I recently had the pleasure of working with Madison Sanders Events and was so impressed by her friendly professionalism, I thought, who better to weigh in on our wedding planning topics? Madison is one of the top wedding planners in the Kansas City area. Below she let’s us in on some upcoming wedding trends and enlightens us about what’s going on, behind the scenes, for wedding planners on your wedding day!
Meet Madison
Aside from time spent planning beautiful celebrations with my clients, I enjoy eating my way through Kansas City’s great restaurants with my husband of 3 years and traveling to new places with family and friends. My husband and I purchased our second home last February and are total renovation-junkies…we never buy the new and pretty homes but instead go for the “fixer-uppers” since we are able to do most of the work ourselves. If I wasn’t planning weddings, I think I would find myself working in interior design. I love the design process and finding the perfect pieces for each room! Similar to my focus on creating a wedding that is a reflection of each couple, I think a home should be a reflection of the people that live there!
2016 Wedding Trends
I am a big sucker for traditional and timeless design when it comes to a wedding…but I also absolutely love to see a couple have fun with personal details for their day! The design elements which I encourage couples to experiment with trends and have their personalities shine are invitations and paper pieces, cakes and desserts and food presentation.
Trends I’m loving right now : Cakes featuring color and pattern! Incorporating heavy color on your wedding cake is unexpected and a fun way to make a statement. Mixing metals. Everything sparkly and gold was really big in 2015 but I am loving mixing gold with silver, rose gold and copper for 2016. Floral and Fabric Installations. No matter how big or small a wedding is, I love to create a statement piece that will be enjoyed through photographs and by guests all night long. Sometimes this is at the ceremony altar or it could be on the head table or cake table. Incorporating hanging floral and fabric elements really wow your guests and create a lasting memory!
A wedding day for an experienced wedding planner
I get to wear a lot of different hats on a wedding day (decorator, florist, seamstress, messenger, therapist, etc.) but my official role is as the director of the day. Each and every wedding day has it’s own customized schedule and presents it’s own logistics and challenges, but most follow this similar outline:
Wedding Morning
While a bride’s day begins with hair and makeup (and hopefully mimosas!) my day begins with the first vendor delivery or installation at the reception venue. I am overseeing that all of the pieces we have planned are actually being executed so that the couple and their friends and family can focus on celebrating the day. Once I feel like things are up and running at the venue I always like to stop in and check on the bride and groom, most often at their hotel or home, to make sure they are feeling calm and confident in the plan for the day. I also like to get a feel for how we are running on schedule for hair/makeup and photography/videography. Sometimes I will assist in styling a bride’s day-of details including invitation suites, rings, accessories, etc. to help my photographers get those magazine-worthy shots!
Wedding Mid-Day
I hop back over to the venue to accept the cake, florist and caterer, I confirm that rental deliveries match the order and that staffing is busy setting all of these items up. I have a team of great girls that assist me on the day of the wedding and with my instruction they start getting to work on set up of a couple’s personal details. When the band or DJ arrives I talk through the outline of the reception with them as they are setting up their sound systems and equipment so that we are on the same page. Once I know that all vendors are set for success at the reception site, I make my way over to their ceremony site to prepare for the bridal parties arrival.
I take care of setting up items such as the guest book, programs, unity candle, photo frames, signage and more at the ceremony so that family and friends do not have that responsibility. I work with the musicians and officiant to confirm cues for the processional and recessional. Most of this is covered at the rehearsal the night before…but I have never found any harm in double checking that everyone feels confident before we begin!
When the bridal party and family arrives on site, I will assist in gathering them for any formal portraits with the photographer. We usually have to move through this quickly so we make sure the couple has an organized list for the photographer to work with. Once portraits are complete, we hide the bridal party away and prepare for guest arrival! Music has begin, programs are being passed out and guests are ushered to their seats. I line up the bridal party behind the scenes so we are ready to go five minutes prior to ceremony start!
Ceremony and Reception
The most common time that people see me “in action” is while cuing family members and bridal party down the aisle. Once everyone is at the altar, I will load gifts, leftover programs and the guestbook into my vehicle to take the reception. When the ceremony concludes I like to congratulate and hug on the new Mr. and Mrs. and send them into a quiet place to allow the guests to gather outside or make their way to the reception! After gathering any final items that need to go to the reception site, I want to race over to the venue to make sure that everything is perfectly in place for guest arrival. Music on, lights set, catering and bartenders ready…let’s get this party started!
When the bridal party arrives at the venue, we move through formalities such as the Grand Entrance, Cake Cutting, First Dances, Toasts, etc. It is my job to make sure that the people involved with each of these moments are prepared and in place before any announcement is made so that transitions are smooth and natural. While the party is kicking off, I am usually checking in with each vendor team to make sure that things are going well with their services and that any possible “hiccups” in the timeline are tended to.
End of Reception
When the party winds down, the Madison Sanders Events team is still moving! We make sure transportation is set for the couple’s exit, all vendors have “checked out” with us prior to departure and that personal items and gifts are loaded into the appropriate vehicles. It is a long day of celebration but we know things have to end just as smoothly as they began!
Professional advice to those planning a wedding
Be flexible with your vision for the day in terms of locations and dates. Your celebration will take shape and become exactly what it was supposed to be!
The personalities of your vendors are just as important as the performance. You will spend a lot of time with these professionals throughout your planning process and there is no reason why you should not enjoy that time spent with them. Invest in professional vendors. I’m a big believer in creating a comfortable and hospitable environment for ALL of your guests…including your parents, siblings, aunts and uncles. Don’t have these guests working on your wedding day, allow them to enjoy and celebrate each moment with you! Hire professionals that can take care of the day so that this is possible.
To contact Madison Sanders Events, call Madison at 816.591.3077 or email madison@madisonsandersevents.com.
Last week was all about a wedding day photography timeline and includes a couple sample wedding day timelines to view with the purpose of helping you understand your wedding day. Also, be sure to check out our wedding planning checklist with a free download to keep up with your to do’s!
To book your wedding photographer, call Heather at 913-948-3918 or email heather@heatherbrulez.com.
