Your I Do Crew: A Wedding Planning Podcast

139 - I'm super excited to share this conversation with you! It's not often that I get to "talk shop" with other wedding officiants, so it's a real treat when I do. Especially one as knowledgeable as today's guest, wedding officiant Amber Olsen. Officiant Amber is located in North Dakota, and has recently self-published a book jam-packed full of information for wedding planning couples, with lots of wedding industry insider knowledge! She wrote it from the perspective of the one person who intimately knows a couple's ceremony inside and out, the officiant.

Officiant Amber has teamed up with American Marriage Ministries to share her insight and wedding planning advice with you in Navigating Your Wedding Ceremony! This valuable guide covers everything from wedding day logistics, writing your own vows, how and where to meet ideal wedding vendors, to obtaining and completing your marriage license – and more.

With years of experience as a professional wedding officiant, Officiant Amber knows exactly what goes into creating exceptional wedding ceremonies. Whether you are a first-time officiant, or planning your own wedding, Navigating Your Wedding Ceremony will help you plan a celebration that’s one-of-a-kind and memorable.

It includes:

And you can purchase it here at these links:

https://theamm.org/store/products/navigating-your-wedding-ceremony

https://www.officiantamber.com/navigatingyourceremony

And make sure to follow Amber online, at www.officiantamber.com, or by following @OfficiantAmber on Facebook or Instagram!

#youridocrew #officiantamber #weddingofficiant #weddingpodcast #amm #americanmarriageministries #navigatingyourweddingceremony

138: As the poet said, "To Postpone or Not to Postpone, that is the question" - or something like that! As we round out a full year of dealing with the global pandemic we've come to know as COVID-19, the wedding and events industry is still struggling to keep up with ever-changing restrictions and guidelines. And the ultimate question that keeps falling to couples is: do we postpone our wedding, or totally change our vision for our special day? It's a huge question, and it can put a tremendous amount of stress on the couple, their relationship, and even their family and friends! Enter today's expert, Regina Burns. Regina is the founder and CEO of Rise Event Production, and she is an incredible wedding and event planner. Actually, her website calls her "the Production Queen", so let's just call her 'Your Highness'! She has come to visit us today, to share her passion and compassion with our listeners. It's clear how much she cares about putting on an amazing event, that will absolutely knock the socks off of any guest - but she is also keenly aware of her clients' state of mind. She knows that couples are getting burnt out from all of the frustrations of the past year, and she is here to preach the gospel of self care! So plug in your headphones, pull up a seat, and grab a glass of delicious lemonade! (don't worry, that will make sense later)

Rise Event Production is a full-service event production company specializing in digital, live, and hybrid events worldwide! They produce corporate and non-profit meetings and events, as well as private/social events and are very active in the luxury wedding space! Their mission is to provide curated event and marketing services that are imaginative, impactful, and have the power to rise above and beyond client expectations. They bring innovation, artistry, and endless laughter to their client's journey with us.

Regina Burns has carried her genuine passion for events with her from a very young age, where she was introduced into the industry through her late Mother's production company. It was there where Regina would find inspiration, fall in love with the industry, and discover exactly what she was born to do. With a dream of becoming an entrepreneurial Event Coordinator, Regina began freelancing in her home state of Massachusetts while enrolled in design school. Upon completion, she moved to California to work alongside some of the country's most elite event professionals. Regina has produced luxury weddings and high-profile special events in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco. It was through her time in California where Regina came to realize that her dream of following in her mother's footsteps was on the horizon. When she traveled back to the East Coast in 2018, Regina brought with her extensive experience, industry knowledge and that fire that has always been inside of her for the official launch of  her business; Rise Event production! Regina holds a trinity of certifications in Wedding Planning, Event and Hospitality Management, and Event Design and Styling. To pair these credentials with her innate ability for human connection is the perfect combination. Regina's primary focus is to form the unbreakable bond that exists between coordinator and client; one full of trust, loyalty and endless laughter. With her vibrant energy and warm personality, a journey with Regina is unlike any other. She will bring innovation, creativity and one hell of a good time to an event of any kind!

https://riseeventproduction.com/

#deliciouslemonade #funkylemons #reginaburns #postponedwedding #covidwedding #weddingplanningpodcast #riseeventproduction #youridocrew

137 - How do you cope with the stress, anxiety, and indecision that can come with wedding planning? Especially in a post-COVID19, Pinterest-obsessed culture? The first answer is to Love Well. The second is to find the tools that can help you prioritize, systematize, and de-traumatize your wedding decision-making process! That's where our guest, Kate Lemos Brown, comes in. Kate is here to help you figure out how to start planning your wedding the RIGHT way, to make it as stress-free as possible. You should feel excitement on your wedding day, not relief that the planning phase is over! 

Kate Lemos Brown is a wedding designer & coach, and the co-owner of LoveWell Weddings, a wedding planning & photography company out of Central New York. She and her husband Ty are a decade in the industry, exclusively working with couples to create unique, timeless and meaningful celebrations of marriage. Kate is the proud mama of Isaiah & Johnna and their loveable pup Charlie Parker.

