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Local Wedding Vendors Offer Advice to Newly Engaged Couples The festive, family-filled holiday season is an increasingly popular time to pop the question, resulting in the new year rush to plan the perfect nuptials. According to WeddingWire’s 2018 Newlywed Report, Christmas Day is the most popular day for engagements, with Christmas Eve, New Year’s Day, and New Year’s Eve following closely behind. Throughout the year, the study shows proposals ranging between 7%-9% per month, but in December, the number spikes to 16%. Once the excitement of the engagement wears off, couples begin the equally exciting but often overwhelming task of planning the perfect wedding day. Valley News recently talked with two local wedding experts to seek their advice for newly engaged couples. Laurie Hatfield, Owner and Event Planner of Acquaint Gathering, a historic wedding venue in Grain Valley, emphasizes that “communication is key”. “Before you visit with a wedding venue or vendor, make sure you have a list of questions and discussion points, and a budget worked out,” Hatfield said. Diana Luppens, photographer and owner of Switch Focus Studios, agrees that communication between the couple and with vendors is essential. “I would encourage newly engaged couples to talk with each other and make this your day. It is the one day that is all about them, and there will be a lot of people trying to suggest things for the wedding. They need to do what they want to do and have the entire day represent their love,” Luppens said. Part of the planning process is deciding on the type of wedding the couple envisions. Both Hatfield and Luppens advise couples to tread carefully when looking to Pinterest for inspiration. “Every wedding planner loves and loathes Pinterest. Pinterest can provide great vision, but people often believe
that they or their vendors can recreate elaborate themes and decorations. Brides also tend to think that they can pull off a DIY wedding and do a lot of the work.” “This can create a lot of stress and brides often underestimate the cost and time involved with DIY projects. Brides need to be realistic about what is going to work, and also realize that many of the small details they obsess over will not be noticed by your guests,” Hatfield said. “There are a lot of DIY ideas on Pinterest. Some turn out great and others do not turn out so well. Pinterest boards can be a great peek into a vision for a wedding but sometimes cannot be duplicated very well,” Luppens said. Once couples decide on the type of wedding they envision, and the budget is set, the search for a venue and vendors can begin. Hatfield encourages couples to focus on their photographer and DJ once the venue has been secured. “The DJ and photographer are the most important vendors to consider if you want to have a good reception. I really advise against leaning on a friend or relative to handle photography. I have seen this not work out many times, and you cannot recreate the memories a good photographer will capture.” “And if you want to have a good reception, get a good DJ. They really help move the party along and skimping on this by leaning on a friend or just plugging in a playlist can really backfire,” Hatfield said. In looking for a photographer, Luppens suggests couples ask for references or read reviews from other couples and book a photographer well in advance. “Book your venue then your photographer before they get booked with someone else. Many photographers are booked out a year in advance,” Luppens said.
Photo credit: Diana Luppens, Switch Focus Studios Luppens also cautions couples who are thinking about enlisting a family member or friend to photograph their wedding in an effort to save money. “You don’t get do overs in a wedding, and you’ll want these pics for years to come. I can’t tell you the number of times I hear stories about devastated couples hating their wedding pictures because they decided to let someone inexperienced save them some money. There are ways to cut costs in weddings but do not cut photography,” Luppens said. In addition to the DIY trends, Luppens said she is seeing an increase in the number of couples who are looking outside of the popular Saturday time slot to save on reception costs. “A recent trend I’ve seen is choosing a Sunday or some Friday dates and getting small discounts for non-peak dates from vendors,” Luppens said. Beyond the DJ and photography, Hatfield said the venue can recommend vendors for catering, decorations, and other reception needs.
Cap Collection Continues for Community Benches
Photo credit: Green Tree Plastics A community wide effort to transform caps and lids headed for the landfill into community benches is off to a strong start. D.A.R.E. Officer Daniel Iiams launched the program in October and plans to continue the program with D.A.R.E. students this semester. At last count, Iiams said students and
residents have collected over 175 pounds of caps and lids. Iiams anticipates he will have enough collected to have a bench made in the next month. Green Tree Plastics outside of St. Louis offers the program and works with schools and youth related groups across the country through their ABC Program, to teach children about caring for the earth and green living. Students collect plastic lids and caps which are generally not recyclable through traditional residential and business recycling services. These lids and caps are delivered to Green Tree to be transformed into benches for parks, schools, and community use. This project is no small feat. One bench takes hundreds of pounds of collected caps and lids. Iiams hopes to use this project to show students how small changes can add up to something positive. D.A.R.E. students at each of the
district’s elementary schools will be collecting caps and lids for the project. Additionally, residents may also support the program by dropping of caps and lids to the Police Department Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 5:00pm. Iiams would like the project to continue beyond this school year, providing benches to schools, churches, and community sites throughout Grain Valley. D.A.R.E., a nationwide program that introduces elementary school children to the dangers of drugs and alcohol, along with exposing youth to a positive interaction with law enforcement officials, is supported by Jackson County COMBAT. The Community Backed AntiCrime Tax (COMBAT) is utilized to fight substance abuse and drug-related crime in Jackson County. Jackson County voters first approved the tax in 1989.
“The Knot (theknot.com) is a great resource and will help couples find vendors,” Luppens suggested. Hatfield also advises couples to remember gratuities to vendors in their budgets. “Couples remember to tip the typical vendors such as DJs, limo drivers, and a gift for the officiant, but often don’t realize that vendors such as the catering staff do not include gratuity in their invoices. It is important to remember to budget for a tip for these important vendors,” Hatfield said. Laurie Hatfield with Acquaint Gathering can be reached at 816-5986001 or laurie@acquaintgathering.com. Acquaint Gathering is located at 512 Capelle. More information on the venue can be found at www.acquaintgathering.com. Diana Luppens with Switch Focus Studios can be reached at 816-8098868 or online at www.switchfocusstudios.com.
ACCEPTABLE CAPS- Caps with
recycle #’s 2, 4, or 5, medicine
bottle caps, drink bottle caps (soda, water, juice, sport drinks, milk jug caps), flip-top caps (such as lids
from ketchup bottles), detergent
caps, spout caps (found on mustard
bottles), hair spray caps, spray paint caps, toothpaste caps, ointment
tube caps, deodorant caps, baby
food caps, apple sauce pouch caps, shampoo/conditioner caps.
ACCEPTABLE LIDS- Lids with recycle #’s 2, 4, or 5, cottage cