5 Cool Ceremony Details To Consider!

Our Couple, Chelsea and Nathan  |  Captured by Gloria Ruth Photography

We love being members of the Aisle Planner family. They provide unbelievable support and tools to our couples.  When we came across this article, written by Gillian Griffith, we just had to share!

Most creativity tends to happen during the reception, as ceremonies usually employ some tried-and-true traditions, but, by adding a little creativity to your ceremony, you can really make the moment feel that much more intimate and tailored to you as a couple. So, today, we wanted to share 

5 creative wedding ceremony ideas with you.

1. Welcome Your Guests with a Gift

The beautiful thing about a wedding is that a group of people—usually from all over the country, or even the world—all come together in one place to celebrate a single, common thing. We love the idea then, of providing guests with a welcome gift to wear that helps to make the group a cohesive one. Why not have small greenery boutonnieres for the men and fresh-flower hairpins for the women waiting at the ceremony entrance on trays? Each can have a small welcome note from the bride and groom attached to it.

2. Get Grounded

Seating is a great way to set the mood for a wedding, so why stop at traditional chairs? Are you super earthy and throwing an outdoor affair? Have guests sit on beautiful blankets and embroidered rugs on the ground. Pepper the space with lanterns, pretty pillows, chic throws and short side tables to make it feel even more special (and be sure to include some thick floor pillows and soft ottomans for guests who may have injuries or are uncomfortable on the ground). Ground seating can add such a laid-back and intimate vibe to a ceremony. We especially love the idea of coupling ground seating with the seating-in-the-round craze that’s peppering Pinterest as of late. Set up the altar in the middle of your ground-seating area, so that guests are completely encircling you as you say your I Do’s.

3. Personalize the Processional

The processional is such a great place to add some creativity to your ceremony. Who says bridesmaids and groomsmen have to walk arm-in-arm or alternate down the aisle? If you're more laid-back and want to add some fun to the ceremony, let the groomsmen all walk (or dance) down the aisle at once in a group to a fun song of the groom’s choosing. Do the same for bridesmaids. Is there anyone special in your life who isn’t a part of the wedding party or the traditional family processional? If so, try incorporating them into the processional as well. We love the idea of two grandmas walking hand-in-hand down the aisle. Or, choose three couples who inspire you, and then weave these couples into the processional.

4. Ask for Front-Row Participation

Why not skip the traditional readings and have a few people seated in the front row (parents, family members, close friends) offer up a short piece of advice instead? Let guests who will be participating know beforehand so they can prepare something. When the time comes, have each guest stand, read their piece and pass the microphone to the next family member or friend. Pick an eclectic group—this works best when more serious pieces of advice (mother of the bride) are peppered with humorous anecdotes (long-time friends).

5. Seal the Deal with a Toast

Oftentimes, ceremonies seem to end so quickly. You say I do, guests cheer, you walk down the aisle together and then it’s on to the cocktail hour. Why not harness that feeling of celebration right after you have your first kiss instead? We love the idea of having ushers pass around a glass of champagne or celebratory cocktail (extra points if it’s a custom cocktail designed by you) after the first kiss and toasting to you as a newly married couple while you remain at the altar. It’s a great way to really make the most of such a special (and otherwise-fleeting) moment.

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Seven Steps to Less Wedding Day Stress

Your wedding day is approaching! While some brides feel cool as a cucumber, others get an overwhelming feeling of anxiety and stress. With all the thought, time and money that does into a wedding, don't you think a couple should be able to spend their day free of any added stress?  Here are seven steps to staying stress-free...

1. Hire a skilled, experienced, professional wedding planner!  Take a deep breath, and trust that you chose the right person to coordinate your big day without you having to lift a finger.

2. Do not visit the wedding location spaces until 100% complete.  Trust us! Just don't do it.

3. Absolutely nothing should be left until the day of the wedding.  Please write vows, wrap gifts, stuff tip envelopes, and pack wedding overnight bags on ANY DAY BUT THE WEDDING DAY! 

4. Give yourself enough time. Time to eat breakfast. Time to do hair. Time to do makeup. Time. It's more important than you know. Start Early. The End.

5. Limit the number of people who are getting ready with you. The fewer, the better. Is there a family member who tends to get a bit worked up? BYE. Little kiddos who love to scream and pick things up and throw them while running in circles? BYE. Good friend who also is the world's best complainer? Sorry. (Not sorry!) Bye.

