To Have or Not To Have a Consultant?

During the initial consultation meeting with clients, you are asked quite often similar questions. Most often, many brides want a consultant, but view it as a luxury. While in reality, consultants are more frequently a necessity to the success of the wedding. A well "season" consultant, Patty Hansen, CWP explains it best:

As couples begin thinking about their wedding, they are often confused as to how much to spend, where to obtain specialized services, and how to choose vendors. These worries often mount as quickly as the cost of the wedding. After the euphoria wears off and the reality settles in, it's shocking to discover of how much preparation is involved. Couples are faced with decisions about everything from invitation wording to planning their honeymoon. Couples often find they want experienced professional help.

Not long ago, a wedding planer was thought of as a luxury, only used by the wealthy. Now a planner is essential to the well planned affair. It is no longer "trendy" to engage a planner. Being experienced in negotiating contracts with caterers, florists, photographers, and other suppliers, the planner saves valuable time and money. The planner can take advantage of discounts not available to private parties and avoid costly mistakes, while turning your dreams into reality.
The average wedding can take more than two hundred fifty hours just to plan. With today's hectic lifestyles, you may not have time to compare all the options, making sure you get the best deal, and make sure all the details are in place. Wedding planners are not here to make decisions for you, but to guide and assist you in making informed decisions. Their training, knowledge, and experience will turn your dreams and expectations into reality. They want you to host a beautiful and distinctive event which you can enjoy. A wedding planner will save you time and enable you to get the most for your money! A wedding planner can serve in many other capacities. They can act as the family counselor for apprehensive brides and the mothers—a wedding planner can become as close as your best friend.

Many services boast a wedding coordinator when all they are really offering is someone on site to announce and direct elements of a wedding reception, help with the floral or menu selection, supervise the food service or assist at the wedding ceremony. What about the planning and obtaining the necessary elements of the entire wedding? Some vendors even claim to provide the bride with a list of photographers, florists, etc. Is this vendor really trained to know the budgetary needs and the bride’s personal taste? In addition to those very absent elements in vendor choice, the vendor has not been scrutinized and qualified by a bridal consultant that really has the bride’s interest in mind.
A wedding planner will act as a consultant to help you plan your special day. This consultant is a professional wedding planner that knows etiquette from the socially correct formats through proper planning and organization of your wedding day. As your planner they have the contacts necessary to match you with the right wedding professionals, which are wedding vendors. Your planner also works with your wedding professionals that you have chosen to make sure all the details are set just the way you want them. The planner will help you organize your dream wedding and keep you within your budget by suggesting ways to make your dollar go the farthest. Since your wedding planner is an independent party, he or she, may often mediate disagreements when you are caught between family disputes and friendly disagreements.

You can afford a wedding planner since it is not an extra expense if you consider the planning part of your wedding budget. Your wedding planner will even be able to save you money by suggesting the appropriate vendors that will provide professional services to accommodate your budget. It is a penny well spent to have a wedding planner overseeing the wedding professionals that you have spent an investment with to insure that your day goes just as you have paid for and planned.

Of course you may opt to plan the entire wedding yourself or have a family member and even a friend to help, which is sometimes part of the fun of the wedding. However, it can also be a huge hassle and a headache especially if you, your family member, or friend does not have the proper professional wedding training that most professional wedding planners have and experienced. In addition to just finding wedding vendors, you'll need to check out sources, make sure all the details are in place, and worry about whether you're getting the best deal, and, ultimately, if everything will turn out right. A professional wedding planner has the training and experience to do the ground work, and make sure it all works the way you want it to, while you relax and enjoy.

For example, your dress gets muddy if it starts to rain and your fiancé is already 30 minutes late and the limo driver has not even shown up yet to bring the officiant to the chapel--what do you do? This is where your wedding planner will see to all of these details without breaking a sweat. She will be able to locate the fiancé and ensure he gets to the chapel on time; they will clean your dress with a wipe from their emergency kit; they will track down the limo driver and have a back up limo driver in waiting just in case.

The wedding planner will get it done so you don't have to worry. When you hire a wedding planner you know that you are buying quality, service, knowledge, professionalism, creativity, guidance, leg work, a stress reliever, an etiquette expert, a personal assistant and a friend. What could be better than that for the most important day of your life? Just knowing that you were smart enough to hire a wedding planner!

Do You Share My Passion for Weddings?

