Biggest day of your life!

So I have been doing a lot of planning for my wedding lately, so I thought it would be a perfect time to talk about some of the tips and tricks I have come along with. My wedding is in 6 months and I am starting to feel a little pressure to start getting things done! I feel like I have most of the big things done, like picking out the venues, cake, caterer, DJ, and things like that. 

One of the biggest things that I have noticed while planning my wedding is do not let people walk all over you. I have noticed a lot of people wanting to put in their voice, but I have come to realize it is almost easier to not tell many people your plans until they are finalized. I mean don't hesitate to ask for advice from people but don't let them change your mind! This is YOUR day not theirs!!

One of the first things I did to begin planning my wedding was setting up a budget. Granite this will change some, but having some kind of idea will help you. Make sure all the parents who are contributing have a say in how much they are willing to pay. I found this to be very difficult, because every parent had a different amount they wanted to contribute and different ways they wanted to divide it up. Just stay calm and talk through this with your finance!

The next major thing is setting your date. Now some might think, okay lets just pick a date and go for it. However, this is not the case at all. You need to pick your date from the dates your venues has available. I originally wanted my wedding to be this June, but with wedding booking so far in advance now, we are having our wedding in August. Another thing to remember with dates is it to think about major events happening in your live during the time you want to have your wedding. Now that I look back at the date I wanted, I am very relieved it is later in the summer. I will be graduating from college, starting a new job and moving all in the month of June! I couldn't imagine a wedding in that mix too!  

Now for the fun stuff! Start exploring different websites, blogs and magazines to help inspire you! I am sure like most newly engaged women, I ran out the week I got engaged and bought every wedding magazine out there! I have found that the website theknot.com has been a huge help! I swear they have everything on their site. I even made a wedding website for my finance and I!! Check it out! zach-kristin.ourwedding.com. 

When selecting your theme, think of who you are and your style! Don't pretend to be someone your not! Think about what your favorite colors are and go from there. No offence but I am sooo sick of the black and pink/ black and white combos!! Do something NEW!! Have people talking about your wedding! Also, think of the time of year, summer choose bright colors, winter choose warm colors. I actually went to a home department store and went to their paint section and looked at all the colors. It was so easy to mix and match colors and see what looks really good together! Here is a great chart to look at some awesome colors and get some ideas! Start exploring!!

I feel like I could go on and on about wedding planning, but I will stick you with the essentials right now! I will plan to write another blog soon with more details and update you about my wedding!!

Start planing the day of your life ladies!!

 

Back- up Plan

So I thought this would be a perfect time to write a blog about having a back-up plan since I am sick and I could not imagine throwing a large event feeling the way I do now. So foremost importantly, HAVE A BACK-UP PLAN!


Life is not always perfect and there always seems to be a bump in the road whenever life hits you the hardest. So, instead of having to freak out the day of your event, have a plan and know what to do. Don't just have a back-up plan for a rainy day, think about other things such as YOU! If you are the event coordinator, you are one of the most important people at your event and if you get sick, you are going to need help, so plan ahead. To play it safe, plan your event with another person. Even if nothing does go wrong, at least you have someone else there that can help you out!


For your back-up plan, make sure you have an informational guide book if you are planning a very large event, so if you cannot attend your event at least others will know what to do. If it is a small event, have a reschedule date on your invite so people can plan ahead as well, if you do have to cancel or if weather interrupts your event.


Now, so you don't have to cancel for your important event because you are sick, keep yourself healthy! Don't stress out before you event, it will cause your body to freak out! Believe me I have been there! Take your vitamins and stay calm!

How to plan a concert

In honor of going to the Jason Aldean concert this Saturday, I thought the perfect event tip would be on how to plan a concert. Now the one thing to remember is that a concert can be as big or small as you want depending on the performer. 


Member you were not born to plan a concert so just take it one step at a time and have fun! Concerts are meant to be fun and you should be able to have fun even if you are on the back end of it!


One of the most important things you can do is talk to the band or performers to see what they need and how they like things set up. Using a backdrop is also important to keep the focus on the performers. If you want, sell some backstage passes to meet the performers before the concert. 


To get more people to come to your event, have the tickets be different prices. Have the floor/front row tickets be more expensive and tickets towards the back be cheaper. This will allow people to choose their price. 


Like any event, make sure you plan far in advance and book the performers as soon as possible and plan your event around them. Remember if they are not there, there is not reason to have an event. Now that the band is the most important crew, make sure you provide them with all their needs. Order food for the entire band and crew. This will make them feel more at home. 


Another important thing is the timeline of your event. Make sure you have a time for the doors to open, time the concert will start, intermission, and  concert ending time. Not every concert will have an intermission, but if your concert is going to be over 3 hours, it might be a good idea for people to get up and move around, especially if it is a sit down concert. 


NOW the most important thing for your concert. 

MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS

Make sure you advertising well in advance and have advertising that will attract the right persons eye!

Here is a video of a time lapse setting up a concert. Make sure you have a lot of help!!

Now,In honor of the concert I am going to this weekend, enjoy this video of Jason Aldean and Lauren Alaina!

I have Fallin' in Love!!

No, I am not going to get all mushy gushy here, but seriously I have found a new love for planning events! 

The name is Pinterest!!

Pinterest is a fairly new social media site that allows you to post pictures to the wall for the whole world to see. However, before you start pinning away you have to get an invitation to join. You can either ask a friend who is using it to send you an invitation or you can ask Pinterest yourself and they will send you an invite within days! Once you get your invite you can start exploring.  You can either post pictures you found on the web or pictures you having taken yourself. There are so many different "pinboards" that you can search. There are topics for home, fitness, food & drink, people, outdoors, DIY & crafts, and of course the most important Wedding & Events. 


I think this whole site could help you plan an AmaZing event! The DIY section has so many neat ideas to use for decorating your venue, unique and creative recipes to serve at your event and how to get in shape for it!!


I have started using Pinterest because I am planning a wedding (for myself) and I am of course my own event planner and decorator! So I am incorporating so many cool ideas that I have seen on Pinterest to use at my wedding. They have ideas for the ceremony, reception, snacks, hair do's, dresses, DIY decorations and many things I don't event know yet! 


One other cool thing about Pinterest is that you can follow other people boards and see what they pin.  


Here is my board titled "Wedding Ideas" to give you a look at what you are missing if you have not joined Pinterest yet.

AmaZing?! Right?

So whether you are planning a wedding, fourth of July party, birthday party, graduation party or conference; join Pinterest and you will get the most inspirational ideas you might have never thought about!

Have I convinced you yet?? You better start pinning soon to plan your next event!