Wedding Planning Podcast

"We Ditched the Traditions & Made Our Wedding Truly Personal" - Emma, February 2022 Bride

This week on the Wedding Planning Podcast, meet special guest Emma (& Drew) who’s here to share the highlights, unique elements, and planning challenges from their beautiful wedding celebration at Hilton Lake Las Vegas in February 2022.  

In this special episode, you'll hear lots more from Emma on:

• The pros of having NO wedding party
• Celebrating over a 3-day weekend in their hometown
• The endless benefits of a very chill wedding day / intentionally left lots of open time & space to relax
• Their "First Look" - and favorite part of the day!
• “Last Dance” w/ just the two of us after the room has been cleared
• Mini after-party at hotel lobby bar,
• Keeping it early & chill - wrapped everything up by 9:30 pm
• The challenges of setting a wedding budget and knowing where the starting point is
• Trying on 50+ dresses before finding “The One”
• And so much more!

For a complete written recap and to see their absolutely gorgeous wedding photos, here's a complete article that features Emma and Drew’s incredible wedding celebration.

And to wrap up this week, I would LOVE to hear from you!  Whether it’s about a planning challenge or question you’re facing, a post-wedding day recap that you’d like to share, or simply requests for upcoming show topics, you can send in a voicemail to the show by visiting weddingplanningpodcast.co/contact

In your message, please be sure to leave your name and email address so we can reach you for follow up.  I would love to share more stories like Emma’s, but I need your participation, so please make it a priority to be in touch!

A special thank you to this week's show sponsors:

• Get professional help planning your dream honeymoon when you email [email protected] . Don't forget to mention the Wedding Planning Podcast for $50 off your honeymoon OR $200 off your destination wedding!

• This week's show is just the beginning of dozens of strategic recorded meetings that walk you through an ALL NEW WAY to plan your dream wedding.  Sign up for a totally free 3-day trial of my revolutionary digital wedding planning package by visiting www.wedpodcast.com

Over the course of 11 YEARS in the wedding industry, I've seen literally thousands of weddings unfold ... and all of them together have given me the priceless gift of HINDSIGHT.

In wedding planning, hindsight is literally a super power - so I've packaged mine up to share with you in today's brand new show featuring your Wedding Weekend planning questions!

Today's highlighted questions come from couples who have enjoyed my brand new free video workshop, "How to Plan an Unforgettable Wedding Weekend."​

Inside this totally free strategy session, we’ll review 6 EASY STEPS to designing an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime wedding celebration for you & your loved ones.

You’ll also get your hands on some PRETTY AMAZING BONUS RESOURCES, including ...

• A guided coaching session to help you design your overall wedding vision,
• 50 budget line items most couples forget about,
• A free wedding weekend sample itinerary,
• AND the chance to win some free swag in weekly drawings!

But you’ve gotta hurry, because “How to Plan an Unforgettable Wedding Weekend” is in its FINAL DAYS, and will not be available again until next year.

To sign up today and enjoy this free workshop and bonus planning resources, simply click here.

I can't wait to see you inside!

Cheers,
Kara

I’m willing to bet that you’ve heard from all your newlywed friends & family that their wedding day "came and went in the blink of an eye." 

The beautiful news is that your wedding celebration doesn’t have to RUSH BY IN A TOTAL BLUR!

Click here to sign up for a brand new free video planning workshop, HOW TO PLAN AN UNFORGETTABLE WEDDING WEEKEND.

Today on the Wedding Planning Podcast, I’m bringing on a very special guest to share the details of exactly how she designed a wedding celebration that left her saying this:

"I always get to look back and say that it was the most incredible 4 days of my life."

To go along with our conversation today, I‘m incredibly excited to share a brand new, free wedding planning workshop on exactly how YOU can plan an unforgettable wedding weekend, so that when we flash forward a few months, you’re echoing what Kate just said … and not left feeling like you missed out, and it was all over in the blink of an eye.

To sign up for the "How To Plan An Unforgettable Wedding Weekend" FREE video workshop, visit weddingweekend.co

But you’ve gotta hurry, because this priceless planning guide is only available until Sept. 16th!