Do you have an eye for detail? Have you always been the type of person who always lends a hand to a friend in need, even without having them asked? Do you have a passion for weddings or are interested in learning more about a career as a wedding consultant?

soireebliss! is seeking a Part-time Event Coordination Assistant to work closely on the wedding day with a Lead Consultant. You will be required to report to the event site on time as predetermined by the Lead Consultant to assist in the set-up of the event decor, assist in the management and direction of the bridal party before, during and after the ceremony . You will be responsible for executing various tasks requested by the bridal party or the Lead Consultant during the ceremony and reception. To be successful in this role, you have to have a sense of urgency while displaying a graceful, calm persona.

As the Part-time Event Coordination Assistant, you will have the opportunity to follow the Lead Consultant during the final stages of preparation and "day of" the wedding. This "hands on" experience will be invaluable to you and can serve as a launching pad for your career as a wedding planner. I strongly believe in promoting from within. soireebliss! strongly emphasizes teamwork to ensure our clients receive the highest level of professional, quality service.

If you are extremely responsible, detail-oriented, and are willing to give up your Friday and Saturday evenings, email your cover letter and resume to Samantha Darr at info@soireebliss.com. Compensation is based on experience and is paid on an hourly rate.

Unique Must-Have Items

If you are like me, you're always on the lookout for items that are unique and different. That little something that will add flair to your wardrobe or home furnishings. Wedding décor items are no different. The more unique an item, the more personal and memorable the impact it will make on the overall look.

So, it’s become a weekly habit to tour a few of my favorite stores to check out their newest displays and décor items. One of my most favorite stomping grounds is the Z Gallerie. I love their choice of colors; bold and chic. Their designs continually hit the cutting edge of trends without being over the top, while avoiding fads.

On my recent visit, I came across a few items that were to die for! If you are a lover of bling, you must check out their selection of crystal embedded place card holders, votives and salt & pepper shakers. They would add a chic elegance to an evening affair.

For those who are looking for bold colors or items with a touch of exotic flair for a tropical destination wedding or a summer event, you must consider the following items.

Texas, watch out….here I come!

Have you had the kind of day where you wished you had stayed in bed? Or in my case, I wished I’d gotten more than 4 hours sleep. As most of you know, I’m naturally a high energy person who doesn’t need a lot of sleep. But with me, if I’m up past 11:00PM, I catch a second wind and it’s down right hard to get to bed after that. So, this morning, I was certainly feeling the pain of repeating this habit 4-5 days in row.

So, back to my point! After starting my day a little less than chipper, running into various annoyances, and tripping over my monster of a cat more than once, I received the best news. Guess what? soiréebliss! will be in the regional publication for theKnot magazine as the Event Designer for a wedding they chose to publish. The photographers (Traci and Kellie, Anne Marie Photography) for the wedding are incredibly talented and deserve a lot of credit.

WOW! This news has made my week. The wedding they chose was my own destination weekend wedding in San Antonio, Texas. With the recent launched soiréebliss!, this is an overwhelming compliment as this was an event I put my heart and soul into every last detail.

As you can imagine, I did the happy dance around my office, tripped over the monster cat a few more times and gleefully set off on a cloud of blissful happiness no longer feeling the loss of sleep.

So, look for soiréebliss! to be listed as the Event Designer in the next Texas Knot Magazine set to hit news stands in June. In honor of my first publication, here are a few pictures from the event.

Houston, we have lift off!!

Welcome to the first official blog for soiréebliss! Finally, after 9 years of working corporate events and volunteering my services to anyone I knew getting married, I am turning my dreams into reality. Taking the steps towards being a business owner has been very exciting, scary and absolutely exhilarating.

You may be wondering how I came up with the name. For those who know me, know I'm pretty high energy and down right perky. So, it's fitting to have a name that reflects this same energy. Soirée is French for party. BLISS means happiness, ecstasy and delight. So if your going to have a party, it might as well be a delightful party full of much happiness and ecstasy. As a recent bride myself, I realized my wedding day was truly going to be one of the most memorable and elaborate "parties" I would host for my friends and family.

Let me tell you a little more about me:

• Originally a Midwesterner, lived in Texas for 7 years and actually miss the snow.
  Favorite foods: deserts...any kind will do
• Favorite drink: Starbucks nonfat, sugar-free vanilla latte
• Favorite comfort food: mash potatoes
• Favorite pass time: running. It's a love/hate relationship. It allows me to eat the deserts
• Favorite color combination: Apple green with a black/white brocade pattern and bold colors
• Secret Talent: Ear wiggling
• Best planning tip: Stay organized...its a life savor in the hectic moments.
• Secret to life: Help others. Even if it's just holding a door open for an elderly. One small act of kindness can mean the world to the one receiving it.
  

I look forward to a long and happy journey as a wedding and event planner. Thank you for taking time to read my first post. I hope you choose to join me for the journey.