The World According to Weddlady

{Guest Post} Considering Professional Lighting for Your Wedding? Here’s What You Need to Know

 
Are you considering professional lighting on your wedding day? Do you have a friend or a vendor who has encouraged you to consult with a lighting designer to give your wedding that extra “Wow” factor? Now more than ever, experienced wedding professionals are preaching that “Lighting is everything!”

Most couples don’t stop to think about how they can set the mood and control the ambience of their ceremony and reception with a variety of lighting techniques.

 
(Photo courtesy of Brooke Mayo Photography)

Here are some tips direct from the experts at Blue Steel Lighting Design to help you determine your lighting needs:

Time Your Site Visit Right & Bring Samples

Many times, couples visit their wedding venues and reception spaces during the day, even though their events will be held at night. For the best reflection of the conditions on your wedding day, visit as close as possible to your event time.

In a ballroom, play with the lighting controls (or ask your venue manager to demonstrate different light settings). Can you achieve the look you want using just the in-house lighting?

If you can, take a flower arrangement sample with you, and set up a sample table. Is the arrangement that you spent so much on vibrant or does it loose its color in a poorly lit room?

On an outside wedding, go to the venue at night to see how it will look.  Is there any landscape lighting?  Think about the difference between security lighting and ambient, décor lighting. Is it possible to combine the two forms of lighting to serve both purposes?

 
(Photo courtesy of Scott Hayne Photography)

The Cost-Effective Solution

Lighting is one of the most cost effective ways to take your wedding to the next level. Couples are amazed at the way it can transform and personalize a room. Solutions are available in almost every budget range too. Be honest with your lighting expert about your expectations and limitations and they can explain to you in detail what options you have.

Hire an Expert

Understand that wedding lighting and special event lighting (or concert lighting) are not the same. You’re probably asking “how do I tell the difference” and “how do I choose a lighting vendor”?

• Look at a portfolio of their work. Does it look elegant like a wedding, or does it look like a random light show? Don’t let a lighting company turn your wedding into their show.
• Interview the designer. Do you share a vision, or are you on two different pages? Did you make a connection? Do you trust him or her 100%
• Ask three vendors who they would use. This is a great suggestion before you hire any wedding professional. If you can’t get a consensus from three vendors, keep asking until a strong trend emerges.

At Blue Steel Lighting Design, we have developed solutions to all of the wedding lighting problems.  We have been recognized in many nation publications for our work, and we look forward to serving you on your special day.

Jeremy Kilgore, founder of Blue Steel Lighting Design contributed this article.  He created Blue Steel Lighting Design to serve brides and wedding professional with all of their lighting and rigging needs. If you really want expert advice, call Blue Steel at 757-816-1939 and set up an appointment today. Their staff is dedicated to making your experience fun and easy.

Disclosure: Blue Steel Lighting Design is a World According to Weddlady sponsor, as well as a good friend and highly recommended service provider to our clients.

{Product Review} This Caffeine Lover's Dream (comes in decaf too!)

I don't do a ton of product reviews here on the Weddlady blog, but when an opportunity arises that I know is a good fit, I definitely don't object. The standards are in place to make sure you always recognize a review when you see one, and yes, it's a perk that I'm willing to enjoy as long as I can do it honestly.

So, when I received an email asking if I would review the Tassimo T20, my fingers couldn't fly fast enough to say yes.

 

I have encountered Tassimo products in the past at local businesses. I actually look forward to going to certain places just so I can sneak in a hot chocolate or a cappuccino...all single serve and made just for me.

I received the Tassimo T20, which is compact, sleek and (thankfully, for this mechanically challenged coffee drinker) very easy to use, a few days before Christmas and just in time for the snow to strand me more than once. I've had several opportunities (like, 3 or 4 times each day) to sit here with my laptop open, my Tassimo-made espresso in hand and total joy in my little heart as I sipped and decided what to write.

For real, I can in good faith recommend the Tassimo T20. One worry I had was that I wouldn't be able to "customize" the drinks easily enough because they come in single-serve "T-Discs". But the machine has a feature that allows you to change the concentration of the different drinks, which works for me because I like mine a little more mellow (no need for hair on this chest, thanks).

As a single mom, I don't have to fight for dominance over the machine, but couples will really enjoy the fact that you can make so many different beverages: from Starbucks-branded espresso (in addition to a host of other recognizable brands) to chai lattes to "standard" dark roast coffee and even hot chocolate all with the same machine. Techies will love the fact that the machine actually reads barcodes on the T-Discs to know how to make each beverage. There is an easy long-term maintenance process, but no clean up after each drink (I really hate cleaning coffee pots...).

