Showing posts with label Magic Dust. Show all posts

We have gathered many invaluable tips and advice over the years and there's nothing we love more than giving a little something back to people we know this information will help! That's precisely why you'll now find 'Wedding Tip Wednesday' videos are a regular - guess which day of the week they come out on!? - part of our blog.

Covering everything from table planning and napkin-folding to icebreakers and long-distance wedding planning, the series gives you the chance to put a voice and a face to a name (I can't help cringing when I watch it but hopefully you won't be doing the same!).

So if you're looking for help or advice on a particular topic why not see if we've covered it. If we haven't, do let us know and we'll happily consider your questions for later in the 'Wedding Tip Wednesday' series!







Guest Blogger Tammy from Magic Dust

I thought I'd share a few tips with you today about the questions you should ask when you're 'interviewing' florists for your wedding day. Experience has taught us that taking a little bit of control and responsibility, as well as building a rapport with your florist from the very first conversation really does mean you'll enjoy a more positive experience.

Here are my top five questions for florists...

1) Are you available on our wedding date and how many other weddings will you be providing flowers for on that day?

It's good to establish a florist's availability as soon as possible so as not to waste their time, or yours. Equally importantly, finding out how much work they're prepared to take on for a single day will enable you to make a judgement about how important your wedding is going to be to them - and how flexible they are going to be able to be with any last minute changes to your order and delivery details.

2) Can you provide what we need within our budget?

Use the expertise of the florists you're talking to, after all, they will know a lot more about flower combinations, volumes of blooms needed and the viability of your ideas, than you will! It's important to establish that the things you want are achievable within your budget and, if not, what alternatives you could consider.

3) Who will be delivering, and setting up, the flowers on our wedding day?

Find out if the florist sends a qualified floral designer out with their orders or if local couriers are used. This will enable you to decide if you're going to need to look at additional help on your wedding day as couriers are employed to literally deliver the order and leave, whilst a floral designer will spend time ensuring your flowers are set up as previously discussed.

4) Have you worked at our ceremony/reception venue before and, if not, would you be prepared to visit with us?

Florists who are familiar with your venue(s) are worth their weight in gold, as are those who are happy to meet you at the venue(s) to discuss your requirements. Money can be saved, arrangements can be dual-purpose and nothing will come as a surprise if you're working with someone who knows, and has provided flowers for, your venue(s) before.

5) Please could you put us in touch with some couples you have recently worked with?

As with every other wedding supplier, a good florist will happily put you in touch with couples whose weddings they have recently worked on. It's important that you follow up and contact them in order to get an objective description of the service they enjoyed from the florist(s) you're considering. Whilst it's highly unlikely that they'll put you in touch with unhappy clients, it's still extremely useful to get an idea of what working with individual florists is really like.

And remember, floral arrangements don't have to be flowers to be stunning. One of my favourite images is of these voile-covered bay trees, lining the entrance to the wedding ceremony (source: "The Best of Martha Stewart Living", Potter). Absolutely stunning and totally achievable as many florists now hire out bay trees and lengths of voile and ribbon can be bought inexpensively and transform these trees into a magical scene. You could even add battery-operated white fairy lights for extra sparkle!

Take care and I'll speak to you soon!






Guest Blogger Tammy from Magic Dust

Way back in September 2007 I first spoke with Diana - she was the very excited winner of a competition we ran with Grazia magazine and Kirsten Goss jewellery!

Eighteen months, numerous emails, meetings & telephone calls later, I pulled up in front of Clearwell Castle, thrilled to be stepping out into glorious sunshine. Thanks to an incredibly organised bride and an On The Day wedding coordinator service that is second to none, I was confident that everyone at the wedding would need to worry about nothing except having a wonderful time.

I had very comfortable shoes on (still pretty ones though!) and was more than prepared for anything that might need a quick response. Admittedly, most of our hard work had been done in the weeks leading up to the wedding. Contacting every supplier involved in the wedding to double-check, then triple-check, details of the bookings, ensure that everybody knew exactly what was expected of them and when, and then deal with the few last-minute issues that arose. All the while keeping Diana in the loop so that she could truly relax and enjoy the last few days of being engaged, knowing that someone who plans and co-ordinates weddings for a living, was in control of everything.

