Day of coordinator?

It's not absolutely necessary, but it should definitely be close to the top of the priority list. I never considered having one until I thought about everything that needs to be supervised the day of. The last thing I want is my mom or my sisters trying to take the reigns and not being able to enjoy the day. Everyone is different, but my DOC will be working with me for about two months before the wedding and a few texts/emails here and there when I have questions until then. She'll be responsible for the rehearsal, setup and breakdown of the wedding, ushering guests from the ceremony to the reception for cocktail hour, meeting with the vendors as they arrive that morning, designing/decorating the reception and ceremony space with me (we're going to visit my venue together in January to start the vision), and she'll also be keeping the bar stocked as we won't have a bartender, just self-serve beer and wine.

I would definitely make room in your budget for one if at all possible!

View Quoted Comment Thanks Amber! That’s the thing, my venue hall handles mostly everything. They’ll set up and clean up afterwards. They offer a Maitre D that will also assist in the shuffling of switching rooms Etc. The DJ is also equipped in giving the layout of the whole thing. So, for me, it’s only about supervising the events such as ensuring the timing of the wedding party procession and checking in with vendors. I’m torn. Thank you!

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Would you be able to pay extra to have the Maitre D cover those responsibilities too since they'll already be there? That would be way more convenient (and cost efficient) since your venue already provides them!

View Quoted Comment See, this is why I use these forums. That’s a great idea that I clearly didn’t think of. Thank you!

View Quoted Comment You're welcome, I hope it works out!

If your venue does most of the set up/clean up I wouldn't worry about it too much. Our venue provides basic day of coordination such as vendor arrival and setup. Try to pick other vendors (caterers, florists, etc) that are already familiar with your venue and you'll avoid confusion. Some venues basically give you a blank slate where you bring in EVERYTHING yourself and in that case I would definitely want a coordinator.

Not necessary but has made my life and planning so much easier! I have more of a wedding planner since she has been meeting with me at least once a month to discuss wedding items since 7 months before my wedding (which is now only 31 days away!!)

I'm also now realizing that the closer the wedding gets, the more I need her expertise and reminders. I would highly recommend one if you do not what the added stress of figuring out who goes where on your wedding day

We hired one, our venue required it but we would have hired one regardless. It was SO nice to not have to talk to vendors, set up decor, deal with any problems, etc. and have someone there to do it all.

It depends on your logistics. For me it was necessary because i had too little time to set up my reception myself

I haven't hired one yet and not sure if I will. To be honest it wasn't even on my radar until recently. My fiance's aunt offered to help and I asked her to fill that role and make sure that she was there and could help with the vendors arrival and stuff. Our reception will be set up the day before, so she would only need to make sure the groomsmen put the chairs in the right place for the ceremony, and make sure the vendors knew where to set up. My only concern right now is the self serve beer and wine. After the wedding starts, I want her to be able to enjoy it so I'm trying to figure out how to handle the beer and wine with no one to replenish it.

My venue is all inclusive and comes with a DOC (thank God); if it didn’t come with one I would probably look into getting one. Everyone enjoying themselves is important to me.

My future mother-in-law and future sis basically became my wedding coordinators.. I’m sure they will still be like that on the wedding day because it’s just their personalities.. no complaints here! Haha. Just make sure someone else handles details so you can relax.