I've also had time to check my local markets to see if the T-Discs for the different products are easily available (you can order them from Tassimo as well, which is a pretty convenient feature) and thankfully I can get at least three different varieties in each store. My kids are excited about the hot chocolate ones, and I'd like to add some chai and some of the French Vanilla to those that came as samples with the Tassimo T20 I received. Another benefit: they are affordable compared to stopping in for a coffee-bar beverage every morning.

If Santa perhaps brought the wrong gift (ladies, he really thought that the Wonder-Vac was going to make your life easier!), or if you're newly engaged and excited about your registry, I encourage you to add the Tassimo T20 to your wish list. While I'd be happy to make you a cup of whatever beverage you choose, you definitely cannot have mine!

Happy Planning!

Shayna Walker, Williamsburg Wedding Design

Demystifying Wedding Planner Pricing - A Free Download

Engagement Season is almost over and smart wedding pros all over are getting their marketing messages ready to woo the newly engaged to try their services. It's the way of the wedding world.

So leave it to me to throw a giant wrench in the traditional mechanisms.

I'm starting the year off with education first and marketing later. I'm beginning with the unthinkable: telling you what I cost and why.

Yes, instead of polishing up my postcards (which frankly, I probably should do) I sat down and wrote you a 21-page (big margins and large type!) ebook explaining how wedding planners determine pricing.

You don't even need to read the rest of this compelling post. You can download it right now without subscribing to anything and completely free just by clicking here: http://www.scribd.com/full/48006884?access_key=key-235gbflpl0ofkbqt46vc.

Not the Way Things are Supposed to Work

The traditional marketing model would have me start by convincing you that you have a need, telling you how I can fill that need, prodding you into a longer conversation in person about your needs, then finally telling you what it will cost you to fix all of your problems at which point you are so sold on me as a savior that you'll write me a check for any amount.

So...you have a need, I can fill the need, I'm really good at it and you'll feel better once you hire me.

Hold on to the check for a minute though.

Here's the issue. If you are newly engaged, you're about to discover that more has been written and published about planning weddings than you can ever possibly hope to read. And with the advent of blogs, that wealth of knowledge has increased exponentially.

Good Advice vs. Bad Information

A really popular topic is how to save money - by doing all kinds of wacky things. Some of the advice is quirky and kind of brilliant - and a LOT of it is sketchy and written by people with little more experience than having planned (or being in the process of planning) their own wedding.

So my gift to you during this engagement season is some straightforward knowledge. If you are considering hiring a wedding planner or a wedding day manager, this little (21-page, big print, huge margins), totally free ebook will explain exactly what goes into determining pricing for a typical professional wedding planner.

Disclaimer

It's not going to tell you what your wedding planner should cost. In fact, I spent a great deal of time defining boundaries for the information and explaining that I can only use myself, my market and my experience as an example.

But it will tell you what is behind the typical wedding planner's pricing and what factors we have to consider when we're running real businesses.

There's no subscription, no fee and no commitment - you just download, read and promise me that you'll use the knowledge for good instead of evil.

That's it - click here, read, and be the most savvy bride on the block: http://www.scribd.com/full/48006884?access_key=key-235gbflpl0ofkbqt46vc.

Yes, wedding pros, I realize you can read it to. And I realize it's counter-intuitive to give you my "privileged" pricing information. Except that all you really need to do is call me to get it anyway. Some of you have and we've become good friends. Others are sleazy and "secret shop" me and others. Well, at least I don't have to talk to you. You can just read the ebook you lazy schlep.

In all seriousness, if you've read anything I write, you know I believe in transparency, and this is as transparent as it gets. So yes, you're invited to download it too: http://www.scribd.com/full/48006884?access_key=key-235gbflpl0ofkbqt46vc. Just spell my name right when you flame me. ;)

Okay - so stop wasting your time on this blog post and start your pursuit of informed consumerism!

And Happy Planning!

Shayna Walker, Williamsburg Wedding Design

 

Dreaming of an Irish Wedding...in Ireland?

I had to share this because Weddlady readers are quite literally everywhere. And many of my clients over the years have incorporated their Irish roots into their celebrations.

Well, you can take that a step further if you'd like, and actually plan a wedding in Ireland.

Here is an article by Annie Byrne of Aislinn Events, someone who I have connected with via the uber-networker Meghan Ely of OFD Consulting, and who I hope sincerely to meet in person (and IN Ireland) someday soon. It's the complete 411 on having a wedding in Ireland!

