedding planner, and if you’re not engaged yet, bookmark this blog post for later!

All About the Two of You!

Describe who you are as a couple. Share your values, where you met, your favorite foods, drinks, colors, activities, and what your lifestyle together looks like. It’s so important to paint a picture of your relationship, to help your wedding planner find ways to include personal touches that tell your story as a couple.

Bride and groom at wedding ceremony

The Type of Experience You Want on Your Wedding Day

Consider how you want to feel. Think about the amount of people around you while you’re getting ready in the morning… The pace at which milestone moments happen… If you want one-on-one time with your partner… Or if you want to let loose and party!

Play out the motions of the day in your head, and communicate with your wedding planner about your ideal scenario.

Sign: good vibes only

Your Schedule and Availability

Give your planner an overview of your work schedule and weekday commitments. Talk about how involved you want to be in the wedding planning process, and when you’ll have availability to review emails or take phone calls.

This will help your wedding planner to manage the entire planning process much more efficiently.

Calendar

Your Communication Preferences

Wedding planning is very personal, because your event manager works closely with you, your fiancé and often your family to plan one of the most memorable days of your life. Couples may feel comfortable enough to text their planner and chat about wedding details, ask questions, or share guest list changes. But trust me when I say those texts can get lost in translation very easily, and important details can slip through the cracks!

Ask your planner about their communicate style. Decide if you want to set aside scheduled time for routine meetings or calls to help streamline the planning process.

Black vintage telephone

A Realistic Guest Count

Your guest count dictates absolutely everything; the venue capacity, the floor plan, furniture rentals, catering proposals, stationery quotes… the list goes on! Spend some time with your partner, and put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) to determine a realistic number.

Raw venue with vintage furniture and flowers along ceremony aisle

An Approximate Percentage of Out-of-Town Guests

If these folks aren’t staying with friends or family, they will likely require lodging accommodations. Your wedding planner can arrange hotel blocks, which may save your guests money on their hotel rooms, and also make wedding day transportation and welcome gift distribution a whole lot easier!

European hotel

Your Budget

There’s nothing more uncomfortable than being presented with venues, vendors, or wedding day materials that you love but exceed your budget. You’ll constantly compare new options against the higher cost items that you were originally shown.

To avoid this situation, have an open and honest conversation with your fiancé, or your parents (if they’re financially involved) and set expectations surrounding a comfortable budget. Share those numbers with your wedding planner, so that he or she can research viable options that make your heart soar without breaking the bank.

Woman typing on computer in bed

Aspects of the Wedding You Care About the Most

Your top priorities will influence the percentage of your budget that your planner allocates to certain categories. If you and your fiancé are foodies, you may want to focus your dollars and cents on creating an incredible culinary experience. If you value photography and know that you’ll be looking at your wedding photos day in and day out, you may want to splurge on a top tier photographer.

I know it’s a balancing act, so think about what you and your fiancé will find the most memorable, and prioritize those elements! Use a site like BRIDES to peruse a full list of wedding categories.

Photographer

What You Like and What You Don’t Like

Your favorite flowers are JUST as important to your wedding planner as your least favorite flowers. If your planner knows both, he or she can communicate to the florist which flowers to use heavily, and which flowers to avoid!

The same rule of thumb applies for selecting your band, photographer, videographer, stationer, baker… you get the picture.

Flowers

Your Expectations for Who Assembles Wedding Materials

Think: stationery, welcome gifts, programs, or favors. Not every wedding planner includes assembly in their scope of services, because it requires extra time and labor. If this is important to you, be sure to ask about assembly before hiring your planner, to understand any additional costs associated with these services.

Postcard

Food Allergies and Dietary Restrictions

It’s extremely important for your wedding planner to be aware of any ingredients to stay away from, in order to relay this to caterers as they compose food and beverage proposals.

Also inform your wedding planner of bridal party members, family, and guests that have food allergies or dietary restrictions. The wedding planner will need to notify the caterer if certain guests require a specific kind of meal, especially if it’s not already included on your menu.

