Ria Hy 7/29/19 Ria Hy 7/29/19

Katie & Adam's Owasco Lake Wedding

Every lake has it’s choice of locations to host beautiful weddings. Katie and Adam chose Chantelle Marie on Owasco Lake as their venue.

The Setting-Chantelle Marie Celebration Hall

Katie and Adam chose the lovely Chantelle Marie Celebration Hall just a few miles south of Auburn, NY as their wedding venue. Chantelle Marie offers the option of outdoor and indoor spaces, both of which allow beautiful lake views. I was especially glad that we had the indoor reception space on that chilly (& rainy) late October day! Katie & Adam had a lengthy guest list, so one of my main objectives in the search for their venue was to find a space that could accommodate their guests comfortably, a point on which Chantelle Marie delivered.

The bridal party booked the two vacation rentals next door owned by the venue as well. They had the convenience of being close by as well as ample and comfortable space to get ready.

The wedding planning

Katie and Adam contacted me to begin planning their wedding when they were at square one with planning. Through the course of several meetings over several cups of coffee, a few site checks, and countless emails; we decided on vendors, colors, style, and menu. It’s always satisfying to see all of the plans and meetings pay off when the details come together on the wedding day. One key mention in the wedding planning process is that we were having the discussion about their wedding photographer choices just a few weeks after Joe and I had started dating. He had been on my vendor list ever since I had worked with him the first time, but when I mentioned his name to Katie and Adam, I made sure to fully disclose that now there may be a little bias in my recommendation! They hired him on the condition that we wouldn’t break up before their wedding day, so, instead of breaking up we got engaged.

The wedding design

Late October provided the perfect inspiration for bringing in deep, saturated colors. We used a local rental company, Auburn Party Rental, for everything from linens to place settings. I ordered the bouquets, boutonnières, corsages, and bulk flowers for everything else from The Flower Cart in Penn Yan. From the bulk flowers, my team and I designed the centerpiece arrangements and aisle arrangements. Pro tip: If you are planning to DIY any part of your day including flowers, allow yourself at least triple the amount of time that you think it will take!

Takeaways

Every wedding that I plan and coordinate offers me the opportunity to learn and refine my process for future weddings. On Katie and Adam’s wedding, I learned these points:

Create a dedicated email for RSVPs or a wedding website that allows for direct RSVPs. If you are using paper RSVP cards, number each card with that guest’s RSVP number. We had a few guests send in their RSVP cards without writing their names on them.
If you want a sparkler exit photo, get sparklers for the bridal party and maybe family. Managing a crowd of guests (post open bar) with fire in their hands is risky at best.

Wedding Vendors

Wedding Centerpiece Detail-Owasco Lake Wedding Venue

Wedding Place Setting-Auburn, Ny Wedding

Wedding Reception Design-Chantelle Marie Lakehouse

Ria Hy 7/26/19 Ria Hy 7/26/19

Help, I Don't Know Where to Start!

Wedding planning includes many steps which can be overwhelming. Here you’ll find the starting point which will set you up for planning success.

Create Your Wedding Budget

One of the most common statements I hear (often with a little frustration!), is “We don’t know where to start with planning the wedding.” I have good news for you! There are practical steps that will lead you from that overwhelmed place to laying the foundation for a successful wedding planning experience. Today the very important first step that we’ll be talking about is budget. Once you have the ring on your finger, the first item that I recommend on your to-do list in wedding planning is to determine the total dollar amount you want to spend. At this point, this number isn’t set in stone but will help guide some of the dreaming in the next stages of planning. Calculate the amount that you personally will be able to budget towards the wedding. If you have family members that have offered to contribute, add their amounts to this number. If your ideal budget is above the actual money that you have on hand, your next step is to either create a plan to cover the shortfall (allow more time to save) or shift your priorities to meet the amount that you have on hand.

Wedding Budget Contributors

While we’re talking about others contributing to your budget, I highly recommend that their contribution is a specific monetary amount that they’re comfortable giving (such as $5,000) rather than them “sponsoring” a category of your wedding planning. The reason for this is to avoid a conflict over cost and vendor style in their chosen category. For example, if a family member offers to cover the cost of your wedding photography, they will want to be part of the selection process for your wedding photographer. They may not be prepared to spend the amount that you had budgeted for wedding photography or may simply want to have more control over the style of your wedding photographer.

Wedding Budget by Category

When you have your total budget number in hand, break that budget down by individual category. Once you do this, you’ll be able to see if your budget is workable, or if there are categories that need be a lower priority or cut completely. You can find out the industry average cost of wedding vendors in your area by working with a local wedding planner or by searching with tools like The Knot or Wedding Wire.

