The 6 Traits to Look For in Your Wedding Planner

29 Mar
Swank Photography

Swank Photo Studio, Raleigh

Okay, so you have decided that you will definitely need a wedding planner to help you with the process of planning your big day. You know that you are going to need someone there to handle the kinks and coordinate all of the logistics. Now you just have to find the right wedding planner for you. It’s kind of like picking the right sorority, you have to find the perfect group of girls who share your vision, your goals and your likes. To help you find the perfect planner for you, here are the 6 key traits to look for.

1. CONFIDENCE       

It is a big day and it is an honor when someone puts their trust in me. I know just how important this day is and work very hard to make sure it is perfect, as if it were my own wedding.  With experience and know how, comes confidence. If you get the feeling that a planner is a little overconfident, she probably is, and that could be something to watch out for because they will have a hard time asking others for help. In this business, a planner’s job is to bring all the details, and people together for a successful event.

2. CREATIVITY

2&3 Photography

2&3 Photography

This is a no-brainer, but true creativity is very hard to find. For a truly spectacular event, find a planner who can not only coordinate all of your concepts, but also offer ideas to enhance and make them your own! The perfect planner offers a little left-side of the brain analytics for the logistics and details and a whole lot of right-side of the brain creativity for improvising and uniqueness.

3. PASSIONATE       

Why would anyone be in the wedding industry if they weren’t passionate about it? It’s enough to drive anyone insane. But, when you love it… there isn’t any other option. The reason I get up in the morning, write blogs about wedding stuff, have subscriptions to all the wedding magazines and keep a smile on my face after a 14-hour day is that I was born to do this. When hiring your wedding planner, make sure you find someone who is passionate about it and that love and passion will shine through to your day. Continue reading →

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Stacey Woosley and Patrick Coleman

12 Feb
2&3 Photography

2&3 Photography

Stacey Woosley & Patrick Coleman
October 27, 2012
Greensboro, NC

This couple is so precious! The bride, Stacey, is tiny with a HUGE personality and even bigger southern accent. The groom, Patrick, has a calming and laid-back demeanor.  Together, their vibrant relationship shined through their wedding. Bright orange and purple were fun Fall colors for a beautiful and very colorful event. At first, you may think, “Whoa, that’s bright” … but

It’s the perfect example that you can do whatever you want for your wedding, and with the right touches… you can pull it off!

The ceremony and reception were set at Revolution Mills Studios in Greensboro, NC. The rustic and updated space looked beautiful with the bright colors! Guests partied down to the jams of K2 Productions while eating Pepper Moon deliciousness. The event was captured beautifully by 2 & 3 Photography. We had a number of awesome vendors for this event.

Planner:   Merrymaking Events
Ceremony & Reception:  Revolution Mills
Harpist: Andrea Blanchfield
Flowers:  Corum Greenhouse and Florist
Photographer:  2 & 3 Photography
Linens: Cloth Connection
Music / Video:  K2 Productions
Cake:  Maxie B’s
Food:  Pepper Moon Catering

We wish this beautiful couple all the joy and happiness in the world. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your day.

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Lovely NC Farm Wedding- detail, detail, detail

10 Feb
Liz Grogan Photography

Liz Grogan Photography

Jennifer Campbell and Zac Anderson
October 28, 2012
Burlington, North Carolina

Jennifer and Zac are two of the nicest people you will ever meet. Jennifer, a nurse at Forsyth Medical Center in Winston-Salem, is a generous caretaker with the needed spunk. Zac is a quiet and soft-spoken man that just stares at Jennifer with amazement, hanging on her every word. They are so sweet together, holding hands and speaking gently to each other. It seems as though they would have been together forever from the way they finished each other’s sentences and told stories as a couple. When I asked them how they met, I wasn’t surprised to find that they met on e-Harmony when Jennifer was in Nursing School. They did a long distance relationship for the first year of their relationship and then Jennifer finally moved to Winston-Salem, where Zac was waiting for her. It truly was a match made in e-heaven.

This makes the third e-harmony wedding I have done and I am a true believer that it doesn’t matter how you meet…. as long as you meet. There are greater things at work when two soul mates find each other, and you have to open yourself up to the possibility that they are right around the next corner. I commend these folks for taking a chance online and finding happiness!

When I first met with Jennifer & Zac in July of 2012…  it was no surprise to hear that they had picked a date and nothing else. This is where most couples start. It was a surprise that the date was just 3 months away, in October of 2012. This had to be the date because the father of the Bride, who works for a security company in Iraq, was planned to be home that weekend, and what a perfect time to get married…. With her Daddy walking her down the aisle. If that isn’t a perfect reason to plan a wedding in 3 months, what is? Continue reading →

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Colleen + Eric: Classic Beauty in Downtown Greensboro

14 Jan
Downtown Greensboro!

Downtown Greensboro!

August 25, 2011

I first started helping the Mother of the Bride, Mrs. Judy Roy, plan the logistics of the wedding of her daughter, Colleen, because the bride was studying Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois. Being several states away, Colleen and Eric, were lucky to have her mother ‘on the job’ and I was so excited that I was a part of this very special planning process.

When you first meet Eric and Colleen, you are struck with the feeling that they are the type of couple that you want to be friends with. Their radiance and spirit make it so easy to want to be around them. They are easy going, fun, smart and down to earth. Not to mention, they are a beautiful couple… both on the outside, and how they are so sweetly with each other.

I absolutely loved everything about this event, from the bright color pallet, to the personal touches and the classical style. Colleen was a bride who knew what she liked and always had the “Big Picture” in her thoughts when she was choosing all of the details. To read Colleen and Eric’s story, pick up the latest issue of TriadWedding’s Magazine to see their wedding featured. You can also view it, online, here.

