Happy Wednesday friends! If you have been keeping up with me on Instagram then you know that I have been doing a fun new series called “Wedding Talk Wednesday” where I would chat with some of my favorite vendor friends about all things weddings. Our hope was to help inspire and provide tips to couples planning their weddings! It has brought me so much joy connecting with fellow wedding vendors during this time at home. Today I am talking to Kristin from Natural Elegance Events and we are talking about how a wedding planner can help during your big day. She was also kind enough to write all her tips down for me to share on my blog with all of you!!

Hi, friends! My name is Kristin and I am the owner and lead wedding planner of Natural Elegance LLC, an event planning company based out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I started my planning company in pursuit of my passions for being creative, helping people, and being mega-organized. I find so much joy in helping my incredible couples plan and execute their dream celebrations. When Nikki asked me to share some insights on her blog about the planning process, I thought it would be fun to share a few “behind the scenes” things wedding planners handle on a wedding day. 

If you don’t have a planner on your team, a lot of these things can often fall onto a family member or member of your wedding party. You want them to be enjoying the day with you, soaking up all the happy moments from getting ready all the way to your last dance, so you definitely don’t want them thinking about setting centerpieces or talking with the caterer about linens. This is where a wedding planner comes in pretty darn handy. ;) 

For planners, the wedding day is where we truly shine behind the scenes and are involved in almost every aspect of your wedding day. Planners are in charge of managing your entire vendor team, running every logistical element of the day, and taking care of all the small details that might otherwise be missed. 

Without further adieu, here are the top five things we handle for our couples on their wedding day! 

1. Executing your wedding day vision. - All those beautiful decor details you’ve planned and thought about for months come to fruition on your wedding day. As your planner, we are there to help set up your personal decorations and manage the vendors responsible for pieces of the setup process. That includes finding and executing creative solutions if something goes wrong or isn’t done correctly. Making sure the venue layout is accurate, centerpieces look flawless, linens are the right size and color, and that all your signs are in the right place are just a few examples of how we make sure your design vision comes to life!  

2. Keeping the day running smoothly.  - During the planning process, we create timelines that layout your entire day (or even wedding weekend) in extreme detail. There are all sorts of things that can affect the time schedule we create on the day itself. Thinking on our feet and fluctuating with any changes that need to be made throughout a wedding day is something we pride ourselves on as wedding planners. When key pieces of the day like the ceremony processional or grand entrance are about to begin, I am making the final cues and giving the go-ahead when everyone is in place and ready. If timing needs to be adjusted for one reason or another, I am there to make those calls so all vendors are on the same page. This means that regardless of if the day runs exactly according to plan, we keep the day going as smoothly as possible for you and your guests!

3. Communicating with your vendors. - Having a cohesive vendor team on the day of your wedding is key to having a successful event. We make sure all goes smoothly with each vendor throughout the day. This also means having good communication leading up to the wedding with your vendors. By communicating key information and creating a team mentality before the wedding day even arrives, vendors feel comfortable and know we’ll be there to help if things come up the day of. 

4. Managing your family and wedding party. - It can be overwhelming and challenging to coordinate every person involved in your wedding day. Moms, Dads, Grandparents, Cousins, Bridesmaids, Groomsmen, Ushers, Ring bearers, Flower girls….and the list goes on! I am the person in charge of getting everyone to the right places at the right times. This includes lining up everyone for your ceremony processional, gathering the right people for photos, and making sure your maid of honor is ready for her big speech! 

5. Handling unforeseen issues - When it comes to the wedding day, there is honestly nothing we will say “that’s not my problem” too. Even if we can’t fix the problem ourselves, we are prepared to find the person responsible for finding a solution. Being overly prepared is our number one priority. For example, each of our planners at Natural Elegance shows up to a wedding with an extensive emergency kit stocked with all kinds of goodies and things to help fix issues that may come up. Just to name a few things that are in mine - bobby pins, makeup wipes, snacks, tools, bleach pens, batteries, rubber bands, extra thank you note cards, and more lighters than a single person should own. 

Having a wedding planner on your vendor team truly allows you to relax and live in every moment of your wedding day instead of worrying about what needs to be done and when. If you’re interested in learning more about how we can help on the day and leading up to your wedding, check out our website or follow us on Instagram or Facebook! 

Happy wedding planning!! 

love, Kristin