b'Five tips for hiringa wedding plannerOn your wedding day, you can either be the bride or the wed-ding plannerits very difficult to be both. Our advice: save yourself the trouble and hire a professional! The following five tips will help you find the perfect wedding planner!1. Go by the experienceThink of this as a job interview. Start with experience!Short-list potential candidates based on the kinds of weddings they have done, types of familiesAveragewedding takesthey have handled, and wedding venues they528SHER WEDDINGS / WILLA WEDDINGShave decorated, and go from there.2. Ask for recommendations Wedding planners vs.No one can guide you better than your ownHOURSfriends and family. Ask around to see who hiredto plan venue coordinatorsa wedding planner for their big event, and ask for a list of recommendations. That way, you can get theThere are several differences between a wedding planner and real scoop from previous brides. a venue coordinator. Knowing what they do can help you 3. Set your budget make a decision on whom you should rely on for what at Know how much youre willing to spend, and then manageyour wedding.your budget thereafter. Keep in mind that a professional hasWedding plannersestablished relationships with vendors and may be able toYou can hire a wedding planners services to plan months before obtain discounts to help stretch your dollar even further. the wedding, to prep the month of the wedding, or just to assist on 4. Choose a theme that day. Not only will they recommend vendors, but theyll deal Many wedding planners like to work around a certain theme.with the negotiations, communications, and timeline. Theyll han-Have some ideas for themes, and then let the wedding plan- dle any crises that arise so you can simply enjoy your day.ner do the rest! For theme ideas, check out Todays Bride RealNot sure how much food to order? How much cake to serve? How Weddings and Styled Shoots, as well as our Pinterest andmany tablecloths youll need? Your wedding planner will make Instagram pages! those decisions while keeping you within budget.5. Discuss openly Wedding planners can also help with designfrom conception Your wedding planner must know your dreams and expec- to execution. If you have an idea of what look youre going for tations in order to give you your fairy tale wedding, so bebut arent quite sure how to execute it, you can give your wedding honest. Also, remember that a consultant should have plentyplanner some inspiration to go off of and trust them to create the of questions for you too, in an effort to determine your wish- wedding of your dreams.es, needs, level of maintenance, budget, scope of imagination, and more. Its a two way street! Venue coordinatorsSome venues will offer the services of a venue coordinator when you book with them. This person will recommend some vendors from their preferred vendor list. If the venue also provides catering, Visit TodaysBride.com to learnthey will help you choose a menu and bar options and will keep more about wedding planners. the kitchen staff on schedule throughout the reception. While they will set up your reception and can ensure that things run smoothly, they arent expected to help with all details of the wedding, like negotiating or communicating with other vendors or planning out the timeline. Typically, a venue coordinator doesnt cost an extra fee, as they are an added perk when renting venue facilities.14TODAYS BRIDE|12+ MONTHS UNTIL I DO|WEDDING PLANNERS'