Getting Married in Ireland

Happy planning!

Shayna Walker, Williamsburg Wedding Design

Choosing a Wedding Planner: Tools for Avoiding Smoke and Mirrors and Hiring a True Pro

I was doing some research for a friend today and encountered a couple of really interesting claims by people who assert themselves as experienced professional wedding planners in markets I’m familiar with.

One claimed to have been planning since a certain date (we’ll say 2000 just for argument’s sake) – yet her bio cited that in 2000 she was planning 'events' (not weddings) as part of a volunteer organization (so…was she planning complicated events for 300 people in an emotionally charged situation, or networking meetings for 12 at the local pizzeria?). Good experience? Possibly. The same thing as “planning weddings professionally since 2000”? No.

Another implied that she had been planning weddings since (hypothetically) 2001 – yet if you read her bio she actually did something totally different that was “wedding-related” but definitely was not wedding planning up until about, oh, yesterday.

Why Lie?

Why do people lie about, or “pad” their wedding planning resume? It’s because there is absolutely no barrier to entry in the wedding planning industry. No real license, no universally recognized certification (and not even good policing of people using the term “Certified” when their own association bylaws specifically states they may not use the term because they do not offer a true certification; SO frustrating if you’re a consumer reading the claims online).  You can’t even trust the term “award” as so many of the ones you’ll see in people’s email signatures and on websites aren’t merit-based, but are the result of advertising with different marketing companies.

However, those who are either new to the industry, or trying to “expand” their current repertoire of services from wherever they started (regardless of how applicable that experience is to the title “planner”) are afraid that prospective clients wouldn’t hire them if they knew how few weddings they had actually planned.

Bride-Turned-Detective

That is why it is so critical that you take responsibility for your own due diligence when selecting a wedding planner.

Everyone starts somewhere, and there are new wedding planners whose previous experience gives them great qualifications for doing the job right. Those reputable planners, new or veterans, won’t need to lie to you to get your business.

I started in the hospitality industry in 1997 as a grunt worker in conventions, graduated to leading over-the-road tours of student groups, then to working in the catering department of a major cruise line and finally to planning people’s weddings for money in 2003.

When you read my website it clearly states that I began my wedding planning business in 2004 – the first year I started operating a business in Williamsburg, Virginia in which brides paid me to plan their weddings. That’s the year I purchased a Williamsburg business license – the year that I declared on my taxes that I was a consultant in the events industry.

Not the year that I first “fell in love” with weddings, not the year that I got married and therefore earned all the credentials I needed to become a professional planner (that’s a joke, by the way…if you don’t get it, do more research before hiring a planner) and not the year I first started doing something else in the industry, so you probably wouldn’t figure out if I just kind of “fudged” it and said it was the year I started planning.

These Are Important Distinctions

I like new wedding businesses – and I like “competition” – the best of whom I consider colleagues, not adversaries. I do NOT like manipulative sales practices and claims that make someone sound reputable when they aren’t.

And think about it – if someone is lying to earn your trust, is that someone you really want to entrust with your wedding?

Use Your Brain – Do Not Check it at the Engagement Party!!!

Ask smart questions – not the lame lists that some publications suggest, but the ones that make sense to a savvy, sophisticated consumer like yourself. And do some simple research. Some of the best ways to screen wedding planners in my opinion are to:

• Ask other reputable vendors in the local area where you are marrying who they would use if they were choosing a planner
• Actually email or call the folks that a candidate sends you as referrals. Can they tell you anything about the planning process? If not, is it possible they are the planner’s cousin or best friend and just “standing in” as a referral?
• Look for multiple faces or weddings on a website - this isn't foolproof, because it's easy to simply purchase wedding photos for use on a business site, however, you can almost always tell a "bride-turned-planner" by the fact that all of the photos on her site come from the same wedding (and have her in them!)
• If a website lists more than one "staff" member, ask to talk to some of the others. Is it easy or hard to get in touch with them? Are they actually employed by or regularly contracted by the business, or have they sorta promised to kinda help once in awhile and are fine with the fact that their photo and bio appear on a wedding website? Are they staff or fluffy friends?
• Believe about ¼ of what you read, ½ of what you’re told, look for a preponderance of evidence of a job well done and just use your brains.

There are actual professional service providers in the wedding industry – seek them out and pay them to do their job well. Use a critical eye to see through the smoke and mirrors that some folks need to appear professional. You’ll thank yourself on your dream wedding day.

Happy Planning!

Shayna Walker, Williamsburg Wedding Design

Will a Wedding Planner Save Me Money?