Click here for the special planning worksheet! -> http://thelovewellmethod.com/your-i-do-crew

https://www.instagram.com/lovewell/

https://lovewellweddings.com/

https://thelovewellmethod.com/

#lovewellweddings #thelovewellmethod #weddingplanner #weddingplanning #weddingpodcast #youridocrewpodcast #youridocrew #podcastlife #weddingtips

136 - Things come up all the time during the wedding planning process that need to be dealt with. And the big question usually ends up being: "Ok, who's going to handle this?"  Some couples like to DIY everything, while others delegate. That's why we brought in Leah Weinberg, the Owner & Creative Director of Color Pop Events in  New York City, to help us talk about why it's so important to figure out what to expect (and what NOT to expect) from your Wedding Planner! Sometimes couples just don't know what their planner's roles are. Leah talks about what couples can expect from their wedding planner, expectations that the wedding planner has of the couple, and what the couple should do if they want a new planner. 

Color Pop Events is a wedding planning company that lives in the logistics, providing an unmatched focus on event details for clients. Celebrating seven years of business, Leah continues to leverage the organization skills, calm communication style, and ability to multi-task she initially developed as a commercial real estate lawyer in her previous career. 

Leah's colorful work and party planning tips have been published online and in print with Vogue, the New York Times, People, CNBC, Bravo, Martha Stewart, and The Knot, among others. Recently, Leah has been recognized as a 20 on the Rise winner by Honeybook and the Rising Tide Society, one of the 25 Young Event Pros to Watch by Special Events Magazine, and one of BizBash's Top 500 Event Pros in the US. 

A 2020 WeddingPro Educator with The Knot + WeddingWire, Leah travels throughout the country sharing insight with her peers regionally, as well as at national conferences such as ALT Summit, NACE Experience, and The Special Event.

https://www.colorpopevents.com/

https://www.facebook.com/colorpopevents

https://www.instagram.com/colorpopevents/

#weddingplanner #weddingplanning #weddingpodcast #colorpopevents #youridocrew 

135: Some couples have a special song, and some don't. But how many couples have a song that was literally written ABOUT THEM by an award-winning singer-songwriter? This week's guest is changing the game when it comes to wedding music, by creating uniquely personal, romantic, and quirky love songs for couples. And the couples are using them in so many ways - in the ceremony, at the reception, as their first dance, or even as an anniversary gift!

Allie Chipkin is a critically acclaimed folk singer-songwriter from the Hudson Valley who has recently returned to NY after 4 years in Boulder, CO. Her original songs have received recognition in notable competitions like the Telluride Bluegrass Contest, and as a singer, she has had the honor of performing the National Anthem for the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Allie is the founder and CEO of Give Love Originals (GLO), a company that writes and records custom love songs for couples on their wedding day.

www.giveloveoriginals.com

www.Instagram.com/giveloveoriginals

www.facebook.com/giveloveoriginals

#giveloveoriginals #alliechipkin #weddingsongs #weddingmusic #weddingpodcast #engagedpodcast #weddingplanning

134 - So what is the Wedding Collective? It's an amazing virtual roundtable for engaged couples, hosted monthly by Neela Asaadi (Asaadi Graphics, NYC). Neela started these open forums as a way to provide a different kind of support for newly engaged couples, struggling to plan their wedding. Couples can get advice from, and share experiences with, other couples who are currently fighting the same battles. This monthly series builds a safe space with educational takeaways from a wedding industry professionals and other brides and grooms. 

We also dig into Neela's primary business, Wedding Design! As the head Creative Director of a boutique NYC design studio, she uses a holistic approach with clients in a collaborative process that goes beyond just graphic design. She is ready to conceptualize, strategize and execute to ensure that her couples' visions come to life.

#weddingcollective #asaadigraphics #weddingdesign #stressfreewedding #weddingpodcast #engagedpodcast #weddingplanning

133 - Welcome back! We are returning from our COVID-induced hiatus by covering a topic we've never touched before! What is probably the most personal, sensual gift that you could give your fiancé on the morning of your wedding day? A boudoir photobook! This is a unique take on the wedding-day-gift trend, and can be a way for brides to really up the ante, as many couples look to give each other intensely meaningful gifts on the morning of their wedding day. But how do you go about finding a boudoir photographer? What should you look for? What should you watch out for? Luckily, our guest today is Mike Cassidy, a New Jersey-based veteran boudoir photographer; Mike is here to answer our questions (yes, even Atonn's silly ones) and de-mystify the process of deciding whether or not a boudoir photoshoot is right for you.

Mike Cassidy is a boudoir photographer from New Jersey who is passionate about both photography and helping his clients to remain invested in themselves.  While his clients receive an incredible experience and beautiful one-of-a-kind photos, the real service he provides is the joy and heart filling experience every time his images are viewed.  Mike learned long ago, there is a lot more to boudoir photography than what immediately meets the eye, and it’s this ability to make women feel unique and beautiful which is the real reward in operating a boudoir business.    

