Don't let this stop you from inquiring! We want to have our initial consultation with you so we can make sure that we are a great fit to plan your day. We choose to take on a limited number of weddings per year so we can give our clients the most attention. We want to guarantee a consistent product to every client, which is why we only offer three packages. We have full time employees and have the planning process down to a science; you don't get just one of us, you get all of us and we all have something unique to contribute to every aspect of your day. Please always inquire through our website and schedule a consultation, we would love to hear your love story!
Here's how we break it down.....
01. BASIC There is a limit on the actual physical meetings and calls, but we are still there for the entire process with unlimited communication by email, and even text with you AND your vendors!
Meetings included: 1 complimentary phone consultation 1 initial meeting after vendor deposits are made 1 catering walkthrough meeting at showroom 1 final walkthrough - 8-10 weeks prior to wedding 1 final planning call - week of wedding
02. DESIGN There are two additional meetings, but we also take the final 8-12 weeks to focus on your design and how our rentals would execute your vision. It is essentially the same as basic, BUT the entireRENTAL INVENTORYis blocked off for you and only you to use on your day. Meetings included: Everything with the basic package and: + Additional meeting of your choice + 1 design focused walkthrough
03. ELITE This is a hands on approach where we are ALL in. We work around you, and take care of all appointments, contracts, budgets and reminders. Your complimentary access includes higher-end rentals, a lounge set of your choice, AND the Glam Booth. Meetings included: Everything with the basic + design packages and:
+ NO limit on meetings, calls, appointments, walkthroughs, etc.
It takes a village.....
It takes a village to pull off what we do. We want our couples to put trust in us as a team because it is not a one-woman show! Much like the team efforts behind wedding florists, caterers, bands, etc. there are multiple rockstars involved in the operation. For example, when you book a florist, you love the team's work even though there is one individual you likely work with the most. A lot of our production is done behind the scenes by ALL of us.
You will likely start your journey with Ashley during your initial consultation. She will then introduce you to your lead planner who will guide you through the rest of the process. During one of your first meetings, you will partner with Beth, one of our leads, to walk you through the rental process + showroom, so we can help you visualize that there is more that goes on the table than just food. Your communication won't stop with any of us at that point; we encourage you to copy us on all correspondence with the other vendors throughout the process.
When it comes to design and floral, you may have Ashley and/or your assigned lead, and there will aways be one of us that will execute your final walkthrough. Our goal is to involve the entire team in the process, ensuring there are zero gaps of knowledge in the operation. Knock on wood, if something were to happen to one of us on the day-of, this provides our couples confidence that we can execute the day flawlessly since we have all been part of the entire process.
On your big day, we will have one of our senior planners join your lead, so there will always be two of us, and you will have a familiar face to relieve any stress or anxiety!
We take a lot of pride in getting to know our couples, their story, and their vision. We will be your hype woman, honorary bridesmaid, and your mom's best friend.
Our process is simple. and straight forward....
Our process is simple and straight forward. We do not try to hard close anybody on a sale and we never want you to feel like you are in competition with another potential client. We treat everyone the same and remain consistent in our process. We have our consultation over the phone, then we send out a proposal with a ton of helpful links, as well as anything else discussed on the call. All of the links and the proposal will walk you through everything we talked about and you are able to book directly through the proposal. After getting a signed contract and deposit, we start working together immediately and your documents start coming through within 24 hours.
No way. We are not down with.....
No way. We are not down with surprise fees or hidden charges. The only additional fee you will see on your planning invoice is going to be from our friend, Uncle Sam. In the state of Texas, tax is not applied to services, but state sales tax must be applied to our rentals since it is a product/good. The 8.25% state sales tax is added to the cost of the rentals and when it comes to our inclusive rental packages, we charge the tax on 50% of the package total and not the entire package amount.
For our design + elite packages, all travel fees are waived. Any travel fees that may apply to your wedding with the basic package will be discussed in your contract at the time of booking, but we are flexible based on the distance from our office to your venue.
You can totally start with the basic.....
You can totally start with the basic package to reserve your date. If you have any desire in using our rentals we always recommend booking at least the design package so you get priority of our inventory. We do not allow downgrading, due to the priority hold on our rentals for you on your wedding date. We do allow upgrading based on availability.
If we get an inquiry for your date and a package above yours, we will give you a 48 hour notice if you want to upgrade before we offer it to the new inquiry. It is important that you let us know upon booking if you are considering an upgrade, so we can make a note of it.
Absolutely! First off, we recommend a wedding planner.....
Absolutely! First off, we recommend a wedding planner, but most importantly it's always great to narrow down the date and venue first to ensure your desired planning team is available. We offer a vendor booking timeline tool, as well as a preferred list of vendors that we work with frequently. Our goal is to simplify your choices!
It is important to know that just because you don't see a vendor's name on our preferred list does not mean that we don't or wouldn't love working with them! It's exciting when we get to meet new vendors and collaborate, so we are always open to suggestions for additions to our list. When introducing you to new vendors, we would love to be the primary liaison for communication with them and do not mind making introductions or taking lead on emails. Let's get started, and let us take it from here!
