Real Wedding: Tennessee

Real Wedding – Tennessee Planner: Lindsay RuggieriCustom Love Gifts, Events, & Prints, www.customlovegifts.comTime in Industry: 8 yearsPhotographer: Star Noir PhotographyBusinesses Involved: Southern Railway (ceremony venue), The Standard (reception venue), Sequoyah Entertainment (DJ),LB Floral, Event Rentals by Rothchild, Rothchild Catering, The Pour Guys (bartenders), Regal Carriages, Jimmy John’s (after dinner food),Regal Tuxedo, Southern Sirens (beauty), Memories in a Flash (photobooth), Reverend Christopher WatsonWedding Date: June 3, 2016Guest Count: 180The Couple: Megan and her family are British transplants to Tennessee, so we infused the wedding with British motifs and traditions. From having Jimmy John’s custom-wrap their sandwiches in British newsprint to hiring a traditional English wedding car to transport the bridal party from the ceremony site to the reception, this wedding definitely blended in Megan’s European roots.Involvement: Full-service wedding planning Inspiration: Glamor, opulence, and over-the-top elegance.“Aha” Design Moment: The bride wanted every aspect of her wedding to echo softness and romance while bringing a dimension of modern edge to the event, so we made sure to carry these ideas throughout the entirety of the event.Most unique design element: We created replicas of Megan’s favorite English Christmas crackers as escort cards, which doubled as favors for guests to take home.Color palette: Blush and goldBudget: $35,000 - $40,000Staff Hours: This wedding required 60 planning hours and 40 staff hours between the coordinator and her assistants on the day of the event.Planning Time: 2 yearsNumber of meetings: 28Set up/strike details: The set-up for this wedding required 30 staff hours, and the strike took 10.Revenue breakdown: Venues, 10%; bar, 4%; catering, 34%; 4%, planning; invitations, 2%; DJ, 3%; floral, 5%; favors, 3%; photography, 8%; dress/accessories, 6%; menswear, 4%; transportation, 11%; cake, 1%; photobooth, 2%; other rentals, 3%.Biggest challenge: Our biggest challenge was creating an event that flowed seamlessly between two venues.Hindsight: We would have reduced the amount of alcohol (there was far too much left over) and been more thorough with approving the cake design.Learnings: We learned to create limits to our full-service planning package and then charge for additional services beyond our contract.