In addition to a 50 minute video planning session, you'll also enjoy a bunch of incredible bonus resources & free gifts that I've put together just for you:

• Bonus #1: "Walking Through Your WEDDING VISION" audio + pdf guide
• Bonus #2: "50 Budget Items Couples Fail to Plan For"
• Bonus #3: Detailed "Wedding Weekend" sample itinerary
• AND last but certainly not least, you can enter to win a sparkly wine tumbler gift set!

I can’t wait to see you inside "How To Plan An Unforgettable Wedding Weekend", and hope you enjoy the show!

xo, Kara

Today we’re going to chat about a handful of ways when trying to "save" money on your wedding can totally BACKFIRE. 

Aside of college educations, new homes and new cars, your wedding likely has one of the biggest price tags you’ve ever paid. You’re spending tens of thousands of dollars - of course you’re trying to save money when possible!

You’re not out there researching the most expensive venue in your area, or trying to find ways to spend more money on your invitations.

When a potential photographer or caterer gives you a quote for services, you probably don’t say “well that sounds OK, but do you have anything that costs more?”

If you've been listening to the Wedding Planning Podcast for a while, I hope you know me well enough now to know that I’m NOT the wedding professional who’s going to tell you NEVER to try to cut this corner, or don’t DARE hire a friend to do x, y, z.

I see this type of messaging a lot. If you do your own wedding day hair and makeup it will totally fail, and you should hire a professional to do it for you. If you skimp on a photographer, you will regret it for the rest of your life.

If you have your cousin make your cake, it will probably be a complete disaster, you should really hire a professional for that. If you take your dress to a neighborhood tailor instead of the big box bridal store where you bought it, it’s going to end up in shreds and you’ll have no dress to wear.

The trouble is, professional service providers in pretty much any industry have an agenda - to sell their product or service.

And whether you hear from a wedding professional on a podcast, read their articles on a blog, or see their posts on Instagram, their position is probably that hiring a professional is THE BEST way to go. "After all", they say, "this is your wedding - you can’t afford to cut corners on the best day of your life."

Well, for lots of this, I call BS. Sure, if you have a wedding budget in the 6-figures, then “hire a professional” is a great option for everything I just listed.

But most of us DON’T have $100,000 to spend on our wedding, so making swaps and saves here and there is a necessary part of planning so that we don’t go thousands of dollars into debt - NEVER a good idea.

Here’s a doozy for you - we hired our wedding photographer off craigslist for $500. True story.

And I’m NOT here to tell you that it was a horrible idea that backfired and you should never trust any wedding photographer who hasn’t shot 500 weddings and costs less than $5000. That’s not me, not my style.

BUT, I’m also not here to tell you that YOU should definitely hire a photographer off craigslist, and it will work out perfectly and there’s no risk involved and you can live happy ever after and sleep soundly knowing that you saved a couple thousand dollars!

To be clear - there’s no right or wrong, one-size-fits all solution to the myriad of wedding decisions you have to make over the next few months.

I’ll always encourage you to use your intuition, and use our weekly time together to review all the options you have available, and select what feels best for you and your unique situation.

I feel so strongly about what we’re talking about today, and I really want to set things up right.

The truth is, sometimes no matter how much research you do, or how many great reviews someone has, or how confident you feel that you’re making the right decision, things can just go wrong. You’ll probably have a wedding backfire, or two, or three over the course of getting everything lined up.

This is part of life, and definitely a part of wedding planning. I wish I could wave a magical wand that would shield you against anything bad happening, but of course - that’s not realistic.

Sooooo, the next best thing to that …

In today's show, let’s explore some common areas of wedding planning where couples to try to cut a corner, save some money, leave something out, and then sadly have it backfire in terms of lost money, lost time, lost sanity - and sometimes all three.

If you find yourselves at a cost-saving opportunity crossroads and you don’t know which way to turn, I have some smart questions to ask yourselves, and potential vendors, that I hope will guide you towards making the best decisions for you and your wedding day.

So when you find yourself wondering, hmmmmm ... should we cut that corner? What are the potential outcomes or pitfalls that might come of it? Hopefully after today’s show, you’ll have some solid answers to some of the most common situations, so that you can make the best decision for you.

For one wedding, that might mean hiring a photographer off craigslist for $500. For another couple, that will NEVER be an option that’s on the table. And you know what? Both sides are totally fine ;)

Full blog post available at www.weddingplanningpodcast.co/wedding-pitfall

BONUS >>> Come behind the scenes with me in a bonus episode, "Taking a Chance on a Rookie Wedding Vendor", when you sign up for a FREE 3-DAY TRIAL of my revolutionary digital wedding planning package, The VAULT.

