What is the difference between a Wedding Planner, Wedding Stylist and Wedding Coordinator?
Once you start planning your wedding, you may come across a whole new set of vocabulary that you once thought you understood, but now have no idea what they mean. What is a wedding stylist? What’s the difference between a stylist and a planner? Why do I need a coordinator? Truthfully, we believe that there are many answers to these questions. Weddings are so dynamic with each one so unique to the couple, that the answers change with each client (and is one of the reasons why we love what we do!). However, we have answered the questions in a broader perspective below.
What does a Wedding Planner do?
A wedding planner is responsible for assisting clients in planning their entire wedding, or specific wedding activities. They would discuss wedding logistics, research suitable suppliers, negotiate contracts and manage budgets. They would be working closely with the wedding couple to make sure they are bringing their dream wedding to life, as well as using their expertise to minimise costs where possible, staying within the budget and releasing any stress off their client in regards to the planning process.
Wedding planners would be involved in, and not limited to, helping you to determine what your budget should be, creating timelines, itineraries and floorplans, attending site visits and other supplier meetings, coordinating venue room bookings and transportation for guests and more. You would find a lot of organised spreadsheets on a wedding planners laptop! One of the main reasons wedding planners are hired is simply for the peace of mind that they bring you.
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What does a Wedding Stylist do?
The sole purpose of a wedding stylist is to deal with the aesthetics of a wedding. They do not deal with any of the tasks mentioned above such as dealing with suppliers or contracts. A wedding stylist would work with the client to bring their wedding vision to life by dressing their wedding venue, and bringing all of those important décor and design details together. A stylist will focus on all the small details and individual elements such as helping to find the perfect backdrops for photographs or choosing the colour scheme for each event. Stylists will work to execute a look that couples already have in mind, or give their suggestions to enhance their ideas further.
Some wedding planners also offer wedding styling within their packages and deal with all the creative specifics of your big day, as well as the overall planning. Some wedding planners prefer to leave the styling to an expert in this field, and in this case you may need to hire two professionals to help create your dream day.
Some couples know exactly what they would like for their big day, and need someone to bring their vision to life. Others need help right from that start and don’t have the faintest idea of where to begin. In either case, knowing you have a wedding planner and stylist who is taking care of all the details is a huge stress relief for couples, especially for those who don’t have the time to plan or research, have a full-time job etc.
What does a Wedding Coordinator do?
By the couple themselves or via a wedding planner, once all of the planning has been done, couples want their big day to run smoothly. They want their families want to enjoy the wedding day whilst being assured that everything will go to plan. The couple or their family members shouldn’t have to run around after suppliers on the day!
A wedding coordinator is the liaison between all the suppliers and the couple on the day of the wedding.
Wedding coordinators usually begin helping you prepare a month before the wedding and get in touch with all suppliers, tie up any loose ends, create itineraries and so on (if they are separate to the wedding planner). In most cases, planners also provide on the day coordination.
Timing is key to having your wedding day run smoothly. From ensuring the members of the wedding party are at the correct place at the correct time, making sure guests are in the correct place and seated on time, ensuring the ceremony begins at the right time, music is cued for the entrance and so on. These small details may be overlooked by the couple. This is also a big responsibility to leave to family members on such an important day.
Jaineesha (Bridal Hair and Make up Artist) shared one of her many experiences as a supplier on the day of one of her brides wedding, and the importance of the wedding coordinator they had booked for the day. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the day had been delayed meaning the pre-planned itinerary had lost all meaning. You can imagine the panic of this happening on your wedding day – especially as her bride had a tight packed day with 4 events taking place in 1 day! The wedding coordinator booked for the day managed to quickly create a new itinerary, liaised with all the suppliers present on the day, made sure all suppliers had enough time to set up and kept the stress completely off the family members. The guests were unaware of any of these changes taking place in the background and the day ran perfectly. Jaineesha was surprised at how relaxed her bride was at each changeover!
What do we do at White Blossom Events?
White Blossom Events provides wedding/event styling. Our initial consultation would revolve around an introduction and getting to know the couple, what packages we offer, and what they are looking for and expecting from us. After the initial chat, we would put together some ideas and mood boards so the client can then get a feel of what we can do for them, and see if we are the right fit for them. We love a mood board! Visuals can really help you to see whether a stylist has captured your vision and if they will be able to bring your dream decor to life.
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