6. Print out your wedding day timeline and keep it in your bag. Timelines immediately bring anxiety levels down. But please don't give a copy to every single person in your family and wedding party. It's simply not necessary and can cause more chaos with too many "chefs in the kitchen." This is where the professional planner comes in. ;-)

7. Leave your phone alone. Give it to a bridesmaid or to your MOH if you just can't help yourself. There is absolutely no need for checking work emails, or panicking over social media posts. Just don't do it.

The most important thing is to really live in the moment. 

Enjoy the journey. You'll never get to repeat this day again ever.

Love and Celebrations ~ LLE

Hiring A Wedding Planner? Keep Reading!

So you’ve found that one person in the world who knows you better than anyone else, supports you in all you do, and you’re ready to commit to one another forever? YESSSS! Oh boy! Now reality sets in. You have know idea how to plan a wedding! You've only ever been to two weddings a few years ago. And oh gosh the day of~ You're trying to figure out how you will get hair and makeup done while checking in your vendors! Yikes! Now your thinking you need a wedding planner to assist you in making wedding related decisions and executing the day of. Right??

Most couples who hire a Wedding Planner trust their chosen wedding expert to the fullest extent. Most couples have never planned a wedding before or their knowledge is limited to what they've seen on tv or at a relative or friend's wedding. So couple's hire wedding planners to guide them through the intricate process and to help them plan and execute the wedding that they have imagined.

Now on another note, some couples hire a wedding planner to advise them during the planning process, yet weirdly enough, the couples become selective as to when they actually trust their chosen planner’s judgement. (Insert BIG-EYED emoji.) Whether it’s selecting vendors, creating the floor plan, or understanding rules of etiquette, some couples would rather do things their way (or the way of an aunt that was married 20 years ago) instead of listening and (more importantly) trusting the wedding planner's professional advice. 

Some would say, it’s their day right? What they want, and how they want it, is how it should be right??  Well... If you hire a professional wedding vendor, whether planner, dj, florist or caterer: TRUST the advice they give you. Unless of course they give you solid validation on why you shouldn't. If you’re not going to trust/listen to a wedding professional’s advice, what was the point of hiring them in the first place? You hired them for their expertise, now trust your decision. 

Happy Planning!

LLE

You're Engaged!! Now What?

Yay! You're Engaged! Now What?? 

1. Create a Budget- We get it. Most people don't like to talk about the "M" word, but, a budget is the first step in the wedding planning process. It is important to know exactly how much money you’ll be spending designing your dream wedding. It's important to know who’s contributing towards the wedding from the very beginning. Is the couple hosting? Are the bride’s parents paying? Are the groom’s parents contributing? Will everyone pitch in? Nobody likes awkward conversations regarding money! However, the reality is that weddings can be costly and somebody has to pay for it.

2. Set a (an approximate) Date- Once you both have established a budget, it will be easier to figure out your wedding date. It will become clear if you need to wait and save money, or you might be able to begin making arrangements immediately.

3. Create the Guest List- By creating a guest list you will be able to figure out the next big steps in wedding planning, such as the caterer and venue. It is important to remember ”more people, more money.”  It may sound harsh, but you literally have to look at each name on the list as a dollar amount. Does that dollar amount work with your total budget?

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Weddington Way = YES WAY!

You might be saying to yourself, Weddington What? Lol!

Weddington Way is an online boutique. They offer the modern bride a large selection of bridesmaids dresses, accessories, and ties for groomsmen in a variety of colors. So easy to shop for the entire bridal party. Their online showroom that allows you to coordinate with bridesmaids all across the globe. So shopping for your wedding becomes easy, fun and stress-free! Many dresses range in size from 0 to 18. Most dresses are returnable or exchangeable, and they even offer free swatches!

The best part is they have a selection of dresses for $150 or less! Here are a few of our faves. 

Perfect for South Florida Weddings!

No matter what your style and color scheme, definitely check our Weddington Way!

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

MUST READ: Wedding Planning Mistakes

We first did this blog post back in February 2013. Mistakes engaged couples make while wedding planning. We thought we'd update it, but in our eyes, the mistakes haven't really changed that much over the past two years.  Lol! 