Peanuts

Family Dynamics

This doesn’t need to be an uncomfortable or intimidating conversation, and you should never feel the need to give an explanation for any nuances of your family dynamic (after all, we all experience them!).

However, it is helpful for your planner to know if typical wedding day traditions don’t apply. This conversation can happen pretty organically, especially as you’re chatting about the ceremony processional, or the timeline for speeches or special dances.

Pink hearts on black background

If You Plan on Doing a First Look

This will change your timeline, photo list, and the general flow of the day. Many couples choose to do a first look in order to enjoy cocktail hour with their guests, rather than spend that time taking formal photos.

Bride and groom hands touching

Your Photo List

Keep it straightforward! Think: formal photos with the bridal party, best friends, and other family members. Separate out which photos will include just you, just your fiancé, and the two of you. Note any specific detail shots that you want of the dress, rings or vow books, and be sure to chat with the photographer about any important photos a couple weeks before the wedding day.

Bride with arms around grooms neck showing engagement ring

If You Want to Keep Your Wedding Photos Private

Your planner, venue, and vendors may want to share photos of your wedding on social media, post your photos on their website, or include them in their portfolios. If you’re uncomfortable with this, let your wedding planner know in advance, and they can help communicate your preferences to all event partners.

Bride and groom smiling

Who’s Getting Ready With You in the Morning

Your wedding planner will want to ensure you have an adequate amount of space and the supplies you need to get ready comfortably.

The people that are with you before you depart for the ceremony will also impact the photo and transportation schedules.

Dresses

Your Breakfast and Lunch Plans

SO many brides and grooms overlook this VERY IMPORTANT part of the wedding day, because it’s not generally included in the wedding festivities. Organize your breakfast and lunch orders about a week before the wedding, and ask your planner to help arrange food delivery on the wedding day.

This can be as simple as a call down to room service in your hotel, or a Seamless delivery to your home. You’ll be more energized, less grumpy and better equipped to handle the day with food and water in your system!

Salad

If You’re Providing Hair and Makeup for Your Bridesmaids

Your wedding planner will want to compose a grooming schedule to keep hair and makeup running smoothly and on time! If you’re on the hunt for some hair and makeup inspiration, trends and advice from a bridal beauty expert, click here.

Make up

Where You Want Gifts to Go at the End of the Night.

While online registries have significantly reduced physical gifts at weddings, a portion of your guests will still arrive with gifts in hand.

Ask your wedding planner if they handle gift management. Some won’t offer this service to avoid the responsibility of lost/stolen/misplaced gifts of monetary value, and will instead defer to you, a bridesmaid or family member to pack them up and take them out of the venue.

Have this conversation in advance to avoid stressing when the wedding concludes!

Envelopes for wedding gifts

Post-Wedding Transportation Plans

Chat with your planner and decide how you, your bridal party, and any other important guests (like immediate family members) will get home or back to the hotel after the wedding.

Remember that if you’re in a more remote location, and your guests all plan to take Ubers or Lyfts home, the options will be spread thin, and the wait time will be long.

Work with your planner to arrange end of night transportation at least a few months before the wedding date!

Vintage car

Have a question about something specific? Ask it on my Q&A page!

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Event Planning

Building the Perfect Welcome Bag

by Kaitlin Donaldson1 Comment on Building the Perfect Welcome Bag

A guide to an all time favorite topic, welcome bags! From whether or not you need one, to which guests receive them, how much to budget, what contents to purchase, how to assemble the final gifts and tips for staying organized on delivery day. It’s everything you need to know on building the perfect welcome bag. Let’s jump in!

This post contains affiliate links.

To Do or Not To Do

The first thing to note, is that it’s absolutely not necessary or expected to distribute welcome bags. Guests that choose to stay overnight are looking forward to joining in your celebration, and not anticipating any kind of gifting experience in return.

The primary reason that past clients have opted to distribute welcome bags, is due to the number of out of town guests that require overnight accommodations prior to the event day. If guests are staying more than one night, some clients will also opt for turndown gifts in guest rooms.

