One of our regular clients called us up one day saying that he wanted a Winter Wonderland themed party. His only requirement: it had to be HOTT.

We had some great ideas right off the bat: snow, boulders, and bling. After Memphis had it’s own Winter Wonderland, the snow melted. Our snow didn’t. We filled the club with Insta Snow-to-Go and added our famous crystal trees to the mix. We had just ordered some snow boulders and figured they would be perfect to add in darker corners. We threw some light bases under them and they were a great addition!

The floral sheeting was the challenging part of the setup. We hung it from floor to ceiling in the entryway and the main hallway. The look was well worth it. If you see anything you like and would like to use at your event, let us know!

Annabella from Asian Bees Photography was great enough to come out and take some amazing shots for us!

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

Jessica and Ken had a beautiful wedding at the Memphis Zoo! This location was close to their hearts because Jessica’s mom volunteers there and they’ve always loved the zoo. 

Jessica and Ken said their loving nuptuals on the sealion stage, and afterwards, the guests chatted and watched the polar bears swim around in the Northwest Passage Exhibit.

Jessica and Ken had a lot of vegan and vegetarian friends, so food was definitely important to them. Jessica is a pastry chef, so an ordinary wedding cake was out of the question. She opted for orange cupcakes arranged on a three tiered stand. She mixed mini-cupcakes with regular sized cupakes for those who wanted just a bite of dessert.

 This wedding was beautiful, simple, and focused on the guests. Jessica and Ken were wonderful hosts and we know they’ll have a great life together!

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

Last time we said we were moving, we just moved our blog. But this time, we’ve moved! We still have the same phone number [(901) 757-9339]. Our new location is easy to find and it’s right off of Interstate 40 near Covington Pike. Our new address is:

5148 Elmore Road, Suite 1
Memphis, TN

We’ve decided to expand our showroom and meeting space for our customers. Our retail space has closed, but we will still offer a small selection of bridal accessories.

This year is going to be one of good memories, excitement, and craziness all rolled into one! Join us in our journey and have a wonderful new year!

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

This week, we’re introducing you to Myia and Thomas. They were true wedding troopers. Their wedding was the night of those horrible storms. Luckily, the storms calmed down by the time their ceremony was scheduled to start, and it was a wonderful night!

Myia and Thomas were married in a little known chapel, and unfortunately, the power was knocked out from the crazy weather. This didn’t stop the wedding. Guests actually stood and sang “Amazing Grace” as Myia walked down the aisle to her future husband. It was such a breathtaking moment.

After the ceremony, guests headed to the reception where a four piece band entertained them all night. The food was delicious, drinks were flowings, and the cakes were devoured. Yum! There was an “uh-oh” moment with the groom’s cake – it almost didn’t make it! Since that was the day of the bad storms, a tree actually fell on the baker’s kitchen! She was a wonderful trooper and showed up in the nick of time with the cake. Here’s just a sampling of the fabulous night:

We truly wish them all the happiness in the world! They were wonderful to work with.

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

Photo by Visio Photography

Yes, we do mean “bring your own beer.” Many couples (and famlies!) don’t realize how much money can be saved by providing your own alcohol. If the average bar tender (in Memphis, TN) runs about $150 for a night, can you imagine what the alcohol markup will be for your event?

We always try to suggest that you bring your own alcohol. Figuring out how much of each type can be daunting, but all you need to do is go to your local liquor store and ask for a little help. Before you go, you need to think about this: how many of your guests are wine drinkers? How many are beer drinkers? What about mixed drinks? Percentages are ok to give the liquor store attendant.

You shouldn’t feel like you need to have an open bar. If you want to, go for it! If not, guests are perfectly happy with beer and wine. It’s ok to set limits.

If you’re providing your own liquor, let the caterer know. They may employ a bar tender to work your event, or you may need to fine your own. This is an important question to ask: what will the bartender provide, if anything? Make sure you have bottle openers, cork screws, napkins, ice, cups, stir sticks, and any other accessories you want. The bartender may provide some of these, and the caterer may provide the rest…just be sure to cross your T’s and dot your I’s!

