Subtitle - Wedding Planners - they're not all like Frank...
I put out some feelers the other day to find out if Wedding Planners shudder and cringe when potential clients act out Martin Short's comedy creation of Frank in Father of the Bride, complete with foreign camp accent? The answer was a rather withering 'yes'. Myself and fellow boutique owners, that blanch when we hear the word meringue used to describe any skirt beyond bias cut, can sympathise that these film references that have become ingrained in the public's collective subconscious mind.
The two most glaring misgivings that the public, and by extension brides and grooms, have about Wedding Planners are that firstly the Planner will run up your budget and secondly, take over.
Frankly - it could be worse - they could think of you as J Lo in The Wedding Planner who can judge the length of the marriage from the choice of bridesmaids dress colour and then runs off with the groom!
Having come across few planners, let alone a stylist-planner (something I now know to be different from a stylist-blogger!) I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when Stacey Marie from Cherry Topped got in touch with me to supply dresses for a shoot. Frank may have crossed my mind. Shamefully so did the thought that female planners were caught, in perpetuity, planing and replanning their own wedding for someone else. I am sending myself to the naughty step for that one, don't worry...
What I found in Stacey Marie was a highly well organised, charming, quietly spoken woman who arrived with a perfectly well organised brief and a great team in place. I therefore could simply fall into line as dress supplier and wardrobe. My Production Manager Janet and I turned up and the shoot simply happened.
Having met so many brides who are overworked to a point of mental collapse, others that come back needing endless lists of supplier recommendation and if I'm brutally honest some that could have done with some expert help on the styling I now see the niche for planners and in the UK. obviously the UK market is nowhere near as great as the US but it becoming increasingly professional, regulated and a bit bloody fabulous
I asked Stacey Marie what her motivation was for the shoot and how she felt this demonstrated her art...
“Our ‘Good Day Sunshine’ shoot was all about doing something different, fun, vibrant, elegant and eye catching, yet attainable! As a wedding planner I quite often get asked the question “What should we have?”; it is your wedding day and you don’t have to follow a certain routine or style. By coordinating and styling a bridal photo shoot it gives me an opportunity to show that you can do something different, if you want to that is. With its vibrant sunshine yellow and lime green colours, it grabs your attention, but with the elegance of Audrey with a splash of summer of love fun too. I wanted to show that you can bring a style and design together through every aspect of your wedding by speaking to your bridal boutique about bespoke accessories, thinking about hiring in various items, showing inspiration boards to your florist, cake designer and stationery designer who will use their creativity to put your ideas into reality. This shoot shows that you can really make your wedding day unique to you with any number of special little touches. Why not have dyed shoes, an oversized bow, different cutlery, crockery and glassware, colourful linen to brighten up your tables, sweetie buffet to match, hair and makeup to suit your bridal style... Have fun, get creative (even if with the help of the professionals!) and enjoy making your wedding day about you as a couple! Working on this shoot was just great fun and when it all came together on the day it was just amazing for everyone involved!”
Parts of this shoot will be recreated at the Miss Bush shop on Saturday 19th November. Come and join us for a drink and a cup cake and marvel at Janet Mohapi Banks cake, gasp at the yellow bow that has been creating a bit of a stir - more importantly come and meet Stacey Marie and Juliet and see if they may be your girls to inject some zest to your wedding
Credits
Photography Juliet Mckee http://www.julietmckeephotography.co.uk/
Stacey Marie Chalk http://www.cherrytopped.co.uk/Dresses(lou Lou, Jesus Peiro) and shoes(Pink) supplied by Miss Bush Bridal http://www.missbushbridalwear.co.uk/
Cake: http://janetmohapibanks.com/
Sweeties and jars: http://www.creativecandi.co.uk/
Flowers: Steph Turpin http://fairynuff-flowers.co.uk/
Table decor: http://www.joneshire.co.uk/
Additional glass wear, cloche etc: http://www.nest-home.com/
Venue: Pendell House, Surrey: http://www.countryhousebreaks.co.uk/description.html
