weddingplanning

Just married? What’s next?

What to do after you have said ‘I Do’

You’ve planned, you’ve partied and said ‘I Do’. Together, you and your partner have just gone through one of the most spectacular experiences of your lives. Months of planning, many decisions have been made, and chances are your pockets may be feeling a little lighter.

Whether you have or have not yet taken off on your honeymoon, or have had a little downtime to soak it all in, or maybe you are still riding the post marriage high, this is a reminder to you that your work is still not yet done…

With so many resources out there on how to plan a wedding, we thought it would be fitting to put together some info on what to do after your wedding. So here you have it, our ultimate newlywed checklist; covering all the things you should be ticking off of your checklist after your magical day has come and gone.

 

Image @alannahliddlell

 

The Thank You’s

Spread the love and give a big thank you to all that were involved in your day. This includes:

 

– Your guests:
Send thank you cards, hand written notes, an email to a text to all those who came to celebrate with you. Don’t forget to include an extra thank you for any wedding gifts you were gifted.

 

– Bridal party, parents & those who went above and beyond:
You will know who they are! Whether you buy them a thank you gift, or maybe regift them the floral arrangements and leftover champagne from the day, showing your gratitude will not go astray.

 

– Your vendors!
Send them a message or write them a review! Reviews are what you used to narrow down your vendors, so why not give future couples the same helping hand by leaving your venues with some love?!

 

Image @_thelovediaries

 

The Clean Up

– Dry-clean your dress:
If you are reading this prior to your wedding date, we suggest you add this item to your wedding budget pronto!

 

– Return anything borrowed:
The Groomsman’s suits, your Aunt’s cake knife, or your mum’s earrings, whatever you borrowed for your big day, be sure to give all items back before life gets the better of you.

 

– Re-sell your wedding décor:
Don’t want the 20 white vases you purchased for your reception tables? Selling them is a good way to make back a little bit of cash.

 

– Put together a keepsake box:
Keep a copy of your invitation, your vow books, or anything you want to look back on in 10 year’s time. Maybe you want to keep your beautiful bouquet alive? Press the flowers into artwork, or if you are extra crafty, maybe make something cool with resin as a keepsake you can display on your bookshelf.  

 

Image @twobirds_and_co

 

Life admin

Changing your name? It’s not mandatory, though if you are planning on changing your name, here is checklist for you to start ticking off:

 

– Drivers Licence & car registration

– Passport

 – Bank accounts – are you joining these with your spouse?

– Medicare, Australian Taxation Office & Centrelink (if applicable)

– Insurance policies (car, health, home and contents, life, income, etc etc)

– Phone and home internet accounts

– Australian Electoral Commission

– Doctor/dentist/health specialists/Australian Organ Register/ or any other health practitioner you see

 – Rates and services: water/gas/electricity/solar

– If you are renting, your Real Estate agent or landlord

– If you are a property owner, notify local council

– Employer or Australian Business register (if you are a director of a company)

– Superannuation

– Lawyer and accountant (maybe even think about putting together a will now you are married) 

– Any investments and shares you own

– Frequent Flyer programs 

– School, university or educational courses (if applicable)

– Your memberships & loyalty clubs, e.g. gym, sporting clubs etc ect

– Subscription services such as Spotify & Netflix

– Personal email if you wish

– Social media if you wish

– And your voicemail! If you have one

 

 

The difference between a wedding planner, stylist & coordinator

Wait, I need a planner, coordinator AND stylist?

Confused?

Don’t worry, we were once too!

Though they may seem like very similar job titles, and it is true that a lot of planners, stylists and coordinators actually do more than one of these roles, some even all three!

They are actually, in fact, three different job titles, and it might not be until you begin to plan your wedding that it hits you, ‘Heck, I really do need a stylist AND a coordinator’.

These wedding wizards know the ins and outs of the wedding world, they have the contacts, the ideas, and the experience, so trust us when we say, they are worth every penny.

So, without further ado, and so we can restore the calm back in your wedding planning, here is our little cheat sheet outlining the difference between wedding planners, stylists & coordinators.

Photo: @stefanieburmaweddings | Stylist @hitchedweddings

WEDDING PLANNER

The Logistics

Think of J.Lo in the ‘Wedding Planner’

 A wedding planner is all about the logistics – they are there from the very beginning to help to navigate the details of your wedding from start to finish and every­thing in between.

On average, it takes about 400 hours to plan a wedding* It’s a full time job, so a good wedding planner is worth every penny. They take on the stress for you; deal with deadlines, plan your plan B’s and tackle emergencies, they even check for typos in your stationery! Literally everything that is involved with planning a wedding they do for you.