Ways to Save on Your Wedding

The number one (and most awkward) way to save in wedding planning is to trim your guest list. Most of your wedding costs are dependent on the number of guests that you have. Another way to save is to eliminate categories that aren’t as important to you. Although it may seem like a smart way to save, I don’t recommend hiring the cheapest vendors that you can find. Your vendors should be hired based on your confidence in their quality of service.

Ria Hy 7/10/19 Ria Hy 7/10/19

Four Qualities of Great Vendors

The search for your wedding vendors can be one of the more daunting tasks in planning your wedding. Your vendors will play a significant role in how smooth and trouble free your wedding planning process and your wedding day will be. So I wanted to share some of the qualities that I, as a wedding planner, look for in the vendors that I recommend to my clients.

Integrity

Integrity is an obvious first priority in qualifying your vendors. Look for vendors who will provide you with a contract detailing the specifics of the services that you expect them to provide. Ensure that all charges are listed on the contract as well. If a vendor is hesitant to provide a contract, look elsewhere. Your peace of mind and your investment are too valuable to risk on a vendor who isn’t straightforward.

Communication

When you are planning a wedding, there are so many details and points on the to-do list. The promptness of your vendors’ communication can either make or break the speed and smoothness of your planning process. Fortunately, you usually can get a feel for this early on in your contact with a vendor. Avoid vendors who don’t respond within 24-48 hours of your initial contact, with an exception being made if you’ve contacted them over the weekend, their busiest days of the week. Look for vendors who respond with an opportunity to schedule a conversation and a willingness to answer your questions. Communication is so important to me that it was actually the first quality that I noticed about my husband, Joe, a wedding photographer, when I first met him while planning a mutual client’s day. His responsiveness to the very first timeline I sent him for the wedding caught my attention and made a great first impression!

Accomodation

Vendors are your best resource in answering questions related to wedding logistics, the flow of the day, crowd control, etc. However, your wedding day should be an expression of your style, preferences, and your own story. If a vendor is pushing personal opinions, you should not hire them. Some examples of this could include a DJ or planner who insists on a specific template of toasts and dances at your reception, or an officiant who won’t budge on the readings included in your ceremony. A supportive vendor will give you options to make your vision happen, and explanations if your requests aren’t feasible.

Teamwork

A wedding involves many moving parts that need to work together. A seamless wedding day depends on the vendors working together and communicating so that everyone is on the same page. When teamwork happens, you will get the most value from each of your vendors’ services. When you’re interviewing vendors, ask them if there are other vendors that they prefer to work with and why. If, during your conversation, they talk excessively about themselves and complain about other vendors or clients, run! They’re giving you a preview of what you’ll hear from them from now till your wedding day.

Conclusion

Your wedding vendors are your key players in making your wedding day come to life from the beginning of your relationship with them through your wedding day. As you interview and choose each one, give yourself time to check out reviews and pay attention to how comfortable you feel as you speak with them. Check into their cancellation policy so that if you find red flags after signing the contract, you’ll know what your payment obligations are. Once you find vendors that you feel comfortable with, snatch them up quickly!

Ria Hy 6/4/19 Ria Hy 6/4/19

Wedding Guest Etiquette

As a wedding photographer and wedding planner, we see poor wedding guest etiquette as well as some great etiquette. We’ve compiled some tips to prepare you to be a favorite guest.

Uploaded by Joe Hy Photography on 2019-06-04.

It’s Not About You

This is not your wedding day, so it’s ok if it’s not your style. Bring your genuine support and check the criticism at the door. When your wedding day rolls around, you can do it your way; but for today, celebrate the couple.

RSVP

That invitation you received? No doubt it came with a little RSVP card or instructions on how to RSVP. If you don’t know right now whether you can go to the wedding, set a reminder before the RSVP date to let the couple know before the deadline. They’re busy with wedding planning and shouldn’t need to spend extra time tracking responses down.

Read The Info

When you open your invitation, grab your phone and enter details like times and addresses for wedding events. If a wedding website is listed, check it out! Being informed is your responsibility.

Be Encouraging

Wedding days may be the worst days to be a debbie downer. Be the one who brings a calming, reassuring and encouraging presence. Likely the couple is dealing with some nerves on this day combined with an incredible amount of emotion.

Be Present

You’ve probably been to a wedding where a guest is out in the aisle with their iPad…don’t be that guest! No doubt, a professional wedding photographer has been hired to document the day. Let them be the ones experiencing it through the lens.