So, you’ve decided to bring your own alcohol. Who’s going to bring it to the reception location and when?

Many people forget to take into account their guest list when creating a budget. This next tip is true for any party.

The guest list can affect your budget. You’ll spend more money with a guest count of 200 than with a count of 100. Food cost isn’t the only thing that you need to consider when increasing your guest list. Here are a few other things that need to be changed as well:

• Church/Ceremony Space – If you have a larger count, you need to have the right amount of space to accomodate everyone.
• Reception Space – The same thing goes for the reception: more people equals more needed space.
• Reception Seating – You’ll need more chairs for more people
• Tables – You need to create more seating space and if you’re serving a meal, you’ll need space for people to eat.
• Centerpieces – If you have more tables, you’ll need more centerpieces.
• Tablecloths and Linens – With more tables comes added tablecloths. Don’t forget to add those! If you’re using chair covers, those need to be increased as well.
• Dishes/Utensils – More people? More utensils! You’ll need to let the caterer know you’ll need more plates, forks, knives, glasses, etc. If you give them the final guest count and they supply the dishes, they’ll know what to increase. If you’re renting everything seperately, you’ll need to update your rentals.
• Cake – You’ll need to increase the serving size of your cake, add more cake plates, and maybe add on a few more napkins if you’re not using linen napkins.

Brides normally think of the typical items to increase (programs, favors, etc.) but they forget about the technical additions. Hopefully this list will help!

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

Planners and brides alike create budgets for a reason. Why? To stay in control and not overspend. Overspending leads to buyers remorse and regret. We want to eliminate as many negative feelings as we can during the wedding planning process. One thing that we constantly reinforce is to stay either within or under budget in the different sections of your wedding. We know you hear it all the time, but let me actually show you what can happen by adding little things here and there:

Let’s say you have a projected budget of $10,000 for your wedding. Keep in mind that this is all hypothetical and for illustrative purposes. Your budget breakdown might be as follows:

• Wedding Dress and Accessories: $1,200
• Groom’s Tux: $200
• Reception Site: $1,300
• Rentals: $1,200
• Photographer: $1,800
• Cake: $400
• Ceremony Site: $500
• Officiant: $100
• Flowers: $1,000
• Decor: $1,100
• Catering: $1,200

Now let’s say you found THE dress, but it’s $1,800 with alterations. That’s only an extra $600, right? Your groom wants to look good and decides to pay the extra $50 for a nicer tux.

Then, the florist showed you these amazing centerpieces for only $40 more each. That may take you an extra $200 if you have 10 tables.  Now you think your reception needs a little more umph, so you upgrade your rentals to include these beautiful table cloths. That will bump you up another $250 assuming you have 10 guest tables, and the cloths you want are $25 each.

You want one more hour of coverage by the photographer…only an extra $100.

Now for the food. Your cake is nice, but you really want that raspberry filling which is an extra $5 per layer. And you saw a picture of a cake with some piping and details that you want to imitate. That will tack on an extra $100 for the design. For a three layer cake, this will add an extra $115. Catering, you stayed on budget, even a little under! You found someone who can provide what you want for $1,000.

Your ceremony site isn’t working out. You don’t like the look, it’s too cramped, and it’s near a bad part of town. You decide to look around and you find a stunning church. It’s only an extra $300! You’re sold.

You manage to stay on budget for the rest of your wedding. So what’s the damage? Here’s the new breakdown:

That’s $1,415 overbudget. No big deal! But that’s a 14% increase. This means less honeymoon money, less money to put into the house, less money to put down on a car, etc.

Now $10,000 may not seem like much to some brides. If your budget is $20,000 and you go over by 14%, that’s an extra $2,800.

Moral of the story: stick to your budget. You created it for a reason, whether your finances are an issue or you want a wonderful honeymoon. The more you go over, the more it affects other areas of your lives.

With the economy being down like it has been, people are scrambling to save money. Weddings are no exception! We have some tips on how to create and stick to your budget. A few DIY projects may be featured this month too!