Mike started over ten years ago, and has photographed hundreds of women. Throughout the course of guiding these clients through the boudoir process, Mike discovered there were way too many women who lacked accurate information about boudoir, and even worse, some had less than satisfactory experiences with previous photographers due to this issue. He knew he needed to take action.  Mike has become an advocate and resource of “real” authentic information about boudoir photography to help others make smart choices when choosing a photographer, so everyone can enjoy boudoir and have a positive experience. 

http://www.mikecassidyphotography.com/

https://www.instagram.com/michaelcassidy/

https://www.facebook.com/MikeCassidyPhotography

#boudoir #njboudoir #photographer #boudoirphotography #boudoirinspiration #boudoirstudio #bridalboudoir #bride

132: Happy Pride, Crew! While the wedding industry has come a long way in the past few years, for those in the LGBTQ+ community, it can still be a difficult task to find inclusive, affirming, and like-minded wedding planners and vendors. That's where Brittny Drye comes in. Brittny is the editor of Love Inc. Magazine, the leading equality-minded wedding blog and print publication, She is here to help and guide us in ways that LGBTQ+ couples can find the right wedding vendors for them, by knowing what to look out for, and where to look - as well as some of the questions that couples should be asking their vendors!

Brittny Drye is the founder and editor-in-chief of Love Inc., the leading equality-minded wedding blog and print publication. Her inclusive efforts have been celebrated by the New York Times, Forbes, The Advocate, OUT Magazine, Refinery29, NY Daily News, Cosmopolitan, and more. She is a founding editor of the Aisle Society and a member of the 2018-19 North American Advisory Board for the International Academy of Wedding & Events and a 2019 Knot Pro Educator. Forbes has touted her as “The Woman Lead the Way to a More Inclusive Wedding Industry". Officially on the rise as a leading disruptor in the event space, she's bringing the next generation of inclusive education to the special events industry.

Website: http://loveincmag.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LoveIncMag

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loveincmag/

131: We're back! We had to take a short break, but Your I Do Crew has been diligently interviewing EVEN MORE experts! Today, we've got Ryan Kluttz, of A Mindful Bride. Ryan helps brides who are freaking out about the wedding to be able to reduce stress and shift focus to planning the EPIC love story that is their marriage.  We talked about how easy it is to lose sight of the important things during stressful times - like when you're planning a wedding! It can be hard to remember that the wedding is just the first step in the journey of a marriage, so it's vital to periodically reset your focus back on the long-term goals of building a healthy relationship and marriage. Ryan shared a number of strategies that can help any couple who is struggling during difficult times, to re-center themselves and remember what really matters.  

She even created a free download for our listeners! Go to http://www.amindfulbride.co/youridocrew to download it today!

Ryan is a former wedding stationer turned Bridal Empowerment Educator, she saw all of her brides stressed at some level and realized there was not enough focus put on the marriage in a lot of cases. She believes that marriage should be an adventure and not be the start of “settling down.” She’s been married for almost 13 years. She and her husband have 2 young daughters and a mini golden doodle puppy. Together, they have hopped around the country living their life how they want to.

Website: www.amindfulbride.co 

Instagram: @amindfulbride.co

0130 - Everyone's wedding plans are changing right now, so is this the perfect time to re-imagine your perfect wedding? Since so many celebrations are being rescheduled or moved, due to COVID-19, now is an ideal time to re-evaluate the size and scope of your wedding, and to potentially opt for something a little more intimate.  After all, this is probably the only time where no-one will be angry about getting bumped from the guest list!  To help us out with this discussion, we brought in the charming Keenda Sisouphanh, a wedding planner and designer who specializes in intimate weddings and elopements. She is here to encourage couples to think about how they might want to amend their plans in light of the current pandemic. Keenda is the Creative Director of Events by Keenda, creating design-led intimate weddings for creative couples and wanderlust lovers around the world.

She graduated with a BA(Hons) in Cultural and Media studies and went on to work at BBC London and Disruptive Films Elements before entering the world of events for the last 13 years. She has a background in education and not for profit organisations, having worked at several Royal colleges as well as overseeing events for private clients across the UK including hosting club nights at Mango Lounge Cocktail bar.

You can find Events by Keenda featured in Mrs P&P, BLOVED, Coco Wedding Venues, Magpie wedding, Bridal Musings, Bespoke bride wedding blogs and in Your London Wedding Magazine. Keenda has also shared her expert tips as a guest blogger for Cutting Edge Brides, Wed Inspire and in Blushing Brides box. Her wedding planning business has also had a spotlight feature on Planning Redefined of whom she trained with.

As a female entrepreneur, she founded Fempreneurs Offline and was featured in Anne Louise Magazine telling her story about how she started her wedding business and why she wants to build a community for fellow female entrepreneurs to follow their passion and dream job.

As a Londoner, Keenda loves nothing more than to explore what the city has to offer. A self-confessed foodie, you will find her eating out a lot! Her hobbies include ballroom dancing, Argentine tango and acroyoga. She loves brunch, a good afternoon tea and gin o’clock and is definitely no stranger to karaoke.

www.eventsbykeenda.com

www.facebook.com/eventsbykeenda

www.instagram.com/eventsbykeenda

www.facebook.com/fempreneursofflinelondon

www.instagram.com/fempreneurs_offline

www.facebook.com/groups/savvyfempreneurstribe