Dress Well

Dust off your dressy slacks and find a tutorial on YouTube for tying your tie. Even when casual dress is noted on the invitation, please please please don’t go in a hoodie or tank top!

Respect the Bar

That open bar? It’s there for your enjoyment, so pace yourself and keep it enjoyable for everyone. No one really wants to hear your slurred and off-key impromptu karaoke (and throwing up at wedding really ruins the vibe.) Stay classy!

Enjoy & Celebrate!

Ria Hy 3/30/19 Ria Hy 3/30/19

Hi, my name is Ria...

Hi, my name is Ria and I’m a wedding planner/coordinator/bridal consultant-whatever term makes sense at the moment. I’m here because I fell into the wedding industry a little by accident.

and I’m a wedding planner/coordinator/bridal consultant-whatever term makes sense at the moment. I’m here because I fell into the wedding industry a little by accident. The story starts approximately 6 years ago when friends and family started getting married and invitations were prolific in my mailbox. I’d been fascinated by weddings as long as I can remember, so when a close friend asked me to be involved in her wedding as a ceremony coordinator, I was thrilled. In her wedding, I got my first taste of directing a rehearsal & ceremony. I got my first sigh of relief when all the members of the bridal party were in position at the right place at the right time. In the aftermath of that experience, I offered to assist another friend “when the time came for her.” She remembered that offer when her boyfriend proposed, which brought me to my second wedding. This wedding landed at a time when I was working as a barista and was considering what I’d like my long-term career path to become. With the satisfaction of giving my friends the ability to be in the moment at their weddings by taking the questions and keeping track of the details, the idea of merging my need for a career and my love for planning and coordinating weddings took root. Radiant Events was born in May 2016 and I got a real life crash course on the wedding industry and business ownership. In the months that followed, I took a course to become a Certified Wedding Planner and booked my first official wedding for the summer of 2017.

A few weddings into that 2017 season, I worked with an attractive and single photographer. After a few months of strictly professional communication, I invited him to a contra dance as my partner (not date!). However, he read into the invitation a little farther than I intended and asked me out. We dated for the next 9.5 months through the busyness of wedding season. On September 16th he proposed. Our wedding followed 6 months later on March 16, 2019, and, if I’ve counted correctly, it was the 25th wedding of which I’ve been involved with the planning and/or coordination process. The experience of being a bride has brought a new perspective and passion to my work as a planner. I’ve gained a deeper sense of how sacred a wedding is, as the beginning of a marriage and the moment that marks that lifelong commitment. My greatest privilege in the work I do is to allow my clients the ability to step fully into that moment while the details of the celebration are attended to. I fully believe that weddings are a day to be honored and treasured.

Since Joe and I believe that peaceful wedding planning should be accessible to everyone, we will be adding wedding tips and strategies here on the blog as well on our vlog. Whether you’re planning a wedding or you’re a wedding junkie, or you’re just curious, we’d love to have you along for the fun!

Ria Hy 3/30/19 Ria Hy 3/30/19

Emma & Grey

June 24, 2017 dawned a lovely early summer day, with clear blue skies and a soft breeze. That morning is branded in my mind with all the nerves and anticipation of my first wedding day

June 24, 2017 dawned a lovely early summer day, with clear blue skies and a soft breeze. That morning is branded in my mind with all the nerves and anticipation of my first wedding day as an official wedding planner. After a stop at Savoia’s Pastry to pick up a few platters of delectable pastries for the dessert bar later that evening, I made my way to the church where there remained some last minute decorations to be set in place. Brighton Presbyterian Church was the site of both the ceremony and reception and not only is a beautiful, historic church; but also was Emma’s home church.

Although a brief cloudburst interrupted the outdoor cocktail hour, the day was relatively smooth. There were personal touches throughout the wedding with the father of the bride performing the ceremony, as well as the bouquets and centerpieces that were designed by the bridal party. I worked primarily with the mother of the bride, Kerry throughout the process of planning the wedding. With her experience of serving as coordinator for weddings at Brighton Presbyterian, she was super gracious and a pleasure to work with!

Photo credit: Kala Wilkins Photography

Venue: Brighton Presbyterian Church

Florals: DIY

Photo Locations: Brighton Presbyterian Church & Shoen Place Pittsford, NY

Ria Hy 2/4/19 Ria Hy 2/4/19

Styled Shoot Collaboration

The rays of sun were slanting through the hops on one of our more beautiful days this spring of 2017 in the Finger Lakes. A few local wedding creatives came together to set the stage for a scene to represent the businesses and talent that they are bringing to this region.