A wedding planner’s role:

  • – Refer and assist in choosing vendors, as well as schedule & attend vendor meetings
  • – Overseeing & managing your budget, track deposits and payments for vendors
  • – Attend site tours
  • – Communicate with vendors during the planning stages & in the lead up to the wedding
  • – Create timelines & floor plans
  • – Be there to support you with any questions or queries they may have
  • – Work with the stylist and coordinator

 

Photographer: @tylerbrownphotography | Stylist: @confettiandcoevents

 

WEDDING STYLIST

The Aesthetics

A wedding stylist designs and conceptualises the creative aspect of your wedding, ensuring you have a cohesive theme throughout the event, from altar to dance floor. It is all about the aesthetics for a wedding stylist; from lighting design, furniture selection, flowers, linens, tableware, and stationery. They will literally bring your vision to life!

A wedding stylists role:

  • – Developing a mood board and style concept for your overall wedding
  • – Develop a colour palette
  • – Attend a site visit to visualise where you want everything to go and plan the layout
  • – Develop detailed floor plans of the ceremony, pre-reception & reception space
  • – Source styling pieces
  • – Coordinate all decor elements during bump in and ensure all styling pieces are in place prior to the wedding commencing
  • – Assist in the pack down of styling pieces during bump out
  • – Work with the planner and coordinator

 

Photo @teneilkablephoto | Planner & Stylist @white_events

 

WEDDING COORDINATOR

The Point Person

Think Monica Geller at Phoebe’s wedding in Friends, but the non-scary version. Not to be confused with wedding planners, a coordinator’s role is to look after the wedding day itself, ensuring the whole day runs as smoothly and stress free as possible.

 A wedding coordinator normally comes into the picture 2-3 months prior to your wedding, to assist in the preparation of the day, to confirm the vendor scope of services on the day. They create an on-the-day timeline to provide a seamless execution of the on-the-day set up, and ensure a smooth running of the entire event right up until pack down.

A wedding coordinators role:

  • – Meet you 2-3 months prior to the wedding to get an understanding of where everything is to date
  • – Check in with your vendors and review signed contracts
  • – Ensure all loose ends are tied prior to the day
  • – Complete a final venue walk through
  • – Manage and coordinate the rehearsal
  • – Be the point person during bump in and the morning of, to free you up on the day

 

Photo: @sarahtonkinphotography | Set Up & On the Day Coordination @hire_in_style_wa

 

So, what’s the best fit for you?

If you already have a super busy workload, or maybe you don’t cope well with increased stress levels and decision making, then you might benefit from a wedding planner. Maybe you have no creative bone in your body so a stylist would come in handy! Lastly, we think everyone needs an on the day coordinator in their lives. Do you really want to be answering phone calls from your florist the morning of your wedding while you are getting your hair & make up done? We didn’t think so.

Fun fact, did you know we also offer styling AND on the day coordination as an add on to your hire order? Get in touch with us if you would like to know more.

Happy planning!

 

* Source: Instagram post @maeandcomonthly

Wedding Speeches 101

How to make the crowd laugh, cry and reflect in 10 easy steps

 

Have you felt the honour of being asked to give a toast at a wedding, only to realise you have never made a toast in your life and have no idea what to say? Don’t worry we have been there too.

 Whether you are in your best friend’s bridal party, the Mother of the Groom, planning your own wedding, or a guest at your cousin’s wedding, these few handy pointers are here to help you put together the speech of your life!

 

Image: @benandebony

 

1.Assess the room:

Think about your opening address and who you will be saying it to. Draw them in with a knee slapping one liner or instead ask them a question to gauge their attention. The trick; be sure your opening address fits the theme of the wedding, and your audience will relate to the tone of voice you are portraying. This will help you speak with intention and hook the audience in, to avoid the sound of crickets during your time in the spotlight.

 

2. Introduce yourself:

If you are making a speech at a wedding, chances are the majority of the guests will know who you are, though, this is not to say everyone will! Be sure to introduce yourself and make comment on how you know the couple, this will help to add purpose to your speech as a whole.

 

3. Congratulate the couple:

 Be sure to address and congratulate BOTH parties you are there to celebrate! Even if you have only met your best mate’s spouse a handful of times.

If you can’t think of a memory or story you experienced with them, think about things your friend has told you about them which makes them the perfect partner-to-be for your mate.

 

4. Read the room:

As the saying goes, this is a toast, not a roast…

Remember who is in the room, and choose your ‘funny’ stories wisely. In other words, leave the crude and embarrassing stories at home. Your besties’ new in-laws do not want to hear about what went on during your footy trip to Bali. Instead, make reference rather than recounting, you will thank us later.

This also goes for personal jokes, although they are great and hold meaning, they aren’t something the whole guest list will understand. So best to keep these to a minimum otherwise those crickets may appear.

