Wedding Planning: Where to Spend, Where to Save

In any given city, including New Orleans, you can expect to spend a minimum amount for certain vendor categories, while other categories are more flexible. I've compiled a list of my recommended splurges, and also the more flexible categories, where you can save.  

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Spend

1. Photography

Your wedding lasts a day. The photos last forever. Sounds cliché, but it’s true.  As memories fade, those photographs are what’s left of the day, and having an amazing photographer makes a huge difference.  No matter what your wedding actually looks like, it can appear in the photos either sub-par or completely amazing. 

2. Flowers & Design

Flowers are a huge part of wedding design, setting the tone for the entire wedding.  How many photos have you seen of mismatched blush bridesmaids’ dresses lately? It’s those bouquets that lend personality to each wedding party.  All those pictures on Pinterest? It’s the design, styling, (and of course photography) that makes them pin-worthy. 

3. Band

Moving away momentarily from the look of your wedding, the actual party is all about a great band. The pros will have your guests on the dance floor all night long. Luckily, in New Orleans, we aren’t lacking for great music! 

Save

1. Wedding Cakes

Wedding cakes can be costly, but there are ways to save. One option is to simplify the design, and go for a plain or naked cake that can be decorated with flowers, berries, or other natural elements by your florist or planner for a simple look that's totally in style right now. Fancy fondant designs and sugar flowers can add up quickly.

Another option is to reduce the size of the cake and either serve another dessert alongside, or have your caterer serve guests from a sheet cake in the back.  A huge plus to using a smaller cake is that you can use a smaller cake stand, such as a pedestal. Smaller cake stands are really elegant, and the cake table itself can be styled to have the presence and drama of a larger cake.  

2. Transportation

Limos or charter bus transportation can take a large chunk out of your budget. You could avoid chartering guests around by picking a venue where it's not necessary (a second line from the church to the reception, perhaps?) However, if you do need those services, you can benefit from putting the work in and getting quotes from multiple companies, or hiring a planner who knows the vendors and can find you the best deal.  Prices vary greatly for charter bus transportation companies, as well as limousine services, so don't settle on the first, second, or even third quote you get.  However, still do your homework and make sure the reviews look kosher.

3. Invitations & Signage

Invitations, save-the-dates, signage, programs, etc., being relatively small and easy to ship, can be sourced from around the country.  While there are some great local shops, you can also find numerous options online, which opens up the market for a wide range of price points.  

French Wedding Lessons: All About Joy

This past July, I traveled with my husband, Pierce, and his family, to attend the wedding of his cousin, Valerie, to Sébastien, in Grignan, France.  Grignan, about a two-hour drive from the airport in Lyon, is situated in the Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. While I won't bore you with a narrative of my trip, I feel incredibly lucky to have visited this place, somewhere I never otherwise would have discovered.  Out of all the places I visited while we were in Europe, Grignan was my favorite. And Paris…so maybe I just love France!

Me, drinking rosé, because that's what you do in France.

I wanted to write this post to describe the experience I had, and to try to put into words the differences between this wedding and the weddings I see here in New Orleans (including my own).  In part, I wish I'd written this months ago when the events were still fresh, but the memory I have is more of a feeling, which I think is probably more authentic than all the little details.  

Thanks so much to Chloe Sinanoglu for allowing me to use all of her gorgeous photographs! After putting this blog post together, I realized her pictures alone tell the story of this wedding, and illustrate my thoughts perfectly.  Chloe is a destination photographer and available for travel. You can view her website here. 

The wedding took place on a hilltop, in an old monastery, overlooking fields of lavender.  Stunning is an understatement, but what struck me about the day, beyond the amazing location, was how simplistically beautiful everything was, how relaxed everyone seemed, and how joyful. Kids ran around, guests mingled for hours, champagne was flowing, and generally, the pace was much slower and laid back than what you experience in the South. This wasn't about a giant cake, fancy food, or cascading flower arrangements (although the food was amazing, and the décor beautiful). It was truly about two people, enjoying every moment of the weekend, literally laughing, running, and dancing the whole time.

Bride before the ceremony.  

