Hawaii Wedding Gallery

You have seen them in the movies and on reality television shows. They are the people that take over the wedding, making all the plans, taking over the arrangements, and arming themselves with everything from paper clips to spare wedding gowns so that your wedding day goes off without a hitch. But do YOU need a wedding planner? And can you AFFORD one?

Surveys of contemporary brides reveal that more than 50% of all brides turn to wedding consultants or wedding coordinators to assist in some aspect of their wedding planning. What’s more, over 70% of brides who did NOT use a wedding planner wish they had. It is the job of a wedding planner to not only help you plan your wedding and coordinate the events leading up to the big day, but also to help alleviate some of the stress you will feel over the amount of work, time and effort planning a wedding involves.

To determine if you might benefit from the services of a wedding planner, consider what type of affair you would like to have, how much time you have to dedicate to planning it, and how much you know about wedding vendors. For brides who are planning long distance weddings, whether you want a fabulous destination wedding or if you are just living in a different city from where your wedding will be, a wedding planner can be a valuable asset. Having someone on the ground at your wedding location can be a big help in making decisions when you can’t be there to personally see what your options are.

A good wedding consultant will have close relationships with a variety of wedding vendors. This can help a planning couple in a number of ways. If you relay to your wedding planner the dreams you have for the type of wedding you want, the planner should be readily able to envision your day at one of several locations she is familiar with through her network of contacts. The consultant will likely be able to get in touch with reception locations, florists, photographers, and other wedding professionals who will meet your expectations.

The wedding coordinator will also work with you on establishing a budget for your wedding and sticking with that budget. He or She will have a list of vendors that offer services in your price range, and will often be able to get you the biggest bang for your wedding buck. Another advantage to working with an established wedding planner is that she may be entitled to discounts or extra services through vendors she has worked with frequently. A caterer with whom your planner is familiar might throw in a wedding cake with your catering package, or a limousine company might offer an extra hour of car service because your planner refers a lot of clients to them. This can be a substantial savings for some couples, and well worth the cost of hiring a planner in the first place.

There are, however, various ways to reap the benefits of a wedding coordinator without breaking the bank. Many reputable consultants will offer their services for an hourly fee. You could meet with someone who will outline the details of your wedding day, recommend vendors for you to work with, and provide you with contact information so that you can do all of the leg work yourself. You can hire a wedding coordinator to work only on the day of your actual wedding. This is someone who will arrive several hours prior to the event and make sure all the plans you have made are going smoothly. She may arrive a the bride’s home to insure that hair, makeup and wardrobe are all ready and the bridesmaids have all shown up and received their flowers, and then she might rush off to check on the groom and the ushers at their location. She should arrive ahead of the wedding party at the Church and then again at the reception to make sure everything at both locations is ready for the event, taking care of any problems as they creep up so the bride is insulated from anything that might go wrong that day.

You could say that the motto of most wedding planners is that you should be a guest at your own wedding, and in the case of a good wedding coordinator, that’s just what you are. A wedding planner will take your vision, help you create your dream wedding, and then allow you to relax and enjoy planning the picture perfect wedding. You are going to invest a lot of money to host the event of a lifetime. Hiring a qualified wedding planner is the perfect insurance policy to make sure getting hitched goes off without a hitch.

Photo of Aloha island Weddings coordinator Paul playing the harp, his hobbies include swimming , photography, traveling and playing music.

This is a photo of Dewi, practicing the Hula on the lava rocks of Oahu, she currently is floral designer for Aloha island weddings & helps with photography, Paul and Dewi just celebrated their 7 year wedding anniversary