Seating Charts, Escort Cards and Placecards, oh my!

Everyone’s heard the saying, “Opposites attract,” When it comes to couples that’s often true; however when it comes to wedding guests, that’ not necessarily so.

Choosing the seating arrangements at a reception can be one of the more frustrating aspects of planning a wedding. Both the Bride and Groom want their friends to mingle at the wedding, but they also want to ensure their friends and family get to spend some quality time with the people they already know and whom they might not have seen in awhile. When assigning seats for your guests, follow these tips to help lessen some of the stress:

1. Keep age and interests in mind. Couples should try to keep people of similar ages and interests seated together. For example, your parents’ elderly neighbors should not be seated at the same table as your former college roommates. Instead, consider what guests might have in common and seat them accordingly. If there are people who simply do not get along from a family riff, do seat them far apart.

2. Consider location when seating elderly guests. Elderly guests should be seated away from the stage or the DJ’s speakers, and preferable in close proximity to the restrooms. Be careful not to seat elderly guest next to an air conditioning vent or the door. Try to make things as weasy6 as possible for them.

3. Seat coworkers together. If you inviting coworkers to the wedding, seat them together. Chances are your coworkers do not know many of your family and would be more comfortable with their other coworkers. So seat them with people they know so they’ll have a better time.

4. Seat children with their parents. If your guests are going to be bringing their children, seat them with their mother or father, especially if they are very young. There is a little wiggle room here though, if there will be a larger number of children in attendance, you can set up a children’s table where they can all sit together. Provide activities such as crayons, coloring books and special age appropriate favors for them. They’ll probably have more fun at such a table.

Maile and Kris | September 25, 2010

Maile and Kris were married on the River Terrace at Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront on Saturday, September 25, 2010. Mother Nature was a doll and cooperated wonderfully. This couple has been absolutely amazing to work with and such a wedding planner’s joy. The Bride has been extremely organized and precise in all her details and planning. She made my job a dream!

 

The ceremony was held overlooking the Main Street Bridge and the view was breathtaking. The Hyatt was their normal Regal self and performed their duties with expertise.

The Bride was beautiful and the Groom stunning. They held their cocktail hour on the River Terrace overlooking the river and the Main Street Bridge. The guests were treated to wonderful hors d’oeuvres while enjoying the warm breeze.

Dinner was a plated service and was done with all the right touches. The chef at the Hyatt made the dining experience something of awe. After dinner the guests were treated to a coffee bar and mini desserts.





The cake was a sample of the amazing Chef Paul of Signature Cakes by Paul and was accented by Monet broaches as well as Swarovski crystal monogram cake topper. The flowers were by Kelley’s Bloom Room and were just the right touch to the Bride’s décor.



The Bride chose one of the most phenomenal photographers for her big day. Star Bradshaw is truly a professional in every sense of the word. She was very organized and new exactly what she needed to do to execute the photos and stay within the Bride’s tight timeline. She was a wonderful team member to work with and as you can see from the sneak peak photos she does amazing work.

     

Congratulations Maile and Kris! Enjoy your honeymoon and we wish you the best!



The DJ Did Not Follow My Timeline!!!

One of the biggest mistakes Brides and Grooms make in hiring a DJ is not doing their homework.  Anyone can play music, but it takes a professional to be able to have the music organized, know exactly when to play the music, when to make the introductions, work with a wedding planner and watch for the planner’s cues, know how to correctly pronounce names as well as dress and act appropriately at a wedding.   Your DJ can make or break your wedding reception!  They are both the number one complaint and number one applause at weddings. So be very careful when selecting a DJ for your big day.  

DJ’s can be very charismatic and on first meeting one you are taken in by their charm and enthusiasm.  They have so much energy you want to hire them on the spot!  Buyer beware!    

Before you select a DJ for your wedding, make sure they have done more than one wedding in the past. Ask if they have worked with a wedding planner. I find there are a lot of DJ’s that have never worked with a planner and just wing it, so when they are presented with a detailed timeline they don’t want to be told what and when to do things. A lot of these DJ’s seem to not want any direction ahead of time from anyone and only want the Bride and Groom to provide them with a list of songs and then allow them [the DJ] to “run the show.” It does absolutely no good for a Bride to hire a wedding planner and go through all the hours of putting together a timeline for the DJ to just ignore it.

www.delandentertainment.com

Paul Deland of D’Land Entertainment says, “A good DJ needs to be a team player. The DJ is essentially a servant to the party.” He explained, “All DJ’s have egos; that’s what makes them standout in this business.” However, they need to channel these egos into serving the party and the Bride and Groom.

http://footlooseentertainment.com/

Kris Parnell of Footloose Entertainment says, “Ask them if they carry insurance. “ By the way; all of your wedding vendors should answer yes to this question. Ask them what professional training they have had. Ask them to what professional networks and organizations do they belong. Ask them what area of experience do they have. Have they primarily played for parties, clubs, etc.? Then ask and listen to your wedding planner or other vendors, specifically ask your venue.