 10~ Not setting a budget and/or ignoring the word budget. It needs to be done no matter how big or small so Just Do It!

(you have to do this right from the start)

9~ Getting too many people involved in the planning process. 
You know who we're talking about... :-)

(too many chefs in the kitchen is always bad)

8~ Not interviewing the MC/DJ to match your personality!! And forgetting that not all DJ's are cut out to be Wedding DJ's. Yes, there is a difference!

(the music and emcee can make or break a wedding)

7~ Not hiring a Wedding Planner or at least a Day of Coordinator!!

(have you heard the horror stories from brides that didn't have a professional to iron out the issues that arise? yes, there may be issues)

6~ Thinking it couldn't rain on your outdoor wedding in South Florida...

(we are born and raised Florida girls, it rains often)

5~ Forgetting to add personality and pizazz to your wedding.  

(don't be boring and do what everyone else already did)

4~ Deciding not to hire professional vendors. UGH!

(very important, serious face emoji goes here! no joke!)

3~ Being inconsiderate with others, i.e. vendors, bridal party, family. This is HUGE. 
A simple hi, hello, and thank you go a LONNNG way!

(yes, everyone understands it's your day. please don't scream it at the top of your lungs!)

2~ Not setting a clear vision of what you want.

(communication is key)

1~ Losing perspective of what a wedding is really about! 

(the mr. and mrs. forever!)

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

          

Toasting Tidbits!

Getting Married? Congratulations! 

Planning a reception? Awesome! 

Set guidelines for your toast-givers' speech???  Do it NOW!

Pinterest

Okay! So you designated who will be giving toasts at your wedding. Please consider giving your toast-givers some guidelines. After all, it is your wedding. And while we are the first to tell Brides and Grooms that it's important to make your guests happy, it's also important to guide and plan.
With that being said, keep these Toasting Tidbits in mind.

1.  They're giving Wedding Toasts, not Wedding Roasts!
Toasts are meant to honor you, not totally embarrass you.  We always say, toasts should P.E.P.
Be polite, endearing, personalized.

2.  If your toast-giver is nervous speaking in front of people, please encourage them to write it down on small note cards.  There is nothing worse than a speech-giver that forgets what they want to say and then rambles... It's uncomfortable, for not only the bride and groom but for the guests as well.

3.  Speeches should be short, two-four minutes is ideal.
Anything more simply takes away from the Bride and Groom.

4.  Consider speaking to your emcee, in advance, about a toast that may get out of hand. Give them them the authority to step in if... let's say someone's had too much to drink.

5.  Lastly, ask your toast-giver to just be who they are. If they are funny, be funny. Serious? Then own it. If they are themselves, they will be more comfortable and in turn everyone will be more comfortable.  The key here is to give a speech that 's from their hearts.

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Are You Mad?!

We all remember our childhood favorites! We love it when couples incorporate those personal elements into their weddings. Which brings us to these, created by Lily of Weddings by Lily! Wedding Mad Libs! Too cute! Maybe consider making these available to your guests during cocktail hour, or use in lieu of a traditional guest book. They could even be used in a wedding time capsule.

They are available in an array of colors.

The best is the price! $20 for a 5x8, customizable, digital PDF file. All you do is take the file to your local printer, and there you go! An easy way to personalize and add some fun to your wedding! 

Go MAD!!  Lol!

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Our "Favor"ite

Lil Cubby Etsy Shop

Favors have been a huge part of weddings for centuries, and the tradition still holds strong today. They are typically parting gifts, used as the ultimate way to say thank you and represent your appreciate to friends and family.

We always say, favors should be edible, drinkable or useful! Nobody wants chintzy, impersonal trinkets. We hate seeing our couple's spend money on things that people do not take. Guests leave them behind and they all go to waste. Consider something meaningful and important to you. Something that represents you as a couple. What things do you love? Share with your friends and family!

HGTV

Love popcorn? Just last weekend, our super fun couple, Laura and Ryan engaged their guests with a Popcorn Bar. It included every flavor from Caramel to Strawberry! The guests could not wait to run over and fill their red and white striped boxes! 

Gio Morales Photography

What are your favorite drinks? One our most popular favors, among guests, were bottles of Korbel champagne (bride's fave) and Jack Daniel's Tennessee Honey (groom's fave) given during a South Beach soiree with Amesha and Patrick!