Although I couldn't understand one word, the ceremony was beautiful! 

The couple with their beautiful baby. 

Admittedly, some of these attributes would be difficult to recreate for a New Orleans wedding—most venues rent out spaces for a short amount of time; you probably aren't renting out a space for a whole weekend.  But what is notable, at least from my perspective, was how relaxed everyone was, including the bride and groom. Maybe it was French joie de vivre, maybe it was the couple themselves, but it was truly an experience to learn from.

My personal favorite detail--hats for the sun-drenched ceremony.

I had a difficult time wording this next thought as a wedding planner: don’t take the party too seriously.  As someone who plans weddings all day, coordinates the tiniest details, and lives for wedding décor, I don’t mean that all the lovely details aren't important! (And this wedding had them, for sure.) But when you’re the bride, all that planning should be finished ahead of time.  Looking through these photos, this is the experience I strive to give my clients.  On your wedding weekend, refocus yourself on your marriage, the people who are there with you, and truly celebrate—don’t waste your energy worrying about a million little details.  Relax, laugh, and live the moment, because it really goes by so fast.  

New Orleans Vendor Spotlight: D play

I get questions all the time about ceremony music-what instruments should I pick, how many do I need, what goes together? Although I’m a HUGE music fan, and know what I like, I can’t speak very intelligently on what instruments work together, and why.  So, I turned to the experts (and while I was at it, I also got the need-to-know on second lines).

This is the first blogpost in my new wedding planning series: New Orleans Vendor Spotlight.  Featured today is John Hozey of D Play, a full service wedding band in New Orleans. I’ve heard these guys rock a reception, but what you may not know is that they also offer ceremony music and second lines. You can view their website here. 

Ceremony Music Breakdown

To start off, I asked John his favorite ceremony combo.  His response: “An upright bass, piano, and acoustic guitar.”  However, he admits that music is subjective, so his choice is based strictly on what he likes to hear.  He often asks couples whether they want a more “traditional” (i.e. Canon in D, Ode to Joy, etc.), or “contemporary” sound.  Traditional songs work great with a string quartet or trio, typically including a violin, cello, or upright bass, viola, or a classical guitar.  Contemporary song choices lend themselves more towards piano and guitar, sounding great and easily playing songs that weren’t written hundreds of years ago.  An acoustic guitar and/or piano matches well with just about any instrument, including a violin and/or cello.

I also asked John if any one instrument works nicely alone.  “Acoustic guitar, harp, or piano go well by themselves.”  He explained that when looking for a solo instrument, you want an instrument that typically plays chords along with the melody, to make sure the sound is full. 

Lastly, I asked him if anything doesn’t work. “Any time you get great musicians, they can make it sound good. Even If you wanted a tribal ceremony and hire just a hand drum! We’ve done that before. Polynesian style!”

New Orleans Second Lines

I started with the basics, asking John what makes up the foundation of your traditional New Orleans second line.  “It’s so loose but really, you need a sousaphone (tuba), bass drum, snare drum, and trumpet. You can replace the trumpet really with a sax or trombone, but that is the most prevalent in New Orleans second lines.”  As far as add-ons? Go with another trumpet, trombone or sax. 

Is it possible to get a traditional sound with only a four-piece? John prefers more than a four piece- D Play offers a six-piece for their second line.  “The sound I hear from second lines from a melodic perspective is how the horns work together.  They tend to play both with and around each other. So unique.  This can’t happen with one lead horn.” 

Of course, if you want to go all out, add on your dancing man or Indian. “The possibilities are endless. It depends on how involved you want it. Some people want the real deal and a straight up party in the streets!”

Thanks to D Play for helping out with these questions! Stay tuned for more from my New Orleans Vendor Spotlight series! 

wedding regrets

Recently, I polled a group of my married friends in New Orleans to see what they would change about their wedding day.  As expected, I didn’t get any giant regrets—it’s hard to mess up what is likely the biggest party you will ever have, with all of your friends and family in one space, celebrating you and your spouse starting a new life together.  But, there’s always something to learn from those that have been there.  

