Wedding Hangover....Oh My!!!!!

The life of a planner is both wonderful and exhausting at the same time! What do I mean by that? Its Called THE WEDDING HANGOVER!!!! And oh boy it is the worse hangover you will ever experience in your lifetime. The good thing is that you can prevent it and trust me you will because once you have had one you will NEVER EVER EVER want another one. Its funny now but when I was working the first week with KYAE it was anything but funny.

It feels like you have just ran a marathon that had biking, trails, and then swan to end it all. Well take that experience multiply it a few times and you have the feeling of working a full wedding. Now subtract sleeping in the next day because you have another event to do the next morning. Oh and did I mention that you didn't get home until 12:00. Your body hurts from head to toe practically. You feel like you got beat up. The worst part of my wedding hangover was my first event being OUTDOORS!!! It took everything out of me and I didn't know whether I was coming or going. All I knew was I hurt all over and I just wished for a few seconds of down time. But in the wedding world there isn't any down time unless you are eating for 15 minutes at max or taking a quick and I mean quick bathroom break!

 But I did learn my lesson for all future events! Drink lots of water! When you think

you drank enough drink more! Eat like you are running a marathon for real. Your body isn't use to working events or doing anything for 12+ and the pace you must work is even harder. You have to and I can't stress this enough love what you do! There has to be some type of connection with the work you do for any client. That connection makes you push your body to its limits and then past them. Its so your client can have that positive experience that they paid for. Once I figured that out I was ready to tackle any event thrown my way!

Here's a few tips:

•Start prepping your body a few days in advance

•Get plenty of rest the week prior of a event especially the night prior.
•Its good to make sure you are healthy (do you exercise, do you walk/run)  You may want to add that to your game plan so that your body can handle being on your feet and possibly standing for 12+ hours.
•Drink water the night before, when you get up, on the ride there, and at least a bottle per hour if it's a hot day. (FYI if you are not urinating throughout the day your body is telling you that you could be dehydrated...drink more drinks)

•Carb up the night before, or eat a big hardy steak and potatoes... you really want to build your body for the next day.
•Eat a good healthy breakfast the morning of an event and if you can stop and grab lunch on the way, do that too!
•Bananas, Oranges and Apples (really any fruit) makes for easy quick snacks throughout the day too.

On a hot day…pack popsicles!  They will cool you down and hydrate you at the same time!

•Wear comfortable shoes!!!!! Bring several and change (including socks) inserts were the BEST thing ever invented.

•Remember to bring cloths to set up and then change for the event.  This will give you a few minutes to rest and freshen up.
•Before you go to bed try and eat a light snack, drink a bottle of water, probably want to pop two Tylenol and get some much needed rest.
•The following day if you can schedule a massage or a pedicure...it's highly recommend!  The lead event planner actually sees a chiropractor on a regular bases to make sure everything is in proper order and not out of line. 
•Try and plan a day away from the office the day after an event if possible.  Spend time with family friends you didn't get a chance to hangout while planning and working that event.  (They've missed you too).

With Love

    ~Kayla the intern

Tips For Outdoor Ceremonies

Are you thinking about having an outdoor wedding? Have you thought about which month to possibly have your wedding? If you decide an outdoor ceremony is perfect for you, it is crucial to make sure you pick the right month so get the best weather!

Here a few tips when thinking about have an outdoor ceremony:

-Try to position your ceremony in a shaded area. It is a good idea to design your program to be large

enough to use as a fan.

-For a lovely and thoughtful gesture, have water or a refreshing non-alcoholic beverage available for your guests. Offer them pre-ceremony so that they can stay hydrated in the heat.

-After the ceremony, it is always so thoughtful to offer a basket of cute flip-flops to your guests. No matter how often you tell your girlfriends to wear practical shoes, they still wear heels.

Just in case of bugs and bad weather:

-In some areas, it is essential that you have a professional company come in and spray to keep the bugs at bay or mist with a yard guard type product before your wedding. Be sure to do so well in advance of any tableware going down on the tables.

 

- Since there is nothing you can do to control the weather, it is very important to come up with a back-up plan in case of inclement conditions. Walk through the weather scenarios prior to the wedding week so you and your family can mentally accept the weather plans. This way, you can go into your wedding week feeling prepared, and the weather plan will feel like less of a surprise!

- Don’t forget to have tent sidewalls on the premise in case a storm does blow through — one of the hardest things about doing an event outside is that you have to bring everything with you.

No one rains on our parade 5 21 16 wedding at the Light Horse Plantation

On Saturday May 21, William and Whitney wed at the Light Horse Plantation in Burlington, NC. It was looking to be a cloudy and rainy day, but the weather ended up holding off right in time for the beautiful ceremony. The ceremony was set to kick off at 5 pm. At about 4:30 we kept a good eye on the weather and saw that rain would be hitting us at right about 5 pm. After Jenn consulted with the bride on whether to move the wedding inside or not, the bride decided that she was going to get married outside and did not care if we moved the time up. So from then, we quickly got everything ready and got everyone seated and at 4:45, the ceremony began outside with the Bride walking at 4:56pm.  The Ceremony was over within 15 minutes and by 5:25pm as the wedding party began photos the sprinkles began followed by a quick thunder-shower.

From then on, everyone was as happy as they could be with great food, desserts, and music. With the help of our walkie- talkies, we were able to make sure things ran smoothly. With someone in the ballroom, parking lot, lobby, and hallways at all times, nothing went out of place.