What about those zany photo booths? Kay and Gary wowed their guests with AMAZING photo booth frames! When their guests came out of the photo booth, (and peeled off all their props, lol!)  they couldn't wait to slide their pictures into the keepsake frames. Not a single frame remained!

We loved the favors from Ivette and Jonathan's wedding. Hand painted maracas with an adorable tag telling guests to, "Shake Me at The Kiss!"

But you see the point, the couple's choose favors that reflected their personalities and engaged their wedding guests.

How do you plan on engaging and showing appreciation to wedding guests? What's your "favor-ite?"

Love & Celebrations ~ LLE

Are You A Communicaker???

Happy Wedding Wednesday Girls! So excited to share another  FAB Etsy Find! 

We are loving these personalized, acrylic cake toppers from Comminicake It!

Of course they come in a variety of colors like white, blue, gold, and silver.  

Love! Love! Love! What will you "communicake" at your wedding?!

We were thinking... 

Crazy in Love

Love You Madly

Let's Eat Cake

The Mr. & Wifey

#Married

Me & My Sweet Baboo

LOL!!!

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

WHAT?! I'm NOT Invited?!

"Yep! You got it!  You aren't invited!"

LOL! Don't you wish you could just answer like that? Answer who, you ask? 

The wedding guest that didn't make it on to your final guest list!

We'd bet many Bride and Grooms struggle with this issue. So the question is: What do you do?

There is no possible way to make all of the uninvited guests happy. Depending on your reason here are some phrases that you could use to take the stress off of yourself.  

(Isn't that really what matters?! LOL!) 

1~ Blame Intimacy!

 "Aw gee! We had a hard time making the decision to keep the wedding intimate. 

We have SO many friends, so we kept it to close family." (Smile)

2~Blame the Venue!

"We fell in love with our venue! It's only downfall is it has a limited amount of space. 

And our guest list is taken up primarily with family members." (Smile)

3~Blame the Budget!

"We would totally love to have you there celebrating with us. Unfortunately, due to our budget, we can't invite as many people as we would have liked to." (Smile)

Sadly enough the truth is it never gets easier to let people down. The reality is most couples don't have the budget to invite every friend they've ever had. Even in cases when couples do have the budget, it doesn't necessarily mean they want to spend their budget on long lost family members. Our advice: be cordial and nice, let them down softly, and move on with your planning. :-)

Love & Celebrations! ~ LLE

The Who, What, Why's of Wedding Rehearsals!

 Vintage Bells & Co ~ Etsy Shop

WHO~ Whoever you want! LOL! Active participants in the wedding: Parents of both the bride and groom should attend, as well as the wedding party, the minister performing the ceremony. You should also include any ushers, greeters, or persons that may reading or singing during ceremony.

WHAT~ Wedding Rehearsal for what? We get it. You aren't putting on a Broadway Show or even a High School Musical, so why rehearse? Well the truth is hosting a wedding is very similar to putting on a production! It's important for wedding party members to know what is expected of them and what their roles are during the wedding.  It just helps everything run a little more smoothly on the day of.

WHEN~ Rehearsals could take place at some point during the week of the wedding, usually a day or two before. Many variables determine when a rehearsal will take place. Is the venue available? Is the officiant available?  When will most of the wedding party be in town? What time do most people leave work? All these parts go into play.

WHERE~ A wedding rehearsal is usually held at the venue where you'll host the ceremony. This is not always possible! Sometimes the venue is not available or another function is taking place the day you want to host your rehearsal. No worries! Other spaces, such as a public park, can be utilized. The officiant and coordinator will lead you through the steps and what will be expected so that all members are well versed in what they will be doing when the big day arrives.

WHY~ Going over the ceremony and reviewing what is expected of each of the ceremony participants is important. A wedding rehearsal dinner is not necessary, but it is a welcome event and conclusion from all the planning and work everyone has put into the wedding. It's a wonderful way to celebrate the fact that all plans have been finalized and everyone can take a deep breath and relax until the big day.

We love these Wedding Rehearsal Invites from Vintage Bells & Co.

All customizable and downloadable! $15.00 for the proof! 

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Team Spirit!

#TEAMBRIDE

 We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these sweatshirts from Bijou Buys!

