Sunday, March 19, 2017

What Are Vendor Meals? | Timeless Wedding Designs | West Palm Beach and Wilmington Wedding Planners

W H A T   I S   A   V E N D O R   M E A L ?

In short, a "vendor meal" is the food you supply to your hired vendors on the day of your wedding, usually the same food your caterer is serving to your guests but not always the same depending upon what is available at the time.



W H Y   D O   I   N E E D   T O   I N C L U D E   V E N D O R   M E A L S ?

Most of the time, a vendor meal is required from each vendor who will be there for the entirety of your event. Even if some vendors have neglected to include the meal in their contract, it is common courtesy and good practice to feed those who are providing a service to you. Your vendors are working hard and will probably start getting hungry!



W H Y   D O N ' T   V E N D O R S   B R I N G   T H E I R   O W N   F O O D ?

Actually, some vendors do if they have special dietary restrictions. However, imagine if your Planner and their staff, your DJ and their staff, your Photographer and their second shooter, your Cinematographer, and your Bartenders all brought their own lunchboxes to your venue and put them in the Caterer's refrigerator. Essentially there would be no room left for the Caterer to store what needed to be kept cool for your guests, and all of that money you just spent on each individual guest would be losing it's value.

So why not bring items that don't need to be refrigerated? ...Because the likelihood that your vendors are going to be able to find a place to put their food where the guests won't see it but where it will be safe and in the view of the vendor is very, very unlikely.



S O   W H O   N E E D S   A   M E A L ?

Any vendor who is providing a service to your wedding and will be there for more than four hours needs a meal.
 - the DJ (and staff)
 - each Band member, if you have one
 - the Planner (and staff)
 - the Photographer (and staff)
 - the Bartenders
 - the Cinematographer
 - the Venue Coordinator



Do you have any questions? Please feel free to comment below or email me at Mandy@TimelessWeddingDesigns.com!

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

A Day In The Life Of A Wedding Planner | Certified Wedding Planners' Meeting | Timeless Wedding Designs | Fort Lauderdale Wedding Planners

The view of the coastline from Tower Club in Fort Lauderdale.

Gorgeous weather, how are ya? This cold front feels like it came out of nowhere, but with all of the posts I am seeing on Instagram lately about the snow fall in the Northeast, I guess it is just a part of the naivety that comes with living in this warm little corner of the United States called South Florida.

Speaking of Instagram, have you seen what I have been up to lately? March has been all about the most beautiful back-to-back weddings starting with Erika & Cole, then Cat & Bryan, then Samantha & Emanuel, and ending with Naomi & John on Friday. Phew! It's been a long and crazy month but the happy look on the bride and grooms' faces when they walk into their reception spaces for the first time is oh so worth it.

Not to mention that this month kick-started the first in a series of Certified Wedding Planner meetings with some of my favorite South Florida wedding planners! We gathered together 28 floors above the ground at the Tower Club in Fort Lauderdale for some snacks and drinks and to talk about our endeavors as South Florida CWP's. You might think I dreamed this up, but I have the pictures to prove it!

Mandy (Timeless Wedding Designs), Tawanda (Elite Events), Alena (Tower Club), Vita (Lighthouse Point), Brianne (Unbridled Weddings and Events), and Will (Love Shack Vacations) at the top of the Regions Bank Building in Fort Lauderdale where you will find the Tower Club.

Monday, March 6, 2017

How To Create A Wedding Day Emergency Kit | Timeless Wedding Designs | West Palm Beach and Wilmington Wedding Planners



Creating a wedding day emergency kit is a lot easier than you might imagine it to be and can really save you in a pinch on the biggest day of your life!

I am a professional wedding planner, so my emergency kit is HUGE. I carry around practically everything for anything than can happen, and most wedding planners will so if you are hiring a wedding planner or a day-of coordinator, find out if they will bring an emergency kit with them so you don't have to make a whole new one. Just another way hiring a wedding planner can save you some money!

