I recently had the opportunity to work with the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa in Ojai, Ca. What an amazing venue!

The couple really had all their ducks in a row and it made my job both a breeze and a load of fun! I even had time to eat dinner with the wait staff,  but I didn’t have cake (sad face). Somehow I manage to always miss the opportunity to eat wedding cake. Oh Well. Anyway, the bride and groom were pleasant, easy going, and had a wonderful group come celebrate with them.

It was an intimate event with approximately 30 guests. The officiant was a close friend of the couple’s as was the photographer. Reception music played though a couple of speakers set up by the Inn and was managed by a member of the wedding party. So- other than the Ojai Valley Inn and myself, the only vendors were florist, Kelly, of Florette located in Hermosa Beach, CA and a wedding guitarist, Brandt Jacobus from Manhattan Beach, CA who played pre ceremony, ceremony and cocktail hour music, which was absolutely beautiful.

I was hired three weeks before the wedding day for Day-of Coordination so I had little to no time to do any “getting to know” the couple, their close family or their wedding party (which there wasn’t any). It was on the drive out to the rehearsal that I realized how nervous I was. It had dawned on me that I was going to be Coordinating an event at a venue I hadn’t ever been to, for a bride and groom I’d never met, and where there wouldn’t be ONE person I wasn’t going to be meeting for the first time. Good thing I’m a people person. It all worked out just fine.

The rehearsal was fabulous. Everyone listened and followed instructions (doesn’t happen very often). And I didn’t even need my bull horn . It was a good indicator of how the Big Day was going to go.

The Wedding Day was a complete success. Everyone remembered what to do and when during the ceremony. The music was beautiful (did I already say that?), photo time was fun, the catering staff accommodated to a slightly later than planned dinner without a hitch, (the food was fantastic by the way) and I, for one, came away form the event feeling very honored to have been a part of it.

Congratulations Sheila and Chip!! Thank you for allowing me the privilege to be a part of you Wedding Day!

As you may or may not know, I am a Ventura County, CA bridal consultant. Many of the inquiries I get are for “Day-of” coordination… being there on the big day to make sure it goes off without a hitch. I actually get a bizarre number of inquiries for day-of services and I used to wonder why that was…until I looked into it. Most Wedding Planners who offer day of coordination charge $1200-$1500 for these services. Now-  I agree that walking in last minute, not having been present for the planning process, not knowing the personalities involved in this event, not knowing what may not have been taken care of, etc and needing to take it all in and decide on the best course of action for this particular group and verifying what could potentially be dozens of loose ends is difficult at best, but…. $1200? What am I missing?

I love weddings. I love being a guest, a vendor, an assistant, heck, I’d love to be the janitor…. I love weddings. The air around you is filled with absolute bliss, elation, euphoria (and likely a cranky mother or aunt, but that’s okay). I’m not out looking for a “get-rich” career here. When my husband and I married, I could have used the help of a coordinator, but we were paying our own way and had a pretty darn low budget so no such help was employed. There are so many couples that are also in this sort of situation and I want to be available for those brides who, like me, want to relax and enjoy their day knowing that there’s someone there to take care of anything that needs to be taken care of.

I don’t do what I do for the money. I wouldn’t do it for free… I do have kids to feed…. 4 of them, but I really just enjoy the atmosphere and the pleasure that it brings to be there for a couple so they can thoroughly enjoy the best day of their lives.

Maybe it’s just me, but weddings shouldn’t cost so much.