Stella Event Design::Michigan Wedding & Event Planner »

We all know that wedding costs can add up quickly. Between the catering, beverage service, linen rentals and bridal party gifts, you can charge up a big bill—and if you’re not prepared for it, the total costs could come as quite a shock!

One of the first things I do with my clients is make a detailed budget. While you may have things that arise later in planning, this will give you a blueprint to your overall spending. Sit down with your fiance and come up with a detailed list of wedding-related expenses.  Several sites, such as The Knot offer budget calculators that can help!

Tip: Make sure you don’t forget to budget in sufficient funds to cover tips, gratuity and other miscellaneous charges. If your caterer charges 20% gratuity (which isn’t out of the norm) plus state sales tax, you can be looking at several thousand dollars—so budget that amoutn in, and don’t let it come as a surprise on the final bill!

On Friday, the weather forecast looked bleak for this weekends outdoor wedding, but luckily, it was an amazingly beautiful August day! No professional pics yet, so you’ll have to suffer through my personal snapshots, which don’t do this beautiful event justice!

Kelly+Zoltans’ wedding weekend started with setting up decor at the DANK Haus reception hall, a German heritage club in Benton Harbor. Kelly chose a beautiful palette of emerald green, fuschia and crystal accents. We worked with Kelly to create a simple and bright decor design, including green table runners, glass floating bowls filled with shells and pink mini gerbers, and swarovski scatter crystals.

Saturday morning I arrived at Shadowland Pavilion to meet the rental company for delivery of white wooden chairs for the 2:00 ceremony. We set up the 200 white chairs to face the river and lighthouse, with a beautiful scuplture acting as the backdrop for the altar area!

I also got the chance to meet up and chat with 3 clients that are getting married at Shadowland in 2009! If you’re getting married in an outdoor public location, you can learn a lot by stopping by to see your site in action (if you can do so without intruding on the event) which you can at Shadowland! It will give you ideas on setup, logistical issues that may arise (like where you need to place your chairs for shade!) and little issues that could arise (like leftover decorations and sidewalk chalk left from the ceremony the night before!) So if you’re tying the knot somewhere like Shadowland, head there and check it out, and you’ll be happy you did!

Today I thought I’d answer some frequently asked questions about invitations, etiquette and gift requests!

Q: We would like money in lieu of gifts—is it okay to indicate this on the invitation?
A: You should never mention gifts in your invitations. While it’s perfectly fine to include registry information with shower invitaitons, your wedding invitations are not the place to include registry information, or outline any specific requests for gifts. My best advice is to spread the word via family and friends that you are in the market for cash instead of presents. Also, registering for fewer items will be a huge clue to guests! So if you’re looking for cash to fix up your new house (or buy one!) pass the word to you parents so they can answer any inquiries about gifts!

Q:Do we have to list our parents on our invitations?
A:This is completely up to you—but if your parents are contributing to the cost of your wedding, my best advice is to ask them! Some parents will be fine with throwing the old-time traditions to the wind—while some may be surprisingly offended by being left out! Sit down and discuss it with your parents so that you’ll all be happy!

Q: How many stores do I need to register at?
A: There is no magic number here, but a good rule of thumb is to make sure you offer options that will appeal to all of your guests! If you’ve got guests coming from different areas of the country, make sure you’re not excluding your relatives in the South by choosing a retailer that only services the midwest! If you’ve got a favorite regional retailer, make sure you also include a national chain, or another retailer that will appeal to other regions! And, more importantly than where you register, make sure you register for a variety of items in a variety of price ranges to meet all of your guests’ shopping needs (and yours! You’ll be surprised how handy those tiny kitchen gadgets can be!)

If you’ve got wedding-related questions you’d like to see answered, feel free to email us at info {at} Stellaeventdesign {dot} com. We’d love to hear from you!

It’s the big announcement we’ve all been waiting for! Well, I’ve been waiting for it, and I am so excited to welcome our 2009 Event Assistant, Beth George! Beth will be assisting with our full-service 2009 weddings along the lake shore and I am so excited to have her join Stella Event Design. She’s dynamic, energetic and so driven, and she will be one more way we offer our clients amazing service on their special day!

Beth is a Southwest Michigan native, and currently lives in Grand Rapids. She’ll be working with us to assist with events from New Buffalo to Grand Haven, and will also be a great point-of-contact and resource for our brides further North along the lake shore! Here’s a quick Q+A to get to know her!

What is your favorite aspect of weddings?
I find that what I become most excited about when attending weddings is how all of the aspects of the wedding are brought together through the use of color, shapes, accents, style, etc.  I am a very visual person and I am constantly looking for individuality from wedding to wedding.  However, just being able to be a part of such a extraordinary event is always very special to me.

