Top Tips for Planning Your Wedding Day by Above and Beyond Events

Thank you so much for visiting my blog where I highlight a Florida wedding vendor each month to go over tips and tricks to help plan a smooth wedding. This blog post is meant to help brides, and grooms, plan a smooth wedding day. Our guest this month is Brittani, a wedding coordinator in South Florida and owner of Above and Beyond Events.

A little bit about Brittani owner of Above and Beyond Events

I am a Florida native, born and raised in South Florida. I am a mother to a beautiful red-headed little girl followed by being an awesome wife for the past five years. I am an extreme extrovert and will talk your ear off. I’m a big foodie, I love sushi and all things seafood! 

What led you to be a wedding coordinator? I feel like planning has just always been in my blood. I was able to plan my own wedding in 2019 but that truly was just the spark I needed to peruse my dream of being a wedding planner. In 2021 I was able to leave my corporate job of 13 years in the hospitality, industry and focus on building my brand. 

Top Tips for Planning Your Wedding Day

Venue and Logistics

What are some key factors to consider when choosing a wedding venue? A few factors that should go into choosing the right venue is making sure you love both the indoor and outdoor spaces. If you’re choosing a venue and your ceremony space is outdoors, make sure you love the “plan b” space just incase the weather isn’t in your favor that day.  Also, making sure that you are aware of things such as parking and utilizing valet if it is provided through the venue. 

How can we optimize the layout and flow of the venue for a smooth event? Particularly just making sure that the venue staff is providing helpful hands when it comes to guiding your guests from the ceremony to cocktail hour then from cocktail hour to reception. It’s important to make sure all moving parts are moving! 

Do you have suggestions for managing transportation logistics for guests? It’s ideal for guests to have ample amount of parking when it comes to arriving to the venue, I always suggest valet! It’s easy and confident for all your guests. 

Timeline and Scheduling

How do you suggest organizing the wedding day timeline to ensure everything runs smoothly? If you book with a wedding planner this is the number one tool we use to make sure you have a picture perfect day. This is something your planner and you will go over prior to the wedding date and your planner then will send this to all your booked vendors. 

Are there any common scheduling pitfalls to avoid? Depending on when you choose to tie the knot, it’s important to know about your venue’s prior event schedule to not run into any scheduling issues as far as your rehearsal or the day of. 

Vendor Coordination

How can we effectively communicate and coordinate with different vendors leading up to the wedding day? This is so important, communication is key on a successful wedding event. Personally I reach out to all vendors a month before, followed by a text the week of to make sure everybody has my contact number saved and stored away for anything that may come up on the big day. 

What advice do you have for selecting the right vendors for our wedding? As many wedding planners have lists and lists of who they love, it’s important to have that connection with a vendor upon booking them. Making sure they understand your vision 100% and can create it perfectly on the day of. 

How early should we book vendors to ensure availability? I always suggest to couples who have recently been engaged that’s vendors should be booked within 10-12 months from the wedding date. 

Budget Management

What are some practical tips for staying within our wedding budget? Making sure you set a realistic budget is something a lot of couples tend to struggle with. You’ve never been married and aren’t aware of the cost, so we sometimes have an unrealistic number in our heads. Budgeting for things like flowers and photography but forgetting about gratuity and tax. I always send out a budget list and answer any questions my couples may have regarding the current pricing when it comes to wedding vendors. 

Are there any hidden costs or commonly overlooked expenses we should be aware of? Couples forget about sales tax and it can add up pretty fast. Also making sure to add tip or gratuity for vendors or staff members who may have done extra for the big day. 

Personalization and Theme

How can we infuse our personalities and preferences into the wedding without overwhelming the event? This was one thing that truly takes time, you have to remember that every couple has a vision and as a planner, it’s my job to make sure I help bring it to life. I keep all opinions and personal preferences out of the picture unless my couple is asking. 

What are some creative ways to incorporate a theme or unique elements into the wedding? Bring YOU to your wedding, your guest are traveling to celebrate you and your partner so take that into mind. Making little things like personalized cocktail napkins with facts about the couple or showing off some photos of their furry friend who couldn’t attend, their are so many great options and the internet is a great tool to utilize. 

Guest Experience

What elements contribute to creating a memorable guest experience? Just remember to soak in every moment on the day. It’s hard to get wrapped up in the planning and prepping, the day is here.. enjoy it! 

Do you have suggestions for seating arrangements and maximizing guest comfort?  Always go for comfort, unless you’re really trying to stick to budget. 8/9 people at a table are ideal but sometimes it’s ok to put 10/11 people together! 

How can we ensure guests are well-informed about the wedding schedule and other details? It’s important to make sure and communicate to all your guests about your ceremony start time. A wedding website or a detail card is the perfect little way to communicate all of this. 

Emergency Preparedness

What are some essential items or backup plans we should have in place for unexpected situations? Always make sure to have a plan b for your ceremony if it’s outdoors. We never know if the weather will hold up and it’s my job to make that call on your big day. 

How can we handle common wedding day emergencies gracefully? Making sure that we have our aces in places, it’s important to remain calm and keep the show going even if we run into a hiccup or so. 

Final Touches and Wedding Details

What small details often make a big impact on the overall wedding ambiance? Small details go a long way in the wedding industry, things like a simple thank you card or a small trinket for your guests to take home. 

How can we ensure that all necessary details are attended to in the final days leading up to the wedding? Constant check in’s to the couple are a must when it comes to those final days. Making sure I send out reminders and having a detailed list for decor and such. Over communicating is always a great thing! 

Post-Wedding Cleanup and Duties

What happens after the wedding ends? Do you assist with post-wedding tasks or cleanup? As your wedding planner, I am there to help set up followed by packing up your essentials at the end of the night. Making sure your card box and cake knife is packed away and safely back in your suite or the trunk of your car. 

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Hey, there! I am a South Florida wedding photographer who services most of South Florida- from West Palm to Fort Lauderdale to Miami! If you are looking for a wedding photographer, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. And if you are not looking for a wedding photographer but want to follow my journey, you can follow me on the ‘gram.

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We hope that this blog post “Top Tips for Planning Your Wedding Day” helps brides and grooms throughout their wedding journey.

Find more here: Brittani’s Instagram to follow her journey; Brittani’s The Knot page

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