A frequently asked question, which is fair but mildly misguided, is “if I hire a wedding planner, will she save me money?”

The question itself isn’t a bad one, but it does reflect a mindset that demonstrates a basic misunderstanding of what a wedding planner does.

Among the many reasons to hire a wedding planner are:

• You have no idea where to start and want reputable, professional guidance with how to plan a wedding
• You’re planning from out of town and want a local expert on your side
• Your life demands are such that you need someone in a hired capacity to execute the planning of your wedding – you want input, but minimum logistical involvement
• You value peace of mind on your wedding day and to know that there is a script and a director ready to execute well-developed plans
• Your event is particularly complicated, including backyard weddings, tented events, events with multiple or distant locations, and other similar situations, and you recognize the need for an expert
• You’re just not good at this stuff (and you don’t need to be; how many weddings are you planning to have anyway?) and no amount of magazine reading is going to turn you into a planning superstar

Note that nowhere on this non-exhaustive, but pretty decent list does it say “because you want to save money.”

It could say: “you want to avoid making expensive mistakes”.

It could say: “you want to make sure your spending matches your budget priorities”.

It could say: “you desire to ensure that money spent is money well spent.”

It does not say “because you want to save money.”

In fact, you may very well end up spending more money than you initially budget on a wedding planner, simply because you are unfamiliar with the customary charges for planning at different levels in your region. However, if you choose wisely, the value of that decision will far outweigh the unexpected investment.

Your professional planner will negotiate on your behalf when the situation warrants negotiation, and will encourage you to pay fair value when it’s warranted as well. She is not going to refer you to the cheapest person who will do the job simply based on that cheap price. She’ll recommend service providers who best fit your many criteria, including necessary skill level, extent of services provided, appropriate nature of offerings, and yes, your budget needs.

She’ll warn you when you’re about to make a bad, or costly decision, and will explain to you what the cost actually is (it might be a cost in dollars or in quality).

Rarely, she might extend to you a discount offered by a trusted service provider based on her good relationship with them, but she’ll disclose to you benefits she might be receiving from the reduced-rate-arrangement (if any) and explain the benefits and drawbacks of using that provider fairly.

 See why the question “will hiring a wedding planner save me money” isn’t as easy to answer as you might have thought?

My suggestion is that you reframe the question when you interview prospective wedding planners and ask them how they will ensure that you receive the best value based on your budget and priorities, and how that will translate into your enjoying your dream day.

You’ll have the added benefit of sounding pretty smart too!

Happy planning.

Shayna Walker

Williamsburg Wedding Design

Read My Contracts? Why? What Could Go Wrong?

When couples consult with me about their weddings the first time, I usually run through my contract at some point during the meeting. One of the most important clauses in that contract states that clients will provide me with a copy of every contract for every professional service provider they have hired by a certain date.

It's so important that I even write in a nuisance fee in case I have to chase the contracts down - no one ever pays the nuisance fee, because sending copies of contracts is not, in fact, all that hard.

But it is critical.

Have you actually read the contracts for your wedding day?

If you haven't, stop reading this blog right now, go find them all and read them top to bottom. Why? Because as much as I admire your trusting nature and naivete, you could be missing really important details like:

• Your cake is arriving an hour before your cake table (insert irritated baker here)
• Your caterer is planning to arrive 2 hours before the event...but you've got your florist scheduled to start centerpieces on the tables (that the caterer is putting out) 5 hours before the event
• Your DJ requires 2 tables with cloths and a hot meal 1 hour before the event (kind of extreme, but depending on the personality...)
• At a certain temperature, or in certain weather conditions your harpist contractually does NOT have to play
• Your band requires a 220-volt outlet, your caterer needs 5 dedicate 120-volt circuits, your lighting designer needs 5 more...and your venue has no power of its own (i.e. a tent?)

Yes, all of these things can really be requirements, and if you haven't read your contracts, it is YOUR issue on the wedding day, not the vendors'.

How ticked will you be if you walk down the aisle with no music because you didn't make proper accommodations for your harpist? When your cake collapses because the DJ has to set it up because your baker had to leave (not that a good baker would just leave a cake...but did you hire a good baker?) because you didn't tell her that the venue doesn't allow set up until an hour before the event, are you planning to be okay with it?

There are a few brides who would be totally okay with it, but there are a lot more who will go into spasms if any of the above, let alone all of them occur, and by not reading your contracts carefully you're exposing yourself to these issues as real possibilities.

So, please go read your contracts. Right now. Go on...you'll thank me later.

Shayna Walker

Williamsburg Wedding Design