Wedding Planner

I have a ton of friends who have gotten married in the last year, and they have ALL said that they wished they had gotten a planner - I even had a few of the grooms say it! They can definitely be a little pricey, and I would recommend meeting with them to get a feel for how they run things. If you can't afford one for the whole planning time, even someone for the week of/day of to coordinate is helpful!

So I had a full service wedding planner. It was very expensive but completely worth the money to me. She helped me figure out my colors and decor, found all my vendors and was the one to communicate with them, handled my contracts and timeline, secured room blocks, bought and assembled my welcome bags and so much more. But if you have a small budget I would suggest only getting a day of coordinator because it’s not cheap.

How comfortable are you planning events? How big do you anticipate your wedding will be?

I’m planning my own wedding and hiring a month of coordinator but I’m a DOC and have planned other entertainment events for 10 years now.

If you know someone close to you who’s super organized and likes to plan things, they can help you with the majority of the planning process. But you risk the person taking over your wedding and running with their vision rather than yours. At least with a paid professional, it’s their job to carry out your vision.

Im also torn. Right now if money doesn't free up in the budget I'm considering asking two friends that I know I can trust to be day of coordinator's. Making sure the timeline runs smoothly, grabbing us if we're busy with guests and need to be cutting cake, cleaning up from the ceremony, etc.

I have a friend who is a wedding planner by profession and I just looked toward her for a lot of advice. However I did end up hiring a day of coordinator to do my set up portion because it just gave me more peace of mind logistically.
If you do not have the room in your budget then you can certainly ask an organized savvy family member or friends to help out! I am sure they would be more than happy to. Or check with your venue to see if there is an event manager there that will be supervising your reception/ceremony. For instance my venue does have a manager who is there to facilitate.

Hey Samantha!! Have you made a decision on hiring a wedding planner?

We have a wedding planner/DOC and she has already priceless. I cannot imagine trying to do all of the things associated with the wedding weekend on my own. Highly recommended over here!

Yes, I have decided to hire one!

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My friend was asked to do this at another wedding and it really upset her. She wanted to be able to have fun with everyone and get drunk and not have to be held accountable for everything.