Not delegating.  One of the biggest issues brides have is not letting go of the details.  It can be stressful to relinquish control of all your plans (more so for certain people, like me), but you will enjoy the day so much more if you don’t try to take care of everything yourself.  To avoid the stress of letting go, make a detailed written plan with your wedding coordinator and/or other designated helper, so that you feel comfortable knowing everyone else will take care of their respective roles.  

Not planning photos.  Some brides will hand their photographer dozens of Pinterest shots that they want to recreate, while others take a more laid back approach.  Your wedding photographer is likely a pro, but it's a good idea to think about the shots that you will want to have, and the shots that you will actually use. Communicate with your photographer and really think about what you want to get out of your wedding photos.

Over-packing your wedding décor. Bringing too much to the reception hall is an extremely common mistake.  Just like over-packing a suitcase, it’s tempting to pack up everything that you could ever possibly use, when you really only need a fraction of it.  This ends up creating chaos in unpacking and setting up.  If you are doing a lot of your own wedding décor, pack it up and label by tables/locations.  This way, everything you are packing has a purpose and a place, and can be easily unloaded and set-up.  

Disagreeing with family. It’s common for weddings to create family tension— hurt feelings when ideas are ignored, people feeling left-out, people feeling overworked… Mostly, these feelings are the result of everyone caring so much about making the day perfect.   Although it’s your day, it’s also a huge deal for the people that got you there.  And, it’s worth recognizing that the happiness of the one’s you love will probably have a direct result on your own happiness that day.  Plan ways to include your parents and your groom’s parents, and consider giving in to them on a few little details that aren’t at the top of your priority list. 

My personal regret—not practicing the first dance.  When all eyes are on you, those three to four minutes seem like a lifetime!  

Why Hire a Wedding Planner?

On the fence about hiring a planner? Here are my three top reasons: 

1) So you, and your family, enjoy the wedding more.  No doubt about it, a wedder planner will help you, and your family members, enjoy the planning process and the wedding more.  Having a planner allows you to take part in the fun aspects of planning: choosing vendors, decor, details, and all the ways you personalize your wedding.  Planners are there to do the parts that you don't want to do. When you're the bride, even if you make it to the weekend of the wedding with no hired help, you don't have time to do what needs to be done. This means that someone is taking over for you, likely a mother, sister, or close friend. Someone has to set up the ceremony and reception sites while you are getting ready.  Someone has to make sure all your vendors arrive timely.  Someone has to make sure your programs and rings make it to ceremony. Someone has to gather your extended family for photos. Someone has to do the most hated job of all after you've exited with your new spouse--taking down and packing up all those decorations, flowers, gifts, cards, cake, etc.  A planner will save you and your family the stress and work, so everyone enjoys the whole weekend.

2) To save your budget. Wedding planners, unlike photographers, florists, etc., provide, for the most part, an intangible service. You are paying for the time they put into the event, the hours thinking and dreaming about how your details will come together, visualizing the end product, setting those details in motion, bringing together countless vendors, and seeing the plans through. If you are wondering if the cost of a planner is worth it, or if you can fit it into your budget, consider this--a good planner should help you save money elsewhere.  A planner will know the best vendors for your budget and style, and provide recommendations to you. They will often know up-and-coming vendors that aren't yet on popular advertising sites, offering great services at a lower cost.  They will know all the little hidden costs that you otherwise may not have allocated for in your budget.  They will have a plan for your décor helping you avoid the tendency to buy non-stop, for things you don't need.  They will know the décor rental market in your area, and can give you advice on when to rent versus when to buy.

3) To execute your ideas.  Planners spend everyday immersed in weddings. Whether on Instagram or Pinterest, designing their own photo shoots, or designing weddings, they are up to date on current trends, and more importantly, they know how to bring to life your inspiration photos in your particular venue and budget. That centerpiece you love may look great in the photo you see, but that may get lost in your venue. A good planner is an expert in color and scale, and will translate your ideas into something that will work for your specific venue. They will give you suggestions and recommendations on what will make the most impact--where to spend and where to save.  This will maximize your budget, to make sure your wedding looks the very best it can for what you have to spend. 

Planning a wedding in New Orleans? Give me a buzz!