Wedding Planning Articles
Coordinators
...."the wedding producer"
There are two main reasons for hiring a Wedding Consultant or Coordinator:
1) You do not have the time to plan each of the numerous elements of the event or
2) You do not have the expertise to plan such a large complex party.
We no longer live in the pre WWII era where women did not work and therefore had loads of time on their hands to put together a large wedding. That bygone era was also a time when girls, taught to be gracious hostesses from an early age, were party planning experts. We women of the 2000's have a lot more on our plate these days than simply keeping a social calendar in order!
A Bridal Consultant is an expert. These professionals know all the myriad details that go into pulling off the perfect wedding... this knowledge can only come from experience. Experience you will not have until after your wedding and reception are over. A Bridal Consultant will also save you lots of time and stress.
There are likely some elements of the wedding that you feel totally comfortable handling yourself, while other tasks make your head spin. If you choose to hire a consultant, the consultant can handle as much or as little of your celebration as you would like. Some tasks consultants typically provide are organization of the ceremony and the wedding site, layout of the reception site, timeline for the reception, participation in the rehearsal, on-site coordination throughout the wedding day, budget planning, education in wedding traditions and etiquette, referrals, and assistance in interviewing and selecting your other wedding service providers.
You could certainly create your own beautiful wedding. However, if you do choose against hiring a consultant, get started early and educate yourself thoroughly. Also, be sure to enlist the help of a very good friend to act as your amateur coordinator for the wedding day because, face it, you will be busy meeting and greeting and getting photographs taken, so you cannot coordinate your actual wedding day. Take your amateur coordinator with you to all meetings with your contracted wedding professionals and also take her to the rehearsal. This way, she will be well versed on all details of the wedding and will be better able to perform her duties.