THE
WEDDING
BLOG

The three persons not to forget to book for your wedding day…

There are just soo many vendors you need to book. I know, it all seems a bit confusing at time and where should you actually start? With the venue, church, florist, caterer, baker, light and sound technician, liveband, DJ, photographer, videographer or wedding planner…. The list can be long and these are just the most obvious ones.
In order to get that fab, miraculously smooth and perfect wedding there are a few people you just shouldn’t miss booking.

Babysitter – Make sure to book one or several all night long babysitters if children are invited to your wedding.
A traditional Swedish wedding dinner can last for app 4 hours or longer if not planned well. No matter how beautiful flower decor and tasty food, but very few children under 15 will last this long.
A separate room with a kids menu, entertainments such as movies, crafts and games and a few babysitters is a very wise idea. Everything of course based on the age of the children and the number of them.
If several smaller children are invited make sure a good ’putting to sleep plan’ is made beforehand. If there are hotel rooms on the venue putting several smaller children in one room can work and thus save on the number of babysitters.
I’ve had weddings with up to 25 children invited and for sure a good plan was appreciated, from the venue itself but most of all from the parents.
Having babysitters booked is the best way to ensure your guests will stay in their seats during all dinner enjoying the food and fun speeches… and then afterwards being able to party all night together with you.

Friend in charge of the gifts – If planning for a large scale wedding most often there are a certain amount of gifts involved. In Sweden we are still a bit reluctant to ask for money meaning guests tend to buy you things. And since there is still no efficient way to handle cash gifts in Sweden, envelopes with cash is often left on the gift table.
One would think this would be all fine, of course no one will steal the gifts and envelopes during the evening/night. Unfortunately this is not the case. Several times during my 15 years as a planner I’ve had situations with missing gifts.
Therefore, make sure to ask a trustworthy friend (not invited at the wedding) or your wedding planner to be in charge of handling the gifts. Right after all guests are seated first things is to make sure each card is attached properly to its box/gift. This in order for you to know who is the giver. Another smart idea is to put a small number on each card and gift. Easy way for you to understand card named 23 goes with gift 23 etc etc.
Once this is done all gifts should be transported directly home to your house. It’s unfortunately not 100% safe to leave the gifts in a locked room at any venue I’ve experienced. Not only for safety reasons should the gifts be transported to your house but also it’s actually rather nice for you not having to handle this in the middle of the night when heading off for your wedding night.

Lady in waiting – A third person to consider having around you, as a bride, on your wedding day is your own ’lady in waiting’. I.e your personal assistant who makes sure you can feel like a princess all day. Your planner can of course help out with numerous things during the day, but often he or she is busy taken care of the vendors and all logistics. What I’m talking about here is a person making sure there is lunch at the right time, your favorite Champagne ordered to your room and of course helping you getting dressed. Your maid of honor and bridesmaids can of course double as this but quite often they are busy getting ready and might need a hand or two themselves. If your planner has an assistant you can ask her to help out during preparation hours or just assign a good friend.

Good luck with all your planning!

/Mariella.