PLANNED TO PERFECTION Planning a wedding can be a daunting task, but hiring a wedding planner can alleviate the stress and ensure that your special day runs smoothly. If you’re considering hiring a wedding planner, there are several factors to keep in mind: To start, it’s important to research and find someone who matches your style and budget. Look for a company with experience planning weddings similar to yours and positive reviews from previous clients. Before booking, consider your vision, budget, and timeline. Having a clear idea of what you want for your big day, including the style, theme, and overall atmosphere, is crucial. Establishing a budget and communicating it to your planner will help you stay on track financially. Finally, make sure you have a timeline for your wedding and share it with your planner to ensure that everything is completed on time. As you narrow down your list of potential planners, ask questions to determine if they’re the right fit for you. Ask about their availability on your date, their credentials and experience, and how they handle unforeseen issues on the day of the wedding. Ideally, you should reach out to a wedding planner at least a year in advance of your wedding to allow enough time for planning. However, if you have a shorter timeline, don’t worry – many wedding planners can manage shorter planning schedules. By hiring a wedding planner, you can ensure that your dream intimate wedding becomes a reality. Kelly from Atelier Weddings www.atelierweddings.co.uk WOW YOUR GUESTS As a full-time, award-winning, professional wedding magician, I regularly meet with couples anxious about their wedding day entertainment, and I know how they feel, I felt the same way myself over the years helping to plan weddings and other events. At intimate weddings, it’s vital to ensure that the entertainment matches the intimacy. A professional wedding magician can deliver exactly that, breaking the ice and getting people to integrate, smile and laugh. When is the best time to book? Once you have your date, venue and an estimate of people attending. Is the magician suitable, friendly and on your wavelength? Will they fit in with your guests? Have they taken the trouble to talk with you about what you want and shown a genuine interest, or have they just given a price based on time and venue? What are their contingencies if there’s a delay? For instance, I book by the event, not the hour. Can they offer something more than walkabout and table magic? To most couples with a smaller, intimate wedding, the cost of a professional may seem high, but think of the benefits: the enjoyment of their guests, the laughter, smiles, the awesome photographs and of course the longterm memories. Alex from Magical Excellence www.alexdfisher.co.uk A PERSONAL TOUCH A benefit of lower guest numbers is having the potential to create a personal experience for everyone. Take the opportunity to create special touches such as: Welcome bags or notes in the bedrooms. Messages or memories on the reverse of place cards or at each place setting. Video interviews/moments with each guest. Full weekend plans such as having a meal together. Organise group activities like challenges, walks or workshops. Be careful not to create stress and keep everything manageable and worthwhile. Pass on specific tasks to key people, so you can share the workload. You will have the chance to chat with each guest in a small-scale event, and having personal touches may help people mingle and keep the flow going even if they don’t know each other that well. Annabel from Weddings by Annabel www.weddingsbyannabel.co.uk www.ladybirdsphotography.com www.ladybirdsphotography.com 64
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTA0NTE=