We get started immediately from.....
We get started immediately from the initial consultation; once your contract is signed and the deposit is paid, we hit the ground running! Within 24 hours we will get your portal activated and all of your planning documents to you.
Once we identify what items still need to be completed, we start knocking things out and keep track of everything in your documents/portal. We highly recommend keeping most of the communication in writing so there are trails we can reference as things change throughout the planning process. Whether we use email, text, comments in your Google document, or messages in the portal we open for you; we find this has worked best with all of our couples. The unlimited communication starts as soon as we receive your signed contract and deposit!
As far as in-person meetings, each package comes with a different set amount of meetings and phone calls. If you want to meet above and beyond what is offered in your booked package, we ask that you work with your lead to schedule them and provide at least 72 hours' notice for any request. Weekends are very difficult for us to meet, as we are likely executing another couples' amazing day!
We always try to accommodate all of our couple's circumstances and work on a case-by-case basis. There can be additional fees for meetings above what is included with your package, but there are also extenuating circumstances where we are happy to offer you an additional, complimentary virtual or in-person meeting. Work with your lead, and we will ensure we are connecting as much as necessary!
This is actually very common.....
This is actually very common since Austin and the surrounding areas have become such a destination for weddings. You will want to review your venue's contract and then provide us your venue representatives contact information. We are happy to comply with and provide any type of outside planning agreement the venue might have, and send a copy of our general liability insurance. We will ensure we maintain communication with them and execute by their rules/timelines.
Being new to a venue is actually better than being at the same venue all the time as we come in with a fresh, creative perspective! By the time we do the walkthrough(s) and rehearsal, as well as early day arrival, chances are we already know the venue like the back of our hand! We LOVE when we get to a new venue; it challenges us to go outside the comfortable flow that familiar venues sometimes provides us. We guarantee that a new venue to us is not a disadvantage when booking!
FAQ PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS: JULIA SONAT PHOTOGRAPHY
We focus on quality over quantity.....
We focus on quality over quantity and limit the number of weddings that we book to guarantee that we can devote our attention to each client. Having limited availability has allowed us to get to know our couples on an even more personal level and really immerse ourselves in their wedding vision.
Every wedding planner has their unique approach to the planning process. We encourage you to interview other wedding planners you are interested in to find the one that you 'vibe' with. At the end of the day, we will all give you the same outcome of a successful wedding, but you will want to find someone who has your style and can vow to keep things on a realistic level.
Every package of ours enables us to support you and be by your side throughout the entire process. We pride ourselves on our constant communication, and in guiding you through the catering process to understand why catering is such a big portion of your budget. We offer rentals owned by us, delivered and set up at no extra charge. We include our rentals with our floral design and also do not charge additional fees beyond what we discuss. You get to meet the entire team. You end up with way too many of us as your friend after your wedding; guaranteed.
WHAT SHOULD I TIP MY VENDORS? DO YOU EXPLAIN WEDDING GRATUITY?
Thankfully we have a blog for this! We sifted through all of the online resources, and pulled from our own experience in the industry, to compile this wedding vendor gratuity guide,
WHAT ADDITIONAL PLANNING RESOURCES DO YOU OFFER?
When you book with us, we provide a number of resources immediately, including but not limited to:
Custom portal where your invoice(s) live, forms and questionnaires to help you identify your vision and likes and dislikes, etc.
Custom document where we can collaborate on your timeline, vendor and wedding party contacts, layouts, ceremony processional/recessional, vision, and execution plans
An extensive line of decor rental inventory to contribute to your vision, excuse to our clients
Insightful blogs to help answer any possible questions or misconceptions about wedding planning, that also provide insight on trends and new ideas
An exclusive preferred list for every vendor category, with insured + vetted professionals
Our Bride to Bride of Austin Facebook group where you can buy/sell anything wedding related, but also is the safest place for our wedding community to talk about the trials and tribulations that one can face during wedding planning
DO YOU OFFER ANY DISCOUNTS?
Unfortunately, we do not offer any discounts on our planning packages. With our team's combined experience in the industry, we have over 35 years of expertise around wedding planning which we hold ourselves to a very high and educated standard for our couples. We have gained the experience as a company over the last 8 years, doing at least 50 weddings a year. We now focus on quality over quantity, to provide a consistent experience to every one of our clients.
Every so often, we will run promotional pricing on items like our Glam Booth, but our package prices are a direct reflection of the value, resources, and guidance you receive when you book with us.
WHAT TYPE OF INSURANCE DO YOU CARRY?
We carry general business liability insurance with coverage up to $1M and are happy to send that over to your venue. This does not cover wedding day insurance or any type of insurance requirements on your end; this is strictly insurance for our business to be covered at your wedding. If your venue requests to be noted as the additionally insured, please submit this request to us in writing at least 30 days before your wedding day.