A special thank you to today's show sponsors:

Take advantage of expert travel planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book!  Simply email [email protected] to get started.

This week on the Wedding Planning Podcast, we're going to sort out some misconceptions and FAQ's about wedding planners and day of coordinators.

BONUS >>> Join me inside my digital wedding planning package, The VAULT for a special bonus meeting on training a friend or family member to act as your Day Of Coordinator.  Sign up for your FREE 3-DAY TRIAL here!

Our goal today is to get really clear on the difference between a wedding planner and a day-of coordinator, and to determine whether or not you really need to hire a professional to help you with your wedding plans.

When I got married, I wasted a lot of time researching and interviewing planners before I realized that A.) I didn’t HAVE to hire anyone, and B.) John and I had all the tools we needed to plan OUR perfect wedding day.

And side note, shocker - obviously, none of the wedding planners I interviewed ever mentioned to me, hey by the way, did you know that you could actually just do this on your own?  

Thankfully I came around to that, but it took lots of wasted effort and stress to get there.

Flash forward to today - I literally created the Wedding Planning Podcast so that any engaged couple could tune in and use the episodes and the tools we review in the weekly shows to plan their own wedding - no professional or pricey wedding planner required. 

Spoiler alert before we even dive in - I definitely DO NOT think you have to spend thousands of dollars to hire a professional wedding planner! 

Some alternatives?  Try checking out the sites we mentioned in today's show, including your local Craigslist postings, Thumbtack.com,  taskrabbit.com and fiverr.com

I also know that there are countless wonderful wedding planning professionals out there, and for some couples it’s a really smart investment … and we’ll get into all of that that much more in today’s show.

Blog post for today's show, AND free "Day Of" Checklist here!

A special thank you for supporting our valued show sponsors:

Take advantage of expert honeymoon planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book!  Simply email [email protected] to get started.

A fun piece of feedback I hear from you, especially after our wedding Q&A shows, is “wow, we never even would have thought of that!” 

Today I 'm revealing a list of 12 wedding details that are really easy to overlook ... and being on top of them can literally change the course of your wedding day.  

These little "aha moments" can stack up quickly and mean the difference from frantically skirting a bunch of mini disasters, to proactively being prepared for all the little hiccups and bumps that will naturally occur throughout the course of your wedding day.  

Malcolm Gladwell is a Canadian author, journalist, and producer of one of my favorite Podcasts, Revisionist History.  In a recent episode he said, “It’s impossible to make a list of things that have not yet occurred to us” and I immediately knew I wanted to apply those wise words to your wedding plans. 

Let’s roll through a dozen essential wedding details that may get overlooked in the planning process - tune in for so much more!

A special THANK YOU to today's show sponsors:

Today's show is just the beginning of dozens of strategic recorded meetings that walk you through exactly how to plan your dream wedding, from start to finish.  Learn more and sign up for a totally FREE 3-DAY TRIAL trial by visiting www.wedpodcast.com

Take advantage of FREE honeymoon planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book!  Simply email [email protected] to get started.

There are some incredibly simple steps to creating a crystal clear vision of exactly how you want your wedding celebration to unfold. 

This week's featured meeting is a detailed overview of ways to cut through the noise, and stay focused on your priorities. 

Here's an overview of the specific scenario we'll be discussing:

"How can we reign in our wedding planner?  Our venue includes a coordinator for the rehearsal and wedding day, and initially I was pleasantly surprised by how accommodating and informative she is.  Since the initial relief and excitement of finding and booking the perfect venue, we’re starting to realize the huge task ahead of us in terms of booking EVERYTHING (the venue comes with nothing set up, so we need to choose tables, chairs, place settings, dance floor, bar, basically everything.) 

At this point, I feel completely overwhelmed by her ideas & suggestions, and I’m starting to worry that the wedding she has envisioned for us does not line up with our vision OR our budget.  How do I reign in our wedding planner and rest easy knowing that we are on the same page?"

In my years of experience, it’s not just the wedding planners who need to reigned in ... often times it's also the moms, bridesmaids, aunts, cousins ... feeling familiar?