Welcome and turndown gifts usually coincide with hotel blocks and villa rentals. So, if we’re arranging overnight accommodations for anywhere from 15-20% of out of town guests, they are usually given welcome gifts. They are almost inevitable for destination events, when the majority of guests travel domestically or internationally for a celebration.

Building the Perfect Welcome Bag for Destination Weddings and Events. Pictured: Plane traveling through pink and blue ombre sky
Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger on Pexels.com

How Much Does it Cost?

Depending on the number of guests receiving welcome bags, the cost of contents can accumulate quickly. Budget restraints are perhaps the most common reason why some clients decide to nix them altogether. Generally speaking, welcome gifts can average between $15 – $100+ per bag, for the vessel and the contents.

The variance in price is contingent on a number of factors:

– Cost to hire a company to curate contents, assemble and distribute bags (there are some AMAZING companies out there, but this service doesn’t come cheap!).

– Fees imposed by the hotel to hold and distribute bags (typically $1 per bag, but some properties will charge more).

– Range, type and quantity of contents.

– Paperie enclosures (think: welcome notes, itineraries, maps, suggested activities / restaurants to try during down time).

Contents

NecessitiesSnacks!Fun Stuff
Basics:
Welcome note, water, mints		Fresh bakedApparel, or accessories like sunglasses
Warm Weather Essentials:
Sunscreen, insect repellent, chapstick		SeasonalGames / Activities:
Think: golf balls or a deck of cards
Travel Goodies:
Aspirin, antihistamines, mini toiletries 		Locally madeMini bottle of bubbly

Think about little luxuries that guests can use in the event environment. Solemates are always well received by guests that wear heels to outdoor weddings or events. These heel protectors are designed to prevent heels from sinking into grass or cobblestone and inevitably getting ruined.

Reminders

Keep it Authentic Don’t Go Overboard
Stay true to the locationNice to have vs. need to have
Locally crafted or inspired bag / box
(think: pretty & functional)		Quality > quantity
Contents that speak to the destination or represent the host
(add a touch of personalization here!)		Ask yourself, “Would I use this?”
Sweets and other edible contents are perfect items to include when building a welcome bag. Pictured: Robbin's egg blue ribbon with blue and pink macaroons
Photo by Jill Wellington on Pexels.com

Assembly

Track the quantity of guests slated to receive welcome gifts within a separate column in your guest list spreadsheet.

The general rule of thumb is one bag per room. Although, some clients will purchase two of certain items, particularly water bottles or apparel / accessory items, such as baseball caps or luggage tags. Paper goods can definitely be limited to one per bag.

Pick a spacious room in your home to spread out all of the contents and take Inventory. Once everything is accounted for, remove any wrapping, stickers, or tags from the items. Form an assembly line, placing all of the bags in the beginning, then organize the contents in piles, followed by paper goods, and final touches like ribbon at the end. One by one, complete the bags by following the assembly line.

Pro-Tip: It can be tedious process to assemble bags all in one day. Spread out the workload over the course of a few days to make sure each bag is assembled correctly, without any stickers left unturned or contents left out.

If you’re planning a destination event, it’s not advisable to pre-assemble welcome bags and ship them to the destination (cost being the number one factor, plus items can shift in the delivery process). Work with the event manager to ensure they will accept and store deliveries of the items at the destination, shipped directly from the source. Ask the hotel to confirm receipt and label boxes on your behalf.

Plan to arrive to the destination at least a full day in advance to unbox, unwrap, and prepare the bags. Trust me – this process takes a lot more time than one might anticipate, and the more time to prep, the better. It’s ideal to reserve a conference room for assembly, as there’s typically not enough space in guest rooms for a project of this size!

The Beverly Hills Hotel
Photo by Erica Zhao on Pexels.com

Getting Gifts to Guests

This phase is best left to an event planner, especially for weddings. If you don’t have a planner, delegate this task to a trusted relative or reliable member of the bridal party. It’s not the kind of task you want to do the day before an event!

Request the reservation list from hotels with room blocks arrangements, and triple confirm the number of guest rooms coincide with the quantity of welcome gifts for each location. Work with the group sales manager to identify which rooms will receive gifts. Confirm if they charge a holding or distribution fee, and inquire if guests will need to mention the hotel block to receive their gift upon check in, or if gifts will be placed in guest rooms prior to their arrival.

