Category Archives: Wedding Day Preparation
Destination Wedding Planner: Tips for including your dog in your big day
Posted by johnna-patton on January 3rd, 2018
Your wedding day, it’s one of the most special days of your life. Of course you want to be surrounded by ALL of your loved ones! As a wedding planner in the Colorado Rocky Mountains my favorite trend over the past few years is couples involving their four legged friends in their wedding. Including your furry friend in your big day will absolutely make the day more memorable, but it also requires some thought. Here are a few things to consider:
- Make sure that your venue allows dogs Some venues have strict no pets policies.
- Designate a dog handler for the day Assign one person to be responsible for your fur baby for the time he or she is at the wedding. This frees up the bride and groom and also lets Fido be included in the big day.
- Take a trip to the Groomers Make sure your dog looks and smells delicious for the wedding.
- Don’t forget the Photos Make sure you hire a dog friendly photographer and include your pup in your shot list.
- Practice, practice, practice Spend some time training your dog–whether it is walking down the aisle or wearing a bow tie.
- Have an exit plan If your dog can’t sit through the ceremony or things don’t go as expected.
Thank you Lindsey Boluyt for the fun photo!
Colorado Wedding Planner: Bridal Emergency Kit Must-Haves
Posted by johnna-patton on June 9th, 2016
Summer wedding season is upon us! When it comes to your wedding day you have all the details covered and everything planned out to the minute. You’ve double checked everything and yet you never know if there could be one last hiccup in your day. That’s where your emergency bridal kit comes in. Save yourself from any OMG moments that may occur during your wedding day with these must-have necessities.
First Aid Necessities
- Painkillers: For that headache from the extra glass of wine at your rehearsal dinner.
- Antacid: Your stomach might not understand that these are happy nerves.
- Eye Drops: No one wants tired looking red eyes in their wedding photos.
- Tampons: In a room full of girls, it’s always great to have these handy.
- Band aids: Accidents happen, it’s better to be prepared!
Beauty Must-Haves
- Hair Pins: For those pesky stray hairs.
- Chapstick: Keep your kissing lips feeling great!
- Tissues: For all your happy tears.
- Tweezers: To make sure your brows are sleek.
- Nail File: You picked out the perfect bridal manicure – keep it looking great.
- Cotton Swabs: To dab away any excess makeup.
- Concealer: Keep your skin looking flawless all day long.
- Small Mirror: Because you’ll want to check and double check your lipstick.
Food & Drink
- Water Bottle: Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
- Granola Bar: Fuel for the day ahead.
- Mints: Make sure your first kiss as newlyweds is fresh!
- Mini Bottle of Champagne: Because this is a celebration after all.
Just in Case
- Safety Pins: A last minute hemming tool.
- Small Sewing Kit: Perfect for any rips or tears.
- Clear Nail Polish: For runs in stockings
- Crazy Glue: Because you just never know.
As a Colorado Wedding Planner, I suggest you put together your handy dandy emergency kit (or have your Maid Of Honor do it) a week before the wedding so that you have one less thing to worry about. It will give you extra peace of mind when your wedding day finally comes. Don’t stress if you need to use it – that’s what it’s there for! Keep smiling and know that when you look back on your special day, it’s the little moments and mishaps that make it special and unique. Cherish them.
Breckenridge Wedding Planner: Arielle and Kyle’s Engagement photo shoot
Posted by johnna-patton on March 10th, 2015
As a Breckenridge wedding planner I always think engagement photo shoots look so fun! Arielle and Kyle were out to prove me right. Trystan photography met the two in Breckenridge and off they went. Three costume changes and four locations later this is what we have. Amazing! P.s. The bride and groom changed their clothes in the back of a suburban on the way to new locations–I said they looked fun!
Colorado Wedding Planner: How much? Planning for alcohol at your wedding
Posted by johnna-patton on May 15th, 2014
So, you’re having a wedding! And you want to serve alcohol. Finally a fun part of wedding planning! Also, confusing, and potentially expensive. Questions about alcohol (what kinds? how much? where do I buy it?) are some of the questions I get asked the most by my clients, because if you’ve never thrown a party for a hundred or more people, all of a sudden providing them with libations can feel overwhelming.
Whether you’re just budgeting or actually purchasing it on your own, the tough part is deciding what to serve and how much of it. Fortunately, the numbers that will help you plan already exists. And I tried to make them pretty 🙂
On average, your of-age guests who partake in the activity of drinking alcohol will drink one alcoholic beverage per hour of your reception (or event) for a reception taking place on a weekend evening. Keep in mind that this is on average.
You typically know your guests well enough to know whether or not that statistic will ring true for them. For example, when my husband and I got married we had about 1/4 of the guests who didn’t drink, 1/4 who we knew would drink under that average, and about half that we knew would blow that average out of the water…as in double or triple that…so we made adjustments in our numbers to account for that.
Here’s how the servings of different alcoholic beverages break down, in prettier form:
I would suggest talking to your bartender and asking him or her to use a jigger (alcohol measuring cup) to get the most bang for your buck on alcohol.
What kinds of alcohol should you offer? Let me say first that you do not have to serve a full bar, it is perfectly acceptable to offer just beer and wine or beer, wine, and a signature drink. At it’s most basic, a full bar is two beers (one light, one darker), red wine, white wine, champagne, vodka, gin, whiskey, tequila, rum, and basic mixers.
As for where to shop, in Colorado I generally recommend Applejack Liquors, Costco, or Argonaut Liquors. That said, local wine stores are fantastic, and while they may not keep large quantities on hand, are probably going to be totally happy to special order a few cases for you. You’ll also probably get more personalized service, which may make up for the discounts you might otherwise get from the mass-quantity sellers. Also, always ask if you can return any unopened bottles.
I hope this helps you solve all of your wedding day drinky dilemmas!
Breckenridge Wedding Planner Plans Her Wedding!
Posted by elizabeth waldmann on February 27th, 2014
Wedding Goals and Direction
When thinking about what direction I wanted our wedding to go in, I started by thinking about what I dislike most about weddings. There is just so much I love about weddings I thought this would be an easier route. Wes and I are huge outdoor people and try to be mindful of the environment in everything we do. We try to buy local whenever possible and always recycle. Why not carry these same thoughts over to our wedding. I realize it’s part of the job but being a wedding planner I unfortunately see so much waste at the end of a wedding. During the process of planning our wedding, I am going to try and be as gentle to the environment as I can and still pull off an amazing wedding. I am going to share these ideas in my upcoming blog posts so keep a look out!
Keeping in mind one or more goals for your wedding will help you pull off a wedding of your dreams. So remember, it’s your wedding day so make it yours.