The bride's taste was very simplistic and the flowers were very bright and colorful. The centerpiece on each table was a tall vase that featured greenery at the bottom and a white flower bloom at the top. The color scheme of the wedding was navy blue and coral to go with the bridal party's attire. The venue was very rustic and southern, yet classy and tasteful to fit right in with the bride and groom's personality.

Throughout the wedding day, getting there early to set up and being one of the last ones to leave, I learned a lot about weddings from that being my first one to work. I learned that it takes a lot of hard work to make sure a wedding runs smoothly and to make sure any hiccup go unnoticed. But the good vibes of the wedding outweigh the bad any day. Making sure a bride and groom's wedding day is the best day of their life makes it worth it when you see how happy they are with how everything turned out.

~Until the next one...this is Alexandra the intern signing out~

Vendors:

Venue: Light Horse Planation

Wedding Party Flowers & Some Centerpieces: ABBA Design

Large Round Table Centerpieces: The Bride :)

Linens, China, & Place Settings: General Rental

Tables & Chairs: TCS

Catering & Bar: Western Steakhouse

Dessert Bar & Wedding Cake: Sweet Sensations

Minister: Crosslink Community Church Pastor

DJ & Lighting: Steel Impressions

Photography: Magnolia Ridge Photography

Videography: Dream Builder Productions

Hair & Make Up: Hair Refinery

Invitations & Programs- The Bride :)

Planner & Coordinator: Knot Your Average Events

Super cute party favors as guests left… (Pepsi for those not old enough for the wine)

Sail away to the Caribbean

Do you know anything about Caribbean Night? Sandals? How about destination weddings? Well you should attended this event in the future. It's a really cool concept that will help you out if you’re undecided about your wedding plans or if you just need some vendors to help make your day as worry free as possible.

On one side this event is a chance for different vendors to connect through both networking and business opportunities. In another way it's good for vendors to have other vendor’s business cards that way if a client needs a certain service the vendor can help lead you in the right direction! And who doesn't love a little extra help from time to time.

For you the client, it's a chance for you to sample products and get an idea of what you like, what you don't like, and what services fit your needs the best. Our job and any vendor’s job is to always be honest with you the client. That way you know what you get for your money. 

It's hard to sell a service for you can never really know what it is going to be like until you are reviving it. But this event and these vendors come set up tables and show you samples of past service. We sell customer service whether it be day of coordination, pipe and drape, photography, catering and so on. We get certified, go to school, etc to make sure we give you the true experience that you ask for! 

So make sure if there is ever a event for you to meet the vendors your thinking of working with go to it. You will have an amazing experience and maybe even find someone to make your day a little easier. I got a lot out of it as an intern! So for any future clients I may have or friends that need help with their upcoming event I would suggest this Caribbean Night of food, fun, and a little networking!

Backyard Graduation Party

Family can be a wonderful thing especially when it comes to celebrating milestones in one’s life. That’s something that was very easy to spot when it came to the Saunders graduation party. As an intern I have new experiences everyday this day was no exception to that rule. My first home event, in a garage?! I thought to myself! How would Knot Your Average Events staff pull off this one? The run sheet was laid out to say that pipe and drape is to be done before KYAE was to set up the room for the actual event. However sometimes things don’t always go as planned.

It was time to take action for we were hired to deliver a service and what you learn faster than anything in the event world is that you must deliver and if you exceed the expectation then even better! So we began setting up tables and décor. The rental company would just have to work around the already set up tables and chairs. Once they arrived they needed just a little help with there set up which we didn't mind helping for it was us we would want some extra hands as well.

The design of the pipe and drape would be two L's that connected. It would block off what we didn't want seen by the naked eye. However we were short a pipe or two. So the rental company promptly left to go retrieve more for us. And upon there return KYAE quickly help them finish the set up of both pipe and drape and tents, tables, and chairs. Due to the team effort that we made no one could tell we had any hiccups. So both grad student and mother got to enjoy the special celebration taking place.

Every event is a learning experience and that was clear to me on this day. The cupcakes that came were so beautiful but do to space we had to think quickly and rearrange the set up of the cupcakes. We kept the words together and just reposition the others. With the clients permission of course! Always Always Always ask before you do. For you work for your client and are there to meet their needs. What they say goes.

After all the minor hiccups were taking care of it was time to do the thing we all longed to do at any party or get together. DANCE!!!!! Our staff and the Saunders family bust out a few moves to work off all the delicious food we enjoyed on this wonderful day. The laughs and smiles on each and every persons face made the day truly memorable for me.

Just always remember as a planner don’t panic or your staff will too, keep the mood light, communicated effectively, patience, and only worry about the things you can control. All will work out you just have to trust your staff and more importantly your client must trust you. Knot Your Average Events has taught me a lot in this little time so far and I know I have so much more to learn as time goes on. 

The party turned out so beautiful and tasteful the client was so happy! It made me happy to know they were happy. For my first weekend of work I felt like I wasn’t doing so hot or maybe I was messing up badly but when the client gave me that big hug and told me she appreciated my hard work. It moved me to tears. I truly feel honored to have spent time with the Saunders family. I look forward to the next family get together!!!

*HUGE SHOUT OUT TO RAY w/ STEEL IMPRESSIONS for the amazing lighting job and providing awesome music from the years the graduate was born to the day of graduation~