Having your wedding out of town is a BIG task! And it would take more than a few paragraphs to cover all you would need to know to plan it. Here are a few quick steps to help you decide if it is even a good idea for you.

1. Will anyone come? Will your guests spend the airfare, hotel, and time off work to attend, and if so how many people will come? You don’t want to select a facility that asks for a 100 person guarantee and 25 of your guests R.S.V.P.

2. Like your backup plan! B.O.G. traveled to perform at a Wedding in Bermuda that was supposed to be outside and when the weather didn’t cooperate the Wedding was moved indoors to a very small area with a different decor than the bride had in mind.

3. You will be responsible for having activities for your guest to do and a basic plan to move your guests through a minimum of 3 days of events. At the least. The day before the wedding, the day of, and day after. Will you bus them from place to place or do you expect each guest to rent a vehicle to get around? *Some Islands do not permit you to hire musicians, photographers, etc. that do not live on the Island. So before you hire your professionals make sure they can obtain a workers permit from the Island Consulate. Most islands will ask for working permits to be submitted by everyone you hire not native to the land. And most of all when selecting your date consider Hurricane season and also try to get Wedding insurance for these logistically challenging events! Good luck, if you have any questions contact me anytime. April

Family portraits... When it comes to family portraits do not do them during your reception. Yes, it is the only time you can get your whole family together, but you are MUCH better off doing those pictures right before your cocktail hour. Sometimes assembling your family for a picture can take 20 – 30 minutes and in a 4 hour party that is a huge chunk of time to lose! Delegate someone in your bridal party to gather the family so that it can take minimal time to expedite. Set up a meeting place or send those family members a special invitation for the photo shoot. This is where the magic is all in the details! April

 Flowers are definitely a focal part of any wedding. They will set the tone for your entire day and your everlasting pictures. There are a lot of options for getting the most out of your flowers. You can also choose to combine your favors as your flowers. Breakaway centerpieces of 5 Baby pine trees in a bunch in the center of the table is one idea that looks beautiful, is “green” and each couple can take one home to plant in memory of your day. This is especially nice around the holidays. Singular Centerpieces can also be collected by the florist during the last 30 minutes of your party and individual bouquets of flowers can be wrapped in decorative tissue and handed to each lady at the end of the night. This is something that you will need to coordinate with the florist however. In doing this after your wedding is over you are not left with 15 centerpieces at your moms house while you are on your honeymoon.  Silk flowers are another option for your bridal bouquet and boutonniere so that they can be saved forever. Table centerpieces can be entirely made of silk as well. So before you interview your florist think about how you want to do it then you can pick out the color scheme and type of flowers.

Think…

Breakaway centerpiece

Singular centerpiece

Fresh flowers or silk

Then

Color

Type

Do you really smell real flowers at a Wedding? Do you notice that silk flowers don’t smell?

Decisions, decisions............... April

When you ask a couple that's just about to start their wedding planning "what's important" you find that everyone will have a completely different answer!

It’s a great idea to make a list of your top priorities and focus your time and money on them because your top priorities will make the biggest impact on you on your wedding day. My top priorities for my wedding were 1- Entertainment, 2- Location/Food, 3- Wedding gown and 4- Honeymoon.  Again, everyone is different so this is a personal decision, but when you have to plan within a budget a list of priorities will keep you focused and help you get what you want.

I put my dollars towards my top priorities and did not spend a lot on other things such as centerpieces, limos, and invitations. When your guests arrive to your wedding the location means a lot. Entertainment will be what your guests talk about long after your wedding is over. The bride’s gown is what everyone is excited to see and the honeymoon is the much needed vacation you will need after the long planning process is over. It makes sense to focus on what means the most to you which will help you have a truly spectacular experience. If you skimp on what means the most to you and splurge on something you don’t care so much about you will feel the difference in the end. So set your top priorities, stay focused and enjoy the best day of your lives!

 You picked out a beautiful dress, but will it work for you? Will it be comfortable all day? Will it wrinkle and sag? Will it bustlecorrectly and does anyone know how to do that? Can you lift your arms above your head and dance around?

You MUST know all these things before your purchase! Continuously pulling your dress up all night is not easy with a bouquet in your hand or while dancing. Make sure the straps stay on your shoulders and do not dig into you from the weight of the gown. Designate someone to bustle your dress on the wedding day and don’t have them try it for the first time on the big day. It can take a while to find all the hidden bustle clips and eat up a lot of time in your reception. And ladies most importantly if it is strapless make sure there is not a chance of a “slip”! Same thing goes for selecting bridal party gowns. Be comfortable and make sure the material will not look like a wrinkled mess after a few hours. Some current trends are having the bridal party in the same color and fabric, but wearing different styles suiting each body shape. And yes, no one wants 27 dresses in their closet so if they can be used again the girls in your wedding will love you even more for it :) Remember comfort counts!

 The best place to start is at the beginning which is closing your location. Here are some things to look for…

Style size and layout of the building Every catering facility is unique in its décor and layout. Along with the reception consider the logistics as far as having your ceremony there or in a church. Does the facility have the space you need with a suitable Layout for your entertainment? Also notice where the Bride & Groom's table is. Is it near the kitchen door? If so all your pictures will have waiters carrying dishes in your pictures. Here is another tip. When touring facilities during the choosing process always check the bathrooms. It makes a much better impression for your guests when the bathrooms are as clean as the rest of the facility.

Proximity / travel for guests. Consider the location of your wedding ceremony in relation to the location of the reception and where your guests are travelling from. For example if your guests are from NY you are better off not having a Friday night summer south Jersey wedding. The chances for shore traffic is high which can make for a late start plus you may end up with a few cranky guests.In this case a Saturday night is a better choice.

Service and quality of food Some facilities take a bag of salad and just put it on a plate while others arrange it into a fancy, decorative basket filled with assorted vegetables and a special spring roll to compliment it. The punchline here is that both facilities will charge you the same fee! Your special day should be as elegant as possible down to the details. Also take a look at the staff at the facility. Look to see if the staff is dressed in matching uniforms. Maybe this detail doesn’t matter much to you, but your guests may notice. It is important to pay attention to details that all add up to a beautiful event.

Reputation If you know of a few people that have had their event at a particular facility and loved it, then it is definitely a good idea to consider having your event there too. Reputation is a big factor when choosing any of your vendors.

Communication with person who will be there on the day of the event. Speaking to the Matre D in charge on the night of your wedding is a huge plus. The Matre D coordinates the chef and staff and is the person who will be responsible for the flow of your reception. Your wedding is an event and the people you have running it can make it or break it for you. I will tell you that not all Matre Ds are the same.. I have seen Matre Ds go so far as helping the bride bustle her dress to one particular case where the Matre D actually left the building to tend to another event!

I could go on and on about the various things I have seen in my experience over the years and believe me I have seen it all from floods and power loss to outrageously exciting affairs. I am here to offer any help that you may need. Please feel free to leave a comment below and contact me for any additional information via email. I hope that some of these tips help you while deciding on your venue. Don’t get sold on price alone get sold on what suits your event. There are a lot of options out there…good luck!