Hi there! My name is Marin and I am recently engaged. I am also a new intern wedding planner! Woo hoo! I, like many soon-to-be brides, am ecstatic to plan my wedding. I jumped in with both feet as soon as my ring hit my finger. Even though I’m still in the early stages of wedding planning, I’ve learned some things the hard way that may be helpful for other overly-excited brides.
Don’t involve everyone. I was stoked to share the news of my recent engagement. I was practically shouting “I’m engaged!” in the streets. Of course, share your news with everyone you love. But when it came to actually planning my wedding, I shared the details with the same intensity as my engagement. I thought that would bring even more excitement and joy into the process. Boy, I was wrong. I learned quickly that in planning a wedding, you don’t need to share all of your details to every aunt, uncle, or long-lost friend in your life. Sharing details only brings others unwanted opinions and lots of “Are you sure?” You know what you want in your day and should be supported in those decisions. Keep your wedding decisions to yourself and your planning team (again, keep it small!).
Select vendors that you actually like. Someone told me that when you meet with vendors, you are interviewing them. That is 100% true. You may work with this florist, caterer, photographer, etc. for over a year. You want to like them as a person and look forward to working with them. If a vendor rubs you the wrong way, you shouldn’t hire them!
Wedding dress shopping might suck. I was someone who had to try on, like, 60 dresses before finding The One. There are so many expectations for buying a dress from shows like Say Yes To The Dress and the constant feed of beautiful dresses on social media. I made the mistake of bringing a lot of people to my dress appointments (I had not yet learned the first lesson) which made it difficult to focus on what I liked and disliked. There were a lot of appointments where I just didn’t feel very good about myself (which is totally normal) so I inevitably didn't feel good in the dresses. Take your time to find something that feels like you. The process may suck, but it’s worth it!
Pick and choose your traditions. Just because something (like a garter toss) has been a part of weddings for decades, doesn’t mean you have to include it. I didn’t want to include anything in my wedding that didn’t feel like my partner and I. If that means not including some traditions, that’s ok with me!
It’s your day, but it’s also important to your family. I was set on having a small-ish wedding. Until I talked with my parents. They wanted to invite everyone and have a huge, blow-out wedding. I fought with them for weeks defending my vision for my big day, trying to cut the guest list at every turn. At one point, I finally understood that this is a big day for them too, and they want to celebrate the expansion of their family with all of their friends & family. This day is about you, but it’s also one of the most important days for your parents and family.
Have fun planning your big day!
Marin Sasaki
Who is It’s Your Day Events?
We are a Seattle, Bellingham and Bremerton, WA based wedding planning, wedding coordination and design agency. What we do is at times difficult to picture because the services we offer are intangible. When you are scrolling through beautiful photos, with stunning flowers, and amazing cohesive design; the magic behind that is the planning, design, and coordination. This is what we do.
We professionally organize, plan, and coordinate the details.
We dot the i's and cross the t's.
We triple check it all once more.
Then, when the day comes, we watch the wonderment and happiness on your face as your wedding day unfolds, just as you dreamed it would.
Contact us for any wedding planning, wedding coordination or design needs!