 

 5. Remember your focus:

The couple! Or if you are the couple, show your appreciation to your new life partner and all of your loved ones who came to celebrate with you.

 

Image: @benandebony

 

6. Congratulate and thank:

An important one – hence the second mention.

Congratulate & thank the couple, the family, the bridal party and those who made the day possible.

 

7. Eject personality & bring the energy:

If you are shy and hate public speaking, we apologise in advance, but we highly recommend you smile, laugh, change the tone of your voice and praise the couple you are there to celebrate! This is what makes your speech heartfelt and sincere, we want to steer clear from monotone as much as possible.

If you are good at singing or if you are a poet, write something for the couple and perform it as your speech. Or, maybe dance is more your style? But remember, only go for something out of the box if it is relevant to the couple themselves.

And lastly, some liquid confidence will never go astray – though don’t go overboard. 

 

8. Less is more:

Get in, say what you need, and get out, no one likes a rambler, especially when the D-Floor is calling their name. The most ideal time for a speech is 3-5 minutes, so keep it short and sweet in order to keep your guests engaged.

 

9. Write it out and say it aloud:

 This one may seem like common sense, but there is nothing worse than forgetting to say something you wanted to tell the couple because stage fright got the better of you. It’s also a good idea to write out your speech as dot points on paper, in case you run the risk of your phone battery dying during the day. Plus, reading off of a phone is not the best look.

 And remember, practice makes perfect, so practise reading it aloud prior too. 

 

10: Don’t forget to toast:

Wrap up your speech by raising a glass to the couple, to love or to something relevant. Pause for a moment, take a sip, and relax knowing you have delivered a speech you are proud of.

 

Image: @tessaeckersley.photo

 

So, to sum up:

🎤 Practise makes perfect – we recommend against ‘winging it’.

🎤 Stay off the booze prior to speaking to reduce the risk of any potential embarrassment (a little is okay but know your limits).

🎤 Use note cards if you need to keep on track – this looks better than reading off of your phone and reduces the risk of your speech going missing because your phone died.

🎤 Remember your body language & eye contact.

🎤 And last but not least, don’t forget to toast 🥂

A Recipe for Vow Writing Success

In today’s age, we are seeing more and more couples break away from traditional wedding customs, and instead introduce their own. Your wedding vows are no different.

Custom wedding vows are written from the heart and are personalised, authentic, and true to you as a couple – we mean, what is more real than that?!

 

Breaking away from tradition:

Gone are the days of using ‘thee’ & ‘troth’ in our everyday vocabulary, so you shouldn’t have to use these phrases when committing your love to one another. This isn’t to say that there is anything wrong with tradition, and if traditional wedding vows are meaningful to you as a couple then you should 110% use them as part of your marriage ceremony. Remember, it’s your day, you can do as you please!

So unless you want to use the tradition, it is more than okay (really it is encouraged) for you to write your own vows.

 

From the heart:

If it was up to us, we would say that writing your vows would have had to be the most heartfelt, rewarding and emotional part of your wedding planning journey. It brings you back down to reality to remember why you are actually marrying your person of choice, rather than worrying about your seating plan and if those last minute shoes you ordered are going to arrive on time.

There are many ways to write your wedding vows, but unless you are the next Tim Winton or Egdar Allan Poe, it may end up being a harder task than you originally had thought. With so many memories to reflect on, good times shared and reasons why you love your significant other, it can sometimes be hard to narrow it down and know exactly what to include and what to leave out.

To get to the point, we have put together a little recipe for vow writing success, that we hope will help you in crafting vows that will make your other half laugh, cry and confirm how much you love them.

Image: @raemarie_loveclub

Things to Remember:

1. Be thoughtful – your vows are meant to make your other half feel friggin’ amazing, so speak from the heart.

2. Be personal – use your fiancés name or nickname. Remember, you are talking to them.

3. Be considerate – though humour, and wit is encouraged in tasteful doses, hint at the funny stories or embarrassing moments rather than spelling them out. Your vows aren’t a script for roasting your other half. Remember point 1, make your partner feel friggin’ amazing!

4. The legalities – remember that there are some legal requirements for marriage vows, so be sure to chat to your celebrant, officiant, or whoever may be the one to make it legal, prior to writing to make sure you have everything you need to include. Also advise them of your wish to write your own custom vows, so they can plan your ceremony with this in mind.

5. Do it your way – If you are a singer, then sing! If you enjoy poetry, write a poem, do what is true to you.

6. Plan with your partner – make sure you are on the same page with your partner. Together, determine the length and tone of your vows, to help guide you both through the process.
For example: 
Length: 5-8 sentences
Tone: (clarify the degree of humour) – No sexy stories, no mention of our trip to the slopes, only one cheeky comment allowed – you get the picture.