We’re going to cover all these scenarios in today’s episode.

You'll also enjoy a sneak peek inside my digital wedding planning package with release of exclusive audio, "Creating Your Wedding Vision". This exercise alone is one of the most valuable wedding planning tools I have to helping you create a celebration that truly honors your priorities & values.

Tune in for so much more!

A special THANK YOU to today's show sponsors:

Today's show is just the beginning of dozens of strategic recorded meetings that walk you through exactly how to plan your dream wedding!  Learn more and sign up for a totally FREE 3-DAY TRIAL by visiting www.wedpodcast.com

Enjoy a FREE SUIT OR TUXEDO RENTAL for the wedding couple with 5 paid wedding party members at www.generationtux.com

Take advantage of expert honeymoon planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book!  Simply email [email protected] to get started.

This week I have a mailbox full of your wedding planning questions to review! 

Here's a full look at everything on our agenda this week:

• What’s a nice way of asking the moms to wear a certain style / color?
• Who to invite to your bachelorette party (just bridesmaids or others, too?)
• Having a hard time finding a venue that will allow a food truck, BYOB, in our area, for about $5000 budget.  There will be about 50 - 100 guests.  I’m about to say screw it and elope, but I know we’ll regret it, any suggestions?  
• Should I hire a babysitter for the reception?
• What if there’s a pool at my venue? (Things to consider)
• I don’t necessarily want a traditional wedding cake - what are some fun dessert options for hot weather?
• What do you think about using an Air bnb as our venue?  We found one that we love, and the owner agreed to let us host our wedding there, but I feel uneasy booking it for over a year away (Sept. 2022) - so many things could happen in a year.  I would hate to get close to the wedding, have something happen to the house, and not have a venue.  
• Family children ... how to involve them in the wedding so they feel like they have a special job / part in everything (my mom promised a cousin a role that I never actually “approved” of)
• Trying to host our wedding in a field (family land) and I have it mostly planned but there’s no electricity - is dancing completely out of the question?  I thought we’d have it during the day but wouldn’t that be boring?
• How important is an MC?  Venue includes a DOC but not the MC part - could I just have my brother or a friend do it?  
• How do I reign in our wedding planner? 

"Our venue includes a wedding coordinator for the rehearsal and wedding day, and initially I was pleasantly surprised by how accommodating and informative she is.  Since the initial relief and excitement of finding and booking the perfect venue, we’re starting to realize the huge task ahead of us in terms of booking EVERYTHING (the venue comes with nothing set up, so we need to choose tables, chairs, place settings, dance floor, bar, basically everything.)  At this point, I feel completely overwhelmed by her ideas & suggestions, and I’m starting to worry that the wedding she has envisioned for us does not line up with our vision OR our budget.  How do I reign in our wedding planner and rest easy knowing that we are on the same page?"

There are so many layers to this one that we have a dedicated show coming up next week, all about your initial meetings with your wedding planner, venue, or anyone else who’s going to be helping you make your perfect wedding celebration come to life! 

In my years of experience, it’s not just wedding planners who need to reigned in, but often times moms, wedding party members, aunts, cousins .... feeling familiar?  We’re going to cover it all next week!

These questions were submitted by members of my digital wedding planning package, where one of my favorite benefits of membership is a fast track VIP pass to submit your wedding questions & show topic requests ... literally any time you think of them.

You’re invited to join us and take advantage of  a FREE 3-day trial when you visit wedpodcast.com. 

The digital format allows me to extend a full service planning experience for an incredibly affordable monthly subscription, plus there are no contracts & absolutely zero obligation.  And of course, you can take advantage of that FREE 3-DAY TRIAL when you sign up today at wedpodcast.com.

A special thank you to today's show sponsors:

FREE Wedding Websites designed by independent artists?  Yes please!  Get started building your wedding website today with Minted Weddings & take advantage of exclusive listener perks on save the dates, invitations & more.

Take advantage of expert honeymoon planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book.  Simply email [email protected] to get started!

STREAMLINE + SIMPLIFY has been a tagline for the WPP literally since I created the show way back in 2015.  (Look closely, it's even on our old logo!)

Not only are these two of my favorite words in the English language - that I try and live by in ALL aspects of my life - more specifically, they perfectly summarize my approach to wedding planning.  