So, it was relatively easy to appear relaxed and happy during the wedding. After all, what newly-married couple wants to be surrounded by fussy, frantic people when they can instead chat with someone they've grown close to over a number of months and who they trust to ensure that they have the day they have meticulously planned, not just the one that is easiest for their suppliers to provide?

We did had a couple of last minute 'issues' and this is what we thrive on - spotting potential problems early enough to make them disappear without ever troubling the bride and groom, or any of their guests. My reward on Saturday was seeing a couple who didn't stop smiling and who took time out of their day to come and thank me for all my help, before I slipped away. When bridesmaids and parents of the happy couple also sought me out to thank me, I was the one smiling like a Cheshire cat and I drove home buzzing with happiness. See, it really is the best job in the world!

A Magic Dust tip - check out potential supplier reputations before you book...

I'm constantly amazed that we don't get asked more questions by couples about weddings we've worked on, and couples they can talk to about the Magic Dust experience! It's so very important that you not only feel confident and comfortable with every supplier you ask to work on your wedding, but that you do your homework and check out their credentials before you part with a single penny.

At Magic Dust we actively offer potential clients the opportunity to speak to now-married couples who have recently worked with Magic Dust. We treasure our client feedback, rarely have to ask for it, and are delighted that we have never had a single Magic Dust client who hasn't been happy to offer to speak to new clients on our behalf.

It's far too easy for unscrupulous suppliers to make up testimonials for their website - we have first-hand experience of having our client testimonials copied word-for-word by another wedding planner! We see brand new wedding supplier websites appear with dozens of testimonials already listed on their site - it doesn't take a genius to work out that there's something fishy about this type of activity.

So, please don't be afraid to ask your preferred wedding suppliers to put you in touch with a selection of recent clients that you can actually talk to. Good companies will not hesitate to give you this information because they know how hard they've worked for each and every honest testimonial, and how powerful it is to have satisfied customers telling potential customers how much they valued the services of that supplier. Be wary of any supplier who won't give you this information and please, cross them off your list. If they haven't got strong, honest feedback from clients, do you really want to risk the happiest day of your life in their hands?

Happy wedding planning and here's to all those honest, decent companies in the wedding industry - together with vigilant couples we'll weed out the rotten apples!

Until next time,

Tammy x

Once a month I will exchange blogs with a fabulous and passionate wedding planner from the UK. Tammy Willson, Director of Magic Dust.

Tammy enjoyed a successful career in national newspaper advertising in the UK (The Mail on Sunday & The Independent) and magazine publishing (New Woman & Grazia) for over 12 years.
She was the launch Commercial Director of Grazia magazine in the UK and worked on the magazine for nearly 3 years before leaving the industry in early 2007 to focus on Magic Dust.
Tammy is renowned for her incredible organisational skills, love of all things stationery-related and ability to build successful, lasting relationships with many different types of people.
Her passion for Magic Dust is evident to everyone who meets Tammy and it is this, coupled with a refreshing, simple and invaluable approach to wedding planning that continues to delight couples across the country.
Tammy lives in a house that she loves in Bedfordshire with her husband and 3 cats and hopefully I get to meet her when I fly over to Germany/Berlin in June.

Tammy's Blog for the month of March.

A big trend for 2009 - and a timeless one in my humble opinion - is the use of bows. Simple because we can all remember tying your shoe laces for the first time and stylish because nothing says sophisticated like simple, clean lines executed beautifully.

Bridal dress designers are using bows to great effect - check out Vera Wang's over-sized bow and Armani's abstract bow necklines are just stunning without being over-fussy.

There are so many ways to incorporate bows into your day but the key is not to go bow-tastic, one stunning bow element works best...

- personalise your dress by tying a sash into a bow around the waistline
- roll napkins and secure them with a simple ribbon bow
- accessorise your wedding bouquet with a simple satin bow (a la Mrs Willson!)

- use bows to decorate staircases or chair backs, with or without flowers

If you need help perfecting the art of tying the perfect bow, look no further than the lovely Martha Stewart and get practicing!