Image: @youmeandtheseaphoto

The Layout:

Like all great love stories, your vows will have a beginning, a middle and an end.

 

The Beginning

An opening statement. Set the scene and give context to what you say next. Make reference to when you knew you first loved them, or how you came to realise you knew they were the one. 

Here are some sentence starters to get you thinking:

–   Remember when…

–   When we first met…

–   When I think about…

–   I love the way you…

–   It will never be (something) without (something)…

 

The Middle

The why – everyone knows you are lovestruck, but what is it that makes you love your fiancé the most? This is your chance to tell them exactly what and why you love them.

 Gather some descriptive words that best represent your fiancé, and tie them together with a few sentences on what makes them so amazing.

 Ask yourself:

–   What makes your fiancé unique / what are their best qualities?

–   What do you look forward to the most about seeing them each day? 

–   How is your fiancé different from anyone you have ever met?

 

 The End

The promises & your future together.

What do you promise?

–   If there were only 3 promises you could make to your fiancé for the rest of your lives, what would they be?

Reflect on your future together.

–   What are you looking forward to? This could be a long term goal you have made together like travelling the world or building a holiday house, or milestone such as starting a family.

–   Pssttt; this is where you could add your touch of cheeky by saying something like ‘I can’t wait to grow old, wrinkly and cranky together’ or ‘I hope our future daughter has your brains, and my sass’.

 

Recipe for success:

Mind map and write down absolutely everything you feel is important & you want to bring to the table. Reread over it and circle the no.1s.

Make a list of descriptive words that best describe your future spouse, these will come in handy when you are wanting to bulk up or link sentences.

Then add it to a table like this:

**Another tip: keep all of your sentences short & sweet. This will help with the overall flow and will also work in your favour when reading aloud.

 

Remember:
A draft is better than nothing at all! And finished is better than perfect. Once you have your points, you are pretty much there. Don’t over think it and don’t pick it apart. Your vows are meant to come from the heart.

Image: @jamessimmonsphotography

 

What’s next:

YOU DID IT, well done! Now it’s time to re-read and rehearse.

First of all, make sure you can read them. Make yourself two copies; a nice presented version which you can give to your other half after the ceremony, and a version you can read. Think black, san serif block letters printed on white paper, in a size you can see.

Practice speaking out loud, and in front of a mirror. Even if you are the best public speaker with nerves of steel, you never know what kind of emotions are going to hit you on your wedding day. So, practise speaking your vows with confidence and calm, remember to look up and pretend to practise making eye contact with your partner, imagine you are speaking directly to them.

And last but not least, try to memorise as much as you can. Your vows will be so much more heartfelt if you are looking into your partner’s eyes than reading off of a piece of paper.

4 Wedding Traditions to Leave Behind in 2022

Have you ever wondered why some wedding traditions are still going strong?

Tempted to toss tradition at your wedding and make your own rules?

Dropping customs that don’t resonate with you means you can discover more authentic ways to mark those important wedding moments.

Swap these for something more your style. And maybe spark a new trend!

 

1. Walking down the aisle 

Don’t like the idea of being walked down the aisle?

Swap it:  Walk down the aisle with your partner and both your families. It’s symbolic of you entering an equal partnership and future together.

 

2. Wearing a white dress

White not your colour? 

Before Queen Victoria made the white dress viral in 1840, brides wore whatever they wanted. It was usually something they could re-wear, and colour was the norm.

Swap it: Do you feel amazing drenched in green sequins? Go for it. The choices are boundless (and more affordable).

Photographer: Ben and Ebony

 

3. Ghosting your partner before the wedding

Not seeing (or even meeting) your future spouse until the ceremony was once common practice. 

It was feared the groom would back out when seeing his future wife (hence the veil only being lifted after the vows). 

Yup. Not a lot of romance there. 

Swap it: Help each other get ready. It’s a deeply intimate way to connect, build anticipation and slow down before the wild day ahead.

Photographer: Lindsey Taylor Photography

4. Bridal party

In Ancient Rome, legal marriages needed 10 witnesses. Cue bridal posse.

Here’s another fun fact. The bridesmaids would wear the same gown as the bride, and the groomsman would dress identical to the groom. 

Why? 

This was thought to trick evil spirits and prevent them finding and cursing the couple.

Swap it: Deviate from the norm with a more diverse squad. Bridesman? Groomsmaid? How about your pet chihuahua? Or is your nan your main girl? 

Photographer: Pete The Photographer Co

 

So, make (or break) the rules. When it comes to your day, we advocate doing what’s culturally significant and important to you. 

Want to read more wedding tips and advice like this?  Check out our other posts