What are your favorite wedding websites or blogs?
When I was engaged I found that The Knot was a great site to get information and ideas.  It also sent me reminders about things when I was preparing for my own wedding which would just enhance my excitement for my special day!  Brides.com is a new site to me, but I enjoyed the wedding tips and cake blog!  However, it wasn’t until I visited the Stella Event Design website that I experienced wedding blogs and realized how helpful they truly were! (Sidenote from Jessica: I swear I didn’t bribe her! Thanks for the love, and soon you’ll be addicted to so many more wonderful wedding blogs! )

What are you most excited about for 2009 wedding season?
I am so looking forward to meeting new brides and partnering with them to make their wedding day memorable.  I believe there are few pivotal moments in a person’s life, one of them being the day that they marry their best friend.  I look forward to being able to offer my skills and abilities to the families who I will be working with in 2009.  Personally, I am just excited for the season in general.  Weddings are a special time when friends and family have an opportunity to come together and enjoy each other!  This will be a tremendous thing for me to experience people in their true element!

If you could have a whole wedding cake (just for you) what is your dream flavor?
As much as I would like to seem as if I have somewhat expensive taste, for me it doesn’t get much better than a store bought confetti cake with white frosting!  Although, I had a wonderful 4 layer cake at my wedding and I did enjoy the strawberry flavor!

Beth will be assisting with the remainder of our 2008 weddings and will be coming on full-time in 2009! I am so excited to have her join Stella Event Design—Welcome Beth!

Photography Week is officially over! Thanks to our photographers who took time out of their busy schedules (during wedding season!) to answer the Q+A’s and get me their pictures—you guys are wonderful!

Don’t forget to check out their websites and blogs!

LVL Photography     Website   Blog
Ben Pancoast Photography    Website   Blog
Monika Photo    Website   Blog

We’ve got a lot of fun posts planned for next week (including an exciting announcement!) so stay tuned!

(click to enlarge)

This lovely 08.08.08 wedding took place on the beaches of Beverly Shores near Michigan City. I love the natural beauty of the location, and how it’s captured in such naturally beautiful photos! Beach weddings are some of my favorites, and they always have such a wonderfully relaxed mood about them! So check out these lovely photos, and for lots more head over to Monika’s website and blog. She shoots lots of beautiful outdoor weddings, so you’ll find a wealth of beautiful locations to browse through!

There are so many great vendors out there, and it would take me a lifetime to meet them all if I waited until the first time I got to work with them! When I started to reach out to local vendors in the area to get to know those I hadn’t worked with, Monika was one of the first to respond and was willing to meet me for lunch and “talk weddings.” So here is a little Q+A so you, too, can get to know Monika Caban of St. Josephs’ MONIKA PHOTO!

How did you get into Photography?
I was born into a photographer’s family, and the gift of art was always part of my life. I was sketching from a young age and began learning photography when I was old enough to understand the camera. My family traveled extensively in Europe and documenting our trips was always a joy for me. From the beautiful scenery of the Mediterranean, to the grand architecture of Italy, there was so much to admire and to capture. I was deeply influenced by all of the beauty I saw when I was young and there was nothing I wanted more than to be a photographer.

What inspires your photography?
As a photographer, there is a constant need to learn from the old masters, as well as the great photographers of today. One of the joys for me is to attend seminars and conventions to see the new advances in technology, to meet new photographers, learn from them and to be inspired. Photography today is changing very fast, and it’s very exciting and demanding at the same time. It is a challenge that keeps my mind sharp.

How would you describe your style?
As far as style, I do not describe my work in words. Photographs should speak for themselves. If my work touches somebody on a deeper level, then you can say they like my style. I can tell you how I approach the wedding—I like to approach it as an unobtrusive observer, and the only time I direct the shoot is during the portraits.

What is your favorite moment during a wedding? Do you have a favorite image to capture?
The time between the ceremony and the reception, when a young couple is alone for the first time as husband and wife is my favorite time of the wedding. It is a very emotional moment and very private. These are the memorable moments when love and passion is expressed. From these images I create an art piece that looks amazing as a large canvas print. What is better than having your own wedding image as a piece of art on your wall, to always remind you of the love you share?

I do my best work when people are comfortable with me, trust me and are free to express their emotions. I do not want the wedding to be about pictures—I want pictures to document the event. I want the family to celebrate this big day and have the best party of their lives. I want to see laughter, hugs, kisses and tears—and when they see my pictures, I want them to cry again.

