weds-day: organizational tips

Oh well hi! Wedding prep is in full swing around here (last night I had a dream that I was so excited that I blacked out and completely forgot the entire day), and just as all my wise married friends cautioned, even though I have been on.top.of.it...there's still a ton to do. So, from me to you, here's a few tips that have helped me keep my head above water throughout the process...

1. Determine your budget and create a spreadsheet: This is huge because there is nothing worse than finding a vendor you want to work with and knowing you can't afford them. So, budget first, and along with that create a spreadsheet. I sorted my columns like this:

Keeping track of when you paid your vendors is key! During the busy season they're dealing with hundreds of emails a day, so do yourself a favor and make a note of deposits and final payments. And tips! Tip your vendors...seriously. Then at the bottom of the spreadsheet I have a recap:

That remaining budget column is my best friend. Yesterday I was able to look and go OH! I do have money to rent napkins! :)

2. Book big vendors quickly: Raven and I were engaged on the 18th of December; within a month we had booked our venue, florist, photographer, videographer, planner, and had even secured the artist for our invites. Believe me when I say, this is part of the reason I avoided stressing out about the planning process for so long.

3. Don't delay with the details: start thinking about paper goods, signage, and decor within the first 8-9 months of planning. It's never too early to start with that stuff! Everyone warned me that one of the worst parts of planning was the seating chart, so as soon as we had most of the replies, I got to work. I dedicated an afternoon to finishing it, and it was done! So thankful I got that out of the way!

And just to circle back to #1: spreadsheets and Google drive are key to your sanity. It makes sharing documents with your Fiance, planner, etc a snap.

Those are my tips for you, friends!

xoxo,

top photo by Ashley Caroline!

weds-day: planning a wedding, in gifs

This has been my experience so far:

Getting engaged:

source

Beginning the planning process:

source

When you're a month out and you get so excited that you panic:

source

2 weeks out:

source

I am, for whatever reason, completely in denial that our wedding is nearly 2 weeks away. Shouldn't I be freaking out!? Shouldn't I be running around like a chicken with my head cut off? Truly, I've been firing off plenty of wedding-related emails daily, but mostly everything is done. So I've been kind of...chill...

I have been excited, though, to ask all of my already married friends what their #1 piece of advice is for the big day. Here are a few gems:

My friend told me that once she handed everything off to her planner 2 days before the wedding, she gave herself permission to let go of control and try and go with it.

A different friend told me to have as much done as possible going into the week of the wedding. Inevitably, she said, there will be last minute errands you'll need to run, but again, try and get most tasks out of the way.

Possibly my favorite piece of advice was from a client:

"Everyone kept trying to make me feel better and keep me calm the weeks leading up to it when things would go wrong by telling me that even if everything didn't turn out the way that I envisioned that it would still be perfect and no one would ever know.  blah blah.  Ya know what? That's bs - I hadn't worked hard and stressed for a year so that my wedding would be 90% - so,I'm not going to give you those lines - stay strong and keep your conviction and everything will be perfect."

A gal after my own heart (thank you, J!).

So, that's where I'm at right now. We have a dear, dear friend's wedding this weekend, and possibly it will jolt me back into reality...

Happy Weds-day!

xoxo,

weds-day: my favorite etsy shops

Last night my friend Julia and I talked wedding for a solid 45 minutes. During this time, we both expressed our immense love of etsy throughout the planning process. It really is the best place to go when you need, well, anything wedding related. What's great is that you can work directly with shop owners to create custom orders, so really, the world is at your proverbial fingertips. Below I'm outlining my favorite shops, feel free to comment with questions!

Vendor: Personal Kitten

What We Purchased: cocktail napkins and stadium cups

The Process: The owner, Randy, personally emailed me to discuss options for the napkins we wanted. He was prompt, personable and knew exactly how to do what we wanted.

The Result: These napkins are almost too pretty to use.

Vendor: Sweet Carolina Collective

What We Purchased: wooden signs

The Process: One of my dear clients (hey, Sam!) recommended this vendor to me and I'm so glad she did. Meg and I spent actual weeks communicating about signs. She always responded immediately and was patient as I waited for files from the calligrapher.

The Result: I can't even get into how gorgeous these signs are. I can't wait to share!

Vendor: Breeze Bot Punch

What We Purchased: Custom embroidered item (it's a surprise!)

The Process: If you want anything embroidered, contact Breezy. She delights in custom orders and is up for anything. She's really excited about the brainstorming process and has awesome ideas for how to make your order extra special.

The Result: She's the shit, her stuff is gorgeous and made with love.

Okay, talk to me, friends! Spill your etsy recs...

xoxo,

weds-day: your wedding day

 

I love these shots by Julia Elizabeth from a beautiful wedding this summer. I always get asked what exactly it is I do on-site for weddings, and I love this little visual story that Julia so generously captured while shooting the above wedding.

Think of what I do as a hyper-observant assistant, or a mini Day Of Coordinator.

Some of my day-of on-site tasks include:

• coffee for the bridal party
• general errands
• dress steaming
• photographer's assistant (this one is huge)
• keeper of the things (aka my bag of tricks, aka problem solving)
• dispersing of final payments and tips

I like to tell people that you don't know you need someone to do all this until you have someone to do all this (me!). It's the perfect solution for clients on a budget who aren't working with a planner. I truly love being on-site for weddings and getting to work next to my clients and their other vendors.

Still want more of an explanation? Email me at allie[at]littleredswell.com.

xoxo,

all photos by Julia Elizabeth.

weds-day: under the dress

Good Morning from CT! I'm just a few hours away from a venue site visit with the best planner in the universe, Melissa McNeeley. According to my countdown, we are 52 days away from our wedding, which is unbelievable. I'm at the point now where I will occasionally wake up in the middle of the night with a random thought about tasks I have yet to accomplish, things I need to buy... I'd be lying if I said I did not love the planning process. It is awesome (and no, I'm still not stressed!) and I'd do it every year if I didn't already find my guy.

Next Tuesday is my first dress fitting, (just typing that makes me break into a cold sweat) and Kleinfeld just emailed me a list of what to bring: my wedding shoes and any undergarments I'll be wearing on the day.

Undergarments. I haven't even begun to consider them! Let's chat through options. First of all, I'm lucky that my dress is not form fitting, so I don't really have to worry about seams and lines and such. Awesome. However, I don't want to tempt fate by wearing some period stained granny panties, and it is my wedding...so I'm in the market for a nice pair of skin colored underwear.

I've heard amazing thing about Commando, and in all likelihood, I will end up ordering this pair of plain briefs.

I will not be chancing it and wearing something sexy under my gown; the wedding day is about composition on the outside and function underneath - you have all night to get into something sexy, do yourself a favor and wear the right underwear.

Commando also has seamless and control top underwear, as well as control top thongs, which is so, so awesome if your dress is form fitting. I've also heard great things about Yummie Tummie (aside from that name which...wow), and I've got my eye on these, because why the fuck not?

I'm not wearing a bra, mostly because my dress doesn't require one and I never want to wear one if I don't have to, but I will say this: if possible, do everything in your power to avoid wearing one of those stick on bras. I have not personally worn one, but the few clients of mine who I've assisted with these aren't totally sold. They can look a bit wonky (cone-like), and are time consuming to get just right.

My suggestion would be to ask your tailor what s/he recommends; in all likelihood, they can sew in some cups for you. Any big boobie gals want to speak on this?

Talk soon, friends!

xoxo,