T H E   E S S E N T I A L S 

Shout Wipes To Go - $1.99 | I got my travel-size pack of Shout Wipes in the travel section at Target for $1.99 but you can get them on Amazon in multi-packs as well! These work wonders on stains (think lipstick stains... ugh!) and I personally prefer these over Tide To-Go Pens.


Dove Spray-On Deodorant - $5.00 | You may not think of this one right away, but when it comes time to walk down the aisle and your getting a little nervous... Well, it would be too late at that point but if you went through the process of buying it and putting it in your emergency kit, you'll probably remember it! A major plus is that more than one person can use this is a sanitary manner, meaning you won't have to buy a bunch of deodorant sticks.


Puffs Plus Lotion Tissue Pack - $0.99 | If you are anticipating a ton of teary eyes at your wedding, I recommend buying these little guys in bulk. Something cute that I like to do is put a pack on the chairs in the front row of the ceremony - you know, where your mom and dad might sit, watching their babies say, "I do." I found that the travel section at Target also had a variety of colors and patterns, so you may be able to find a pack that almost matches your wedding.

Safety Pins - $1.99 | These are by far the most asked for things at weddings! They really help with everything, including faulty zippers on dresses, pinning floral bouquets, holding drapery together, and fastening together the bottoms of table clothes when the wind is just a bit too crazy.

Lemongrass Hand Lotion - $12.00 | Depending upon where you are and where your ceremony is being held, bugs can be a real issue for you and your guests. Interestingly enough, the scent of lemongrass acts as an insecticide without all of the chemicals and the horrible smell. My favorite is Southern Life Creations Lemongrass Lotion because it's all-natural, organic, and makes your skin feel so soft, which is always a great bonus!

Altoids Mini-Pack - $0.99 | Because, ya know, you may kiss the bride and all that jazz.

Manicure / Beauty Kit - $2.99 | I got the Trim All-Purpose Nail Kit from the travel section at Target. It has tweezers, two nail clippers, an emery board, and a cuticle stick.

Hairspray - $0.99 | Also from the travel section at Target (don't judge my love for Target!), I got a mini can of Tresemme Extra-Hold Hair Spray for emergencies!



F I R S T   A I D   &   M E D I C I N E S

Tylenol Extra Strength Travel Packs - $1.99 

Aspirin Extra Strength Travel Packs - $1.99

Midol Complete Gelcaps - $4.75

Tums Chewables To-Go - $2.99

Glucose Tablets To-Go - $3.99

Benadryl Non-Drowsy - $4.75

Johnson & Johnson Mini First Aid Kit - $5.00

Up & Up Band-aids - $0.99 

Vaseline Mini - $0.50

Visine - $2.99

Gold Bond Mini Powder - $0.99




B E A U T Y   P R O D U C T S

Up & Up Non-Acetone Nail Polish Remover - $0.99 

Mini-Pump of Perfume - Various

Disposable Razors and Shaving Cream - Various

Travel Toothbrush and Toothpaste - $0.99

Travel-Size Listerine Mouthwash - $0.99

Axe Body Spray - $4.25

Travel-Size Not Your Mother's Clean Freak Dry Shampoo - $1.99

Travel-Size Not Your Mother's Whip It Up Mousse - $1.99

Reach Dental Floss - $0.99  




O T H E R   N O N - E S S E N T I A L S

Durex Condoms - $0.99

PureMoist Opti-Free Contact Solution - $1.99

Febreze To-Go - $0.99

Wet Ones Antibacterial Wipes - $0.99

Lysol To Go - $0.99

Up & Up Cotton Swabs - $0.99 


Altogether, I spent just less than $65.00 on these basics! If I total up everything in my professional wedding day emergency kit, I come in at a smidge more than $600.00, so total that awesome value into hiring a Day-Of Coordinator! You can read more about why hiring a wedding coordinator is a must by clicking here.