Thanks Monika! For more pictures of this lovely wedding and more, check out the MONIKA PHOTO website blog! Come back later today for Monika’s featured wedding on the beaches of Beverly Shores in Michigan City!

I first heard about WedFog when Monika Caban, a photographer here in St. Joseph had mentioned she was writing an article for the website.  I was intrigued and had to check it out! WedFog is an online resource where you can search for local photographers, look through pictures (categorized, which is great!) and read articles written by Photographers from around the country!

(Top L:Cindy Patrick, R:Danseni Studios, Bottom L:Happily Ever After, R:Dual Shot)

I looked through some pictures, and used the handy search option where I chose to look through only “beach” pictures—ahd here are just a few (of the hundreds) that came up!

Each picture has its photographers info, including a website link, so if you see something you like you can check them out! And, I just had to post this next picture. It’s another one that came up under my “beach” search, and I couldn’t stop looking at it! What is that deer doing on the beach—and why is she letting it eat her bouquet?! She doesn’t look too upset, so she must have gotten a great deal on her flowers! Stay tuned tomorrow for our next featured local photographer, MONIKA PHOTO!

(Bob Summers)

While every photographer does things slightly differently there is one thing we all have in common—we want our brides to love their pictures! The following tips are just a few things that I hope will help you plan for the perfect pictures!

Communication is KEY!
When planning your wedding day, talk with your photographer about expectations, time lines, and what it will take to get the images you are most excited about. Many of the best photographers get great images because their clients work with them to create opportunities to capture those images. The more you communicate with your photographer the better they’ll be able to serve you on your wedding day!

Start the photography early!
Not only are prep photos beautiful story telling images they also give you and your bridal party an opportunity to get used to having your picture taken in a low-pressure environment. By the time the portrait session rolls around you’ll be more relaxed and feel more comfortable in front of the camera!

Personalize your Must-Have photo list!
Photo lists are a hotly debated topic amongst photographers—are they helpful or harmful, useful or useless? While the majority of photographers will agree that downloading a list of 125 “must have” pictures from TheKnot.com isn’t going to be very useful, I think we’d also agree that having a short list of what are truly the most important images to your family is a good thing. I always suggest starting by asking both families to come up with their own top 5 lists. The photos should be unique to the family and not include typical shots, like the bride and groom with parents. Personalizing the list and keeping it short will help make it more manageable for both you and your photographer on the wedding day while ensuring that the most important photos are not forgotten.

Consider seeing each other before the wedding ceremony!
While this trend goes against nearly 100 years of tradition there’s a reason it’s becoming so popular! The “First Look” shoots are an incredible way to document the moment you see each other for the first time, they give you a few precious moments alone together, and getting family photos done before the ceremony not only ensures that you’ll look your best in the photos it also frees up time after the ceremony for a photo walk at a fun location.

Do a photo walk on your way to the reception!
While most brides would love to be able to do bridal portraits at the beach or a beautiful park sometimes the days’ time line just won’t allow it—but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still consider one. Talk to your photographer about the possibilities for a photo walk along the route between your ceremony and reception! Usually you’ll be able to find something you don’t have to go out of your way for and it could be as simple as an old barn, a deserted warehouse, or even an open field. Think you’ll still be pressed for time? Consider leaving the bridal party behind and doing the photo walk with just the two of you.

Add 15 minutes to all of your travel times!
One common mistake I see brides make is forgetting to account for the size of their wedding party when they plan travel times. It just takes bridal parties longer to get places! Adding 15 minutes to your travel times is an easy way to account for some of the things that will inevitably slow your bridal party down as they try to make it from one location to another and it will keep your travel time from taking away from the time you planned to spend taking pictures!

A quick break from Photography Week for some fun details from an upcoming Stella wedding!I love details—it’s what really brings a wedding together and makes it feel personal!

First, let me say, I am no graphical wizard. Give me a piece of paper, flowers or candles and I’ll whip you up something beautiful—but if you put a mouse in my hand and ask me to design…well, we’re in trouble! So I turned to April from Blu Sky Designs for a monogram design for the September wedding of Kelly+Russ!

Here is a little of what I gave April to go on:

Kelly LOVES daisies, and we’re tying them in wherever we can! It’s a casual and intimate wedding on the beach, followed by a dinner reception at an upscale restaurant overlooking the lake! We’re tying in the colors of fall…red, yellow, orange and green, without having an overall fall theme!

Check out what April came up with! Which is your favorite?

Check out the Blu Sky blog for more fun monograms and amazing custom invites! (The secret’s out…We’re going with the first one!)

Stay tuned as Photography week continues tomorrow with our guest blogger Ben Pancoast, who will give you the tips on how to work with your photographer for the most fabulous pictures!