If you know of certain guests that are staying at rental properties, reach out to confirm where they’re staying and when they’re checking in. Create an itinerary of your drop off route to save time, along with addresses and whom to contact upon arrival.

If a welcome party is hosted prior to the event, it can often be easiest to distribute the gifts as guests depart that initial celebration, especially if guests are spread across various lodging facilities.

Then, celebrate the completion of a massive undertaking – You’ve earned it after this process!

Champagne toast
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

Have a question about something specific? Ask it on my Q&A page!

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Event Planning

Most Loved Websites (for Weddings)

by Kaitlin DonaldsonLeave a Comment on Most Loved Websites (for Weddings)

Whether you’re searching for a theme, color scheme, venue, event partner, creative way to display escort cards, F&B presentation style, or a dose of inspiration, these resources have got you covered. Keep reading to discover some of my Most Loved Websites for Weddings.

Harper’s Bazaar

Head over to Harper’s Bazaar, click the dropdown bar on the top left and there you’ll find Brides. The site is inclusive of planning advice, current news in the wedding space, luxury wedding inspiration, and lots of hidden gems.

Recent articles feature celebrity weddings, sustainability, the launch of new bridal collections, announcements of venue openings, and wedding registry ideas, just to demonstrate the wide span Bazaar Bride covers.

Each year, Bazaar Bride publishes their own Little Black Book of the Top Wedding Planners in the World, the Top Florists in the World, Top Wedding and Event Designers, Cinematographers, and Photographers, in the world. Making it onto their list is considered a major accolade in the industry. It offers couples a guide to the best of the best!

Harper's Bazaar is one of my Most Loved Sites for Weddings. Pictured: Bride and Groom kissing at a church alter

Over the Moon

The content on this site feels fresh, modern, and so inspiring.

It was co-founded by Alexandra Macon, the past editor of Weddings for Vogue, who now shares her wealth of knowledge on planning tips and access to celebrity weddings on her own platform, Over the Moon.

Here you can find beautiful photos, stories and the why behind the inspiration. For how-to’s, top destinations, guides, and insight from some of the most esteemed names in the industry, visit the Planning page on Over the Moon.

Brides

Brides has been around for decades, but still remains on the pulse of today’s wedding space.

Everything etiquette, to advice, and inspiration for the engagement, bridal shower, bachelorette, through to the end of the wedding and honeymoon coverage.

Brides shares articles on planning, celebrity wedding news, trends and features Real Weddings to get the inspiration flowing.

Brides is one of my Most Loved Sites for Weddings. Pictured: Bride and Groom smiling under an outdoor chuppah

Style Me Pretty

This site is a personal favorite for inspiration.

The Real Weddings tab allows viewers to search for inspiration by category. Filter searches by wedding location, season, style, color scheme, and type of venue the nuptials took place in. Bonus: it’s insanely aesthetically pleasing.

Style Me Pretty’s Little Black Book is also super useful for couples searching for event partners. Here you can find hair & make-up stylists, officiants, stationers, planners and everything in between.

Martha Stewart Weddings

This site is another goodie to take inspiration from Real Weddings.

It also includes a tab for ancillary events leading up to the wedding. Check out some of the Engagement Parties and Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties.

Inspiration aside, Martha Stewart Weddings has tons of articles on useful tips, advice and resources to reference during the planning process.

100 Layer Cake

100 Layer Cake is a favorite to share with clients and engaged friends. This wedding and family blog is combined with tips and insight to simplify the planning process.

Search event partners by region to find the best fit for what you’re looking for.

Slated to launch soon, their new Matchbook app will enable couples to secure vendors all on one platform. Until then, check out their site for tons of ideas, and to see gorgeous wedding photos submitted by planners and couples.

100 Layer Cake is one of my Most Loved Sites for Weddings. Pictured: Bride and groom smiling at their outdoor wedding reception

If you liked this post, view more of my go-to’s on the Most Loved Websites Series.

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