Every situation you’ll encounter throughout your engagement can be examined through the lens of simplicity and potentially scaled back or streamlined in some way that will make your life easier, more affordable, more relaxing, and overall, more enjoyable.  

Often we find ourselves in the midst of a planning roadblock and the first instinct is to explore your options. 

In the first example we’re going to talk about today - a couple who has family in 2 different places, many of whom don’t want to travel, you might consider … getting married in each place, what would that look like?  Getting married where we live?  Getting married on an island with just us? 

In all the feelings and family dynamics and charged emotions that fly around throughout your engagement season, it’s sometimes easy to get lost in a million far-fetched options ... when the simplest, most streamlined option is left by the wayside.  

On that note, today we’re going to explore some common wedding planning scenarios where things can escalate and become verrrrrrrrrry complicated, very quickly. 

I’m going to do my best to point out some straightforward, simple solutions that I hope will make your engaged life EASIER, MORE AFFORDABLE, and put a stop to waking up in the middle of the night with your mind racing over how many passed appetizers there should be, how many people should be in your wedding party, and how much ice to buy for your welcome party. 

Ready to get started?  Tune into the full show for so much more!

Thank you for supporting this week's show sponsor:

• Take advantage of expert honeymoon planning services for your all-inclusive, cruise, or exotic honeymoon AND get $50 off when you book!  Simply email [email protected] to get started.

• Thousands of couples have planned simple, meaningful & affordable multi-event wedding celebrations, and you can do it too with LONG WEDDING WEEKEND BY DESIGN.

  Long Wedding Weekend by Design is my all new digital wedding planning package specifically for couples who want to MAXIMIZE their wedding celebration across MULTIPLE DAYS + MULTIPLE EVENTS.

  Whether you're stuck in the initial "I don't think we can pull that off with our time & budget" phase, OR you've already committed but find yourself in a tangled mess of half-made plans - finally, an incredibly straightforward, 3-STEP GUIDE to planning your multi-day wedding celebration from start to finish ... WITH ABSOLUTELY ZERO GUESSWORK AND WITH ANY BUDGET!

  Visit www.longweddingweekend.com

  to learn more, and get started planning your dream LONG WEDDING WEEKEND today.

Engagement photos are an incredible opportunity to capture you & your fiancé in your happiest moments, and to share those images across your save the dates, your wedding website, holiday cards, and as decorations throughout your wedding celebration.

The thing is, choosing the perfect outfits, getting hair & make up just right so that you look incredible but still natural, and posing effortlessly is actually much harder than it looks!  

Choosing what you’re going to wear and struggling through a last minute hair and makeup session an hour before you meet your photographer is not a great idea, to say the least.  

Neither is waiting until you show up to find out that your fiancé has the worst stage fright, and looks like Chandler from "Friends" (season 7, episode 5, The One with The Engagement Picture) because they suddenly can’t smile.  

Today on the WPP I have a handful of tricks and tips to make sure your engagement photo shoot is smooth, seamless, and yields those perfect shots that you’ve been dreaming of sharing with all of family, friends, and friends of friends.  

Tune in for so much more, and head over to the blog post for today's show for a full written recap & links:

www.weddingplanningpodcast.co/engagement-photos

A special THANK YOU for supporting today's show sponsors:

Thousands of couples have planned simple, meaningful & affordable multi-event wedding celebrations, and you can do it too with LONG WEDDING WEEKEND BY DESIGN.

Long Wedding Weekend by Design is my all new digital wedding planning package specifically for couples who want to MAXIMIZE their wedding celebration across MULTIPLE DAYS + MULTIPLE EVENTS.

Whether you're stuck in the initial "I don't think we can pull that off with our time & budget" phase, OR you've already committed but find yourself in a tangled mess of half-made plans - finally, an incredibly straightforward, 6-STEP GUIDE to planning your multi-day wedding celebration from start to finish ... WITH ABSOLUTELY ZERO GUESSWORK AND WITH ANY BUDGET!

Visit www.longweddingweekend.com to learn more, and get started planning your dream LONG WEDDING WEEKEND today.

Get professional help planning your dream honeymoon when you email [email protected] . Don't forget to mention the Wedding Planning Podcast for $50 off your booking!

Enjoy a FREE SUIT OR TUXEDO RENTAL for the wedding couple with 5 paid wedding party members at www.generationtux.com