Our first post will be on Friday and we’ll talk about who traditionally pays for what. Does the groom pay for the flowers? Does the bride’s parents pay for the transportation? Come back on Friday to find out!

If you have any questions regarding your budget, ask us and your question could be answered in an upcoming blog post!

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

You’re looking for vendors, narrowing down your choices, and now it’s time to meet with them face-to-face. Who goes with you? Do you go alone? Do you bring your fiance, mother-in-law, maid of honor, mom and Aunt Carol?

The answer is: it depends. And it really does depend on several factors. If you’re paying for everything yourself, you can just have your fiance accompany you. If your getting a little help from family, have one or two of them come with you to help answer any money questions. Some vendors will start off by asking what your budget is for that particular element. If you can’t answer that question or give an estimate, the meeting probably won’t be as productive as you would like.

If your mom wants to pay for the cake as your wedding present, have her go with you. If your dad wants to make sure the rehearsal dinner is taken care of, include him. If you’re not comfortable bringing people to your meetings, that’s OK too!

When you schedule a meeting with a vendor that has to do with food, always tell them the correct amount of people that will be attending the tasting. The caterer needs to know how much of each option to prepare for you and your guests. Honestly, we would recommend keeping the number to 2 or 3 people for tastings and meetings. If you have too many people telling you their opinions, it will stop being your wedding. It will be a mish mosh of everyone else’s idea of your wedding. Opinions aren’t bad, but they shouldn’t override what you want.

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners

Now that you’ve hired all of your vendors, you may be wondering how much you should tip each vendor. That’s a tricky question, and sometimes it’s a touchy subject.

It is bad protocol for any vendor to assume and/or ask you for a tip at the end of the night. If that happens, make sure to tell the company about the incident. It’s bad form, a little rude, and it also makes you feel awkward.

Here’s what we tell our clients: tipping is your choice. It’s not an obligation. If you feel like your vendors did a great job or went above and beyond your expectations, it would be appropriate to tip them. If you feel they did a horrible job, then it’s perfectly fine if you don’t tip them.

The best way to tip your vendors is to label envelopes with their names or company names on them. Include cash and a little note and distribute the tips at the end of the night. This is the job of the Day of Wedding Coordinator if you hired one. If not, you can designate a bridesmaid or groomsman to hand out the envelopes.

So what are the appropriate amounts to tip each vendor? Honestly, it’s up to you! We’ve gathered a few percentages and amounts to help you get started if you want to prepare for tipping the day of your wedding.

Makeup and Hair Stylist:15%-25% depending on quality of service and how happy you are with the end results. Also, they may accomodate special requests and that’s another thing to take into account when tipping.

Officiate:$50-$100+. This can be given as a donation to the church or religious organization.

Deliveries/Setup: $5-$10+ per person. This can be someone delivering your cake, setting up your tent, delivering flowers, or setting up any special items you may have ordered. You can have someone examine the quality of their work, and how efficiently the job gets done.

Photographer: $50-$200+ depending on service and how accomodating and efficient they are.

Musicians: $15-$20+ depending on quality. Any musician that is required to play (like anyone from a church), you usually don’t tip.

Bartenders: $50-$100+ depending on service and drink quality. You also want to see how they interact with the guests – if they’re friendly, cordial, and polite.

Wait Staff:$15-$20 per person. Again, you want to make sure the wait staff is friendly and accomodating to your guests.

DJ/Band:For a band, you can usually do $15-$20+ per person, and for a DJ, it can range from $50-$150+. Watch how they interact with guests, how involved they get with the music, and watch their temprament.

Transportation: 15%-20% of the bill. You can adjust the tip based on punctuality, politeness, and cleanliness of the vehicle. Make sure the air conditioner and/or heater works!

Planner/Coordinator: As planners and coordinators, we do not expect tips. We’re there to help you. If you do feel like an exceptional job was done by your planner or coordinator, you may tip them. The amount really does vary, and it can be anywhere from $50-$200+. 

Remember, these are just guidelines! You don’t have to tip if you feel the service was poor and not up to your expectations. Tipping is your choice! Do you have any tipping horror stories? Leave us a comment and tell us about it.

Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners