So you just got engaged. Yay!!! Cue the champagne and confetti cannon! But when the champagne bottle’s empty and the confetti is all swept up, you’re faced with one of the toughest questions: what now?

Planning a wedding can be an exciting journey, but as you start thinking about all the details, decisions, and research involved, it can quickly become overwhelming. With a full-time job or other commitments, finding time and energy to plan can be challenging, even with a helpful friend or family member. But what happens when a family member’s opinions become too much or the wedding weekend arrives and they want to enjoy the fun? This is where a wedding planner can step in and alleviate the stress, guide you through the decision-making process, and ensure that you and your loved ones can fully enjoy the day. Your wedding day experience is literally our job!

Wedding planners are industry experts who can offer invaluable resources to create a personalized, beautiful, and seamless event while operating with your budget. A planner allows you (and anyone else involved in the planning process) the chance to focus on the overall details and the “fun” parts of the planning process (menu tasting, design, etc.) while they handle the logistics and back and forth details with the vendors involved. So basically, we let you have your cake and eat it too!

Many planning companies, like Moonstruck Events, offer a variety of packages ranging from Event Management to Full Planning. These packages may vary between planning companies; however, at the core of what all these packages include is ensuring the wedding day runs smoothly. Sounds simple, right? The reality is your planner will spend anywhere from 30-40 hours on an event management package and 150+ hours for a full-service package -and around an average of 12 hours straight on your wedding day alone! We’re basically your wedding day fairy godmothers.

Let’s briefly break down the high-level difference between an event management package and a full-service package, and what a planner might be responsible for in each of these offerings:

Event Management:

• Examples:
  • Starts helping you with the planning process around 2 months prior to the wedding
  • Assists in communicating final details and logistics with vendors you selected
  • Creates a comprehensive wedding weekend timeline to share with vendors as well as you and your wedding party
  • Is onsite on the wedding day directing vendors and ensuring the timeline is being followed and the day runs smoothly

Full-Service:

• Examples:
  • Is with you from the beginning, sometimes even before you have selected a date and location
  • Assists in establishing a vision and realistic budget 
  • Connects you with professional vendors to bring your vision to life and will review all contracts
  • Communicates all details and logistics with vendors throughout the entire planning process
  • Helps create a cohesive design based on your vision and budget
  • Is there to guide you during the planning, providing etiquette guidance on aspects such as invitations, family situations, and wedding day flow
  • Creates a comprehensive wedding weekend timeline to share with vendors as well as you and your wedding party
  • Is onsite on the wedding day directing vendors and ensuring the timeline is being followed and the day runs smoothly

While planning packages offer many essential services, there are countless other tasks that your planner can do to ensure a stress-free and enjoyable experience for you and your loved ones. Some of these unknown services are:

1. Fashions a bustle out of safety pins and thread underneath your dress when yours breaks (ask Kayla about the time she pulled a safety pin from her own dress to fix a bridesmaid’s right before walking down the aisle!)
2. Wipes down your ceremony chairs after unexpected rain shower
3. Carries your lipstick in our pocket so you have it when you need it
4. Makes sure you get appetizers, dinner, and your favorite beverage in hand all night– nothing beats being greeted with your signature drink while you take post-ceremony photos!
5. Makes sure there is a plate and forks by your cake before you cut it so that your ceremonial slice has a place to go
6. Makes sure that champagne toast is actually poured by the caterer before the DJ announces it’s time for toasts
7. Makes sure you have your room key/phone/wallets at the end of the night before you leave & that it all makes its way safely into your exit car
8. Brings a portable fan to fan you between pictures when it’s hot outside (also has water and your drink of choice on standby to take sips from between pictures…see example number 4!)
9. Turns on all light-up cowboy hats, glowsticks, light wands, etc. and stealthily passes out party accessories to guests on the dance floor like a party ninja
10. Helps out photographer/videographer to get the perfect shot (throws veil in air for wind blown shot, holds extra lights, crouches behind you holding dress so it doesn’t get dirty, etc.)

Ultimately, a wedding planner is an essential investment that brings expertise, experience, and peace of mind to your special day.  Trust your planner and know that they have your best interests at heart; our whole business is built out of “Best Day Ever”s!

• Follow us @moonstruckeventstx for new blog announcements and more helpful information about your wedding planning journey
• Realizing a planner sounds good right about now? We’d love to chat and answer any questions you might have about hiring a planner.