Hello, lovely readers! As Jon and I rapidly approach 6 months until our wedding date (April 16), we are on our game and takin’ care of business! We now have our florist, bride and groom wedding bands, hair and makeup artists, and hotel for out-of-town guests all crossed off our planning checklist. If this particular Lovettes post was a dime-store teen magazine, its cover highlights would include: “Feelin’ Your Flowers: A Girl’s Guide to Bodacious Blooms What Won’t Break the Bank” and “Oh My God, Seriously, Why Won’t It Stop Raining Throughout My Engagement Session.” There might even be a mini-quiz about whether or not DJ iPod is appropriate for your reception entertainment at the end… YOU’LL JUST HAVE TO READ ON TO FIND OUT.
Photography by Jennifer Morgan
First, let’s talk flowers, friends. I’ll be frank: we cut our floral budget big time in favour of things that we cared about the most: venue, photographer, and open bar (heh). So when I started thinking about meeting with florists, I was nervous! I wasn’t sure how to say, ‘hey, we don’t have a huge budget and I don’t know anything about flowers, but can you still make our reception look fresh and pretty?’
Here are some tips on doing just that:
- Pick flowers that are in season during your wedding date. This will ensure that you aren’t paying a premium for flowers that can only be grown in a greenhouse for your big day. Not only that, but it’s more environmentally friendly!
- Ask for advice. Now that you’ve done your research about which flowers are in season, which ones do you like? Pick out some of your favorites, then ask your florist which flowers are more expensive and which are more reasonable. If you don’t know the names of the flowers, show her some photos from your Pinterest! Communicate about your overall vision, and ask her to advise where it’s okay to pinch pennies and where you shouldn’t. (For example: we decided to use the same flower box arrangements for our reception tables as decorations along the aisle during the ceremony).
- Word of mouth and good reviews are key. I was very wary going into the florist search because I had heard some horror stories from friends! I’d heard complaints ranging from flowers being delivered four hours late, to one wedding where they delivered the wrong order completely. I wanted to make sure I was working with a florist that was responsible and really cared. As it turned out, Amelia Florist did some amazing work for one of my 2015 couples, and I greatly enjoyed chatting with the owner, Vickie. It was an easy and ultimately fantastic decision to call upon her for my own wedding.
- A little filler goes a long way. It’s okay if you’ve got your heart set on orchids, but realistically, featuring a few of those blooms with other flowers surrounding them is going to be more financially friendly than a bouquet solely composed of fresh cut orchids. Jon and I are incorporating a lot of eucalyptus leaves and baby’s breath into our wedding because they’re simple, lucrative, and have a fresh, romantic feel that fits with our wedding aesthetic.
I shot the above two images at Lauren and Matt’s wedding at the Wiedemann Hill Mansion this past January. I thought the baby’s breath leant an elegant and ethereal touch!
As a side note, I’d like to point out that you shouldn’t feel pressured to have fresh flowers at your wedding. Live flowers are one of those things that brides often feel like they’re “supposed” to have, even if they don’t want them. There are plenty of great alternative options, such as handmade paper flowers or brooches as a bouquet, and candles or wooden sculptures at guests’ tables. 🙂
Now, on to the cover story in today’s 6-months-to-go special issue: When It Rains, It Pours!!
I knew that we were screwed weather-wise in the days leading up to our engagement session. The hourly forecast for Friday essentially boiled down to “all rain, all the time.”
After a brief moment of panic in which we flusteredly texted my incredible photographer friend Jenny to try to reschedule, we decided to just roll with it. Ultimately, I trusted Jenny’s ability to work with the moody overcast light, and figured we could have a little fun prancing around in the rain at our favorite spot on earth, Red River Gorge!
Even with the constant rain, our engagement photos turned out absolutely spectacular—I couldn’t be happier with our images. I see joy, silliness, tenderness, and happiness between Jon and I; and the rain doesn’t hinder this at all, but rather seems to simply enhance the natural Appalachian beauty of the gorge. I have no doubt that this was mostly due to Jenny’s skill behind the lens, and her calm and fun demeanor in the face of an unrelenting downpour!
To those of you who are on the fence about whether or not to get engagement photos done, I highly recommend it (and read this feature written by Annabel), from both the perspective of a photographer and a bride-to-be. It was actually VERY different for me to be on the other side of the camera! I have no problem directing subjects when I’m photographing them, but it took some practice for me to get loosened up and comfortable in front of a camera. And, we got some absolutely lovely photographs of ourselves in a place that means a lot to us emotionally as a couple.
Last but not least, the aforementioned promised mini-quiz! Should DJ iPod play the music at your reception, or should you hire an experienced professional? Here we go!
Question 1 – Do you already have an idea of what songs you’re going to play at your reception?
a. No clue: 1 point
b. Kind of, just no Love Shack or anything by Phil Collins*: 2 points
c. YES AND I ALREADY HAVE EVERY SONG COMPILED IN A METICULOUS TWENTY-PAGE-LONG LIST: 3 points
Question 2 – In balancing your budget, how important to you is your DJ?
a. So, wait, the DJ… is that the guy that plays the music?: 1 point
b. Honestly, I’d rather have a second cake: 2 points
c. OUR RECEPTION MUST HAVE A TOP-OF-THE-LINE SOUND SYSTEM, EXTENSIVE UPLIGHTING, AND A BEAR RIDING A UNICYCLE: 3 points
Question 3 – Do you need someone to serve as a master of ceremonies, directing and announcing the flow of events at your wedding?
a. No, because the only ‘speech’ that will probably happen is when your sister drunkenly leaves a voicemail saying “YOU ARE SO PRETTY AND I LOVE YOU SOOOO MUCH” from her hotel room later that night: 1 point
b. Yes – nothing too crazy, but we don’t want everything to fall so far behind that we’re doing our first dance at midnight!: 2 points
c. BEAR ON UNICYCLE MUST ENTER AT EXACTLY 9:14 PM: 3 points
0-3 Points: Wait, how did you get zero points?!? I think there might be some faulty addition here… or you cheated and just skipped to the end…
4-6 Points: You’d be happily suited to find a DJ who is friendly and helpful, organises and announces all major events, keeps the energy of your wedding upbeat, and won’t play anything on your ‘Do Not Play’ list. Yay!
7-9 Points: Calm down, turn off your capslock, and maybe check out the Little Book for Brides for some top-notch recommendations.
*Real talk, the B-52s are a true classic and you are missing out if you deny your guests the delight of seeing your inebriated distant relatives attempting to break it down to Love Shack. Phil Collins, on the other hand, is terrible.
Laura
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Our blogging bride and Lovettes member Laura is due to marry her fiancé Jon at Greenacres in Cincinnati, Ohio in April 2016. Laura and Jon’s wedding will be photographed by the award winning British wedding photographer, Ross Harvey. You can connect with Laura on Instagram, Pinterest and via her professional website and blog. This is Laura’s second post for Love My Dress. You can read her first post here. Enjoy folks!