It was also special for me because it was a classic Catholic wedding. I love to be a part of such a special ceremony in any faith, but when it is in my faith, I get special goosebumps by the traditions. Thank you to Colleen, Eric and Dr. & Mrs. Roy for allowing me to share in your special day and help you along the way to such a beautiful and perfect event.

We had an absolute STELLAR vendor team who made this event easy for me. I have to say a huge THANK YOU to all of the people who made this event beautiful and flawless! Thank you to McCardell Photography for sharing these GORGEOUS photos and for being so much fun to work with… again!

Wedding Planners: Merrymaking Events
Photography: McCardell Photographers
Music / Band: Spare Change
Church: St. Pius X Catholic Church (Deanna and Karen were so helpful!)
Reception: The Empire Room
Bridal Party Transportation: Olde South Trolley
Bridal Couple Transportation: Sterling Carriage Vintage Limousines
Flowers: Botanica
Cake: Simply Scrumptious
Caterer: Painted Plate
Favors: Krispy Kreme

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Dondrae + April

12 Dec

Dondrae and AprilSeptember 2, 2012
Greensboro, North Carolina

April was a pleasure for me to work with because she was so decisive, open to suggestions, had a bold style, was well organized and very kind. She was soft-spoken, but very open about her very special relationship with Dondrae.

In one of our early meetings, we were talking about how they met. She told me this intriguing story about how they had dated in high school. They broke up and went their separate ways, in different relationships and living their own lives. Fate took hold and when the time was right, they ran into each other again and have been together ever since. I loved that story so much because it reminded me of that old poetic saying, “If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you, it was meant to be.” I knew that would be the thread we would weave throughout their wedding day….

We got to planning and decided that butterflies would be the perfect emblem to symbolize their foundation. We carried it throughout their event, from the programs, to the event cards, to a live butterfly release during their ceremony.

We setup their ceremony as a diamond, with them sharing their vows in the middle. Surrounded on all sides by their family and friends, it was so neat to see these beautiful butterflies released as her Matron of Honor read a special story about their relationship.

It was a truly special evening and I feel so honored to have been a part of it. I will miss our monthly meetings at Starbucks, but wish the new Mr. and Mrs. Coble nothing but joy and happiness in Ohio!

Thank you to all of our fabulous vendors, especially Daniel Rice of Allez Photography for being so fun to work with and for allowing us to share these captivating images of our beautiful couple!

VENDORS:

Wedding Planners: Merrymaking Events
Ceremony & Reception: Grandover Resort & Conference Center
Floral Designer: Unity Designz
Photographer: Allez Photography
Videographer: Legal Media
Chairs, Linens, Rentals: Alamance Party Rentals
DJ: Lemon Lyme
Cake: Maxie B’s
Pianist/Keyboardist- Justin McKoy
Makeup Artist-Artistry By Chandra
Officiant-Dr. Michael Cotton
Lighting & Custom Gobo: K2 Productions

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If You Give a Girl a Camera …..

12 Dec

When Elizabeth from Glessner Photography emailed us this holiday season to see if we needed some professional photos done, we JUMPED at the chance. Literally—I hit my head on a lamp because I was so ecstatic! In this industry, we see so many beautiful photos… but very rarely are they of us!

Elizabeth was amazing and captured some awesome shots of Ashley and I. We had a blast and learned some “Make me look skinny” tips from a pro….

A HUGE THANK YOU to Elizabeth Glessner and Glessner Photography for such a wonderful holiday gift. If y’all want some awesome photos…. contact them now.

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A Letter of Graditude

6 Dec

Happy Birthday to Merrymaking Events!

December is always a special month for me. It’s a great time to reflect on the past and plan for the future. I look back at all the wonderful things that happened throughout the year. December is an extra special month for Merrymaking Events because it was the month I officially started Merrymaking Events back in 2008.

As the wedding season of 2012 is winding down, we begin to embark on our 5th year in the business. It has flown by! I am grateful that I am able to share my love of events, and my love of love, with so many throughout the year.  I am thankful to have so many wonderful vendors that I have gotten to know. There are some beautiful people in this industry who have generous hearts and creative souls. I am lucky to know them and work with them.

I feel lucky to have the clients I do. Sometimes I wake up, look around and feel like ‘it’ shouldn’t be this easy. I get to work with wonderful people, planning such a special event in their lives. I feel honored that they choose me to trust and I take that honor very seriously. I LOVE that essentially, what I do, is help them create a perfect memory.  They will always look back on their wedding day, and I want them to unconsciously smile because the feeling they get with that memory is one of so much joy!

(C) Glessner Photography

(C) Glessner Photography

I am fortunate that I am able to have Ashley Bodenheimer on my team. Having known her for a number of years, our paths kept crossing and I know it was meant to be that she be a part of Merrymaking Events. She is friendly, compassionate, sassy, professional and very organized… everything a great planner is. I look forward to watching her work grow even more in 2013.

In this industry, it is all about trust, offering something unique and professional experience. I feel like over the past 4 years, we have really come into our own. We have the experience (Just when I thought I saw it all) and we have the vision (No cookie cutter, one-style, boring weddings here). All of this gives us the trust and creditability in the industry to continue on our path.

As I reflect, I want to say a very grateful thank you to all of the brides who trusted us, photographers who captured it for us, the DJs and Bands that gave us something to sing about, the venues for providing the perfect backdrops and so many others who helped us get where we are, doing what we love.

Enjoy your holiday season and we’ll see you in 2013!

KM Signiture

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