It may seem like a huge difference in price when interviewing DJ’s, but be educated on what a wedding DJ needs to be able to do and make sure the one you hire will be able to perform! You may spend a little more in the beginning but in the long run, you will be much better off with an established and professional wedding DJ.

"I do not want children at MY Wedding!"

This is a sentiment that I am hearing more and more from my brides lately. While for some this is not a big deal, for others it is tremendous. I am told there are family members or friends that will feel their children are exempt from this preference and will ignore the wishes of the Bride and Groom. The Bride and Groom and not left with too many options to let the guests know their wishes but primarily guests should follow etiquette the same as the Bride and Groom. The invitation is addressed to only those invited. If your children’s names are not on the invitation there is probably a reason. If you are unsure, call the Bride or the Mother of the Bride for clarification, but do not get your feelings hurt when you are told they were not invited and please do not just “show up” with your uninvited children.

I am often asked, “What the best way to handle this situation.” Let me first say that that it is NEVER proper to indicate “No Children” anywhere on or in your invitations. Usually, my first suggestion to the couple is to create a wedding website that can be used by all guests to obtain Hotel Information, Timeline Information, Registry Information and little tidbits such as No Children. My second suggestion would be to send out a separate newsletter to your guests with all this information included. Do not send it with your invitations! I know this is twice the postage but it is simply not appropriate etiquette. Lastly, and I believe the die- hard- etiquette experts will disagree with me, I would suggest having “Adult Reception to Follow” placed on the invitation.

More and more weddings and receptions are taking place in very “Adult” settings and in the later evening hours. While these precious little ones make adorable ring bearers and flower girls, if the reception is being held at an adult club and alcohol is being served, it is simply not the place for a child. The adults with the children are not able to enjoy the evening and dance and party and the children are usually tired and grumpy as well. They are better off at home with a sitter.

As a very last resort, I tell my Bride and Groom, you may want to hire someone to act as a babysitter during the reception and to make arrangements for a separate room where the children can go into during

the reception. There are wonderful services that will entertain and take care of the kids for a modest fee.

The most important thing is to remember it is your day (and night) and if you prefer no children, make sure it is communicated (properly) to your guests.

Price vs. Quality

I recently asked my followers for suggestions of things they would like to hear about in my blogs and one of my followers asked me to please explain the importance of price vs. quality. So here goes… when looking for ANY wedding vendor, you should never go with the cheapest! I know budgets are tight and we are all looking for a bargain, but while you may find someone cheaper they are not always your best bargain. I have worked numerous weddings where the Bride and Groom hired a DJ and were so proud they only spent $250.00 or had a “friend” DJ for them. In the end, they only got about 1/3 of the DJ they would have had they hired a true Professional Wedding DJ. They were mortified when he did not have the music they asked for a month in advance, his system shorted out three times, not to mention he looked like he just came from a “gig” at a party club. One local photographer showed up to the wedding on so much medication or maybe alcohol he could barely stand. Once the wedding was over the Bride tried for 6 months to get her photographs. I finally had to get involved and all we were able to salvage at that point was 4 unedited cd’s of pictures. Not a very reliable vendor. These are just examples and the issue runs across the board for all vendors, including wedding planners.

When you are looking for your wedding vendors, do your homework! Do not hire them because their website is flashy and their prices are low! Ask questions such as are you licensed, are you insured, who is your back up in the event you become ill, how many wedding have you worked. These are all very important things you should know before hiring any professional. Ask for references, and call them! There is usually a reason someone’s prices are so cheap. They may be just starting out and do not have the experience, they may be working under the table which is highly illegal not to mention unethical or they just might be a scam artist.

Ask the vendor do they belong to any professional organizations. Southern Charm is an active and proud member of the Association of Bridal Consultants. The Association of Bridal Consultants has been the professional organization for the wedding industry since 1955 and has over 4,000 members in 26 countries on six continents. This association is a membership service organization, designed to increase awareness of the wedding business and improve the professionalism of members. We are held to a standard of conduct and expected to maintain our training each year. These are very important factors when hiring a professional vendor.

Every professional vendor should at the very least carry general liability insurance. This is a short cut many vendors try to cut and in the end can be very costly to both themselves as well as the client.

One way to make sure you are getting the most for your money is to ask a wedding planner. Many wedding planners include this service in their packages but they may also offer it as an a la carte item. It is well worth the cost of a consult to obtain a list of professionals that have proven they can provide the Bride and Groom excellent service on their special day.