How cute?!

Not the type to wear a robe while getting ready pre-wedding?

Throw on this soft, comfy sweatshirt with some shorts.

It's your day! Do what you want!

Get them for your bridesmaids too!

They come in a variety of colors and sizes!

#TEAMBRIDE

Love and Celebrations ~ LLE

Bridezilla? Groomzilla? Umm... NOzilla!

We adore our couples, and have not experienced a Bride or a Groom that turned into a "Zilla." And we hope to keep it that way! But we do feel the need to speak out on the over-publicized stigma of how to treat the amazing people that make perfectly planned weddings happen!

Hmmmmm... How do we say this? Don't be Rude. 

You ever hear the saying, "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar?" Well that proves to be true when dealing with wedding professionals.  And yes, we say wedding professionals. Trained, educated, adult, professionals that happen to be highly skilled in their particular art for weddings. 

Couples should remember that showing a smile, staying sweet, having manners, and asking nicely will go a LONG way! You will be amazed at how people jump through hoops to make things happen!  Simple words like: hi, please, and thank you, go a very long way.

A wedding professional that is passionate about their work, and their clients, will treat clients with respect and in return, couples should do the same. The truth of the matter is, wedding planning will bring some degree of stress. Simply because different types of things, stress out different types of people. 

Wouldn't you want to have vendors by your side that have a mutual respect for you. Professionals that you know are in your corner and that genuinely like working with you? And we say WITH you because that's exactly what we do. Work with you to create and execute a stress-free day!

Put yourself in the vendor's shoes.  Wouldn't you be willing to go the extra mile with clients that were polite and thoughtful? Please keep this in mind when you are interviewing, hiring, speaking to and even emailing wedding professionals. And be rest assured, those wedding professionals will be just as invested in your wedding day as you are! ;-)

Love & Celebrations! ~ LLE

Social Media Soirée

Okay, so we KNOW just about THE entire world is partially, if not fully, obsessed with some form of Social Media! Whether you are an Instagrammer, Facebooker, or a total Tweetheart, just about everyone from teens to grandparents have one, if not all, of these accounts.  Social media at weddings is really becoming the norm. One of our fave ideas is a DIY photo wall at a cocktail hour or reception. Set up a backdrop, have some fun photo props available, and watch your guets pull out their phones! Because let's face it, most guests like to take pics of themselves partying with friends and family to post on Instagram or Facebook. They'll love it!

What better way to introduce our new Social Media Wall service than celebrating 

the Playoff Wins of our Miami Heat! Let's GO!

#HeatFansforLIFE

Be sure to ask us how you can do Social Media at your wedding!

Love and Celebrations! ~ LLE

Hide and Seek?

Don't forget these hidden costs when planning for your big event!
No one likes to incur additional, and unexpected, fees.
Especially if you have a budget you would like to stick to!

1.  Postage!!  Many couples do not think about the cost of stamps.  Some invitations, depending on the weight and shape, could cost up to $2.00 to mail.  If you are sending out 125 envelopes that adds up to an additional cost of $250.  Keep this in mind when selecting your invitations, as well as adding to your guest list.

2.  Overtime Fees!!  Nobody wants to incur additional fees if it can be helped! This is where planning comes in! Work out how long you will need vendors such as the D.J, photographer, and videographer ahead of time.  In addition, prior to booking your venue, found out their policy on overtime.

3.  Delivery and Set-up Fees!!  Dreaming of that off-site Outdoor Wedding? Vendors that deliver dance floors, arches, tables, chairs and even flowers, may charge a delivery and set-up fee.  Fees vary depending on amount of items being delivered, how far away they have to travel, and even the weather!

4. Vendor Meals!!  Yes! You you will need to order some vendor meals.  Vendors such as your photographer, videographer, d.j. etc. will be assisting you with your wedding for sometimes more than 6 hours.  They need to eat, and unless you are okay with them leaving to get dinner during your reception, include them in the final meal count.

5.  Gratuity!!   Saying thank you with a monetary tip is always appreciated by vendors. You can't ignore the fact that some vendors just exceed all expectations and will blow you away. Some vendors such as, caterers and transportation almost always include tipping in their contracts. Gratuities are a kind and generous gesture of appreciation to thank the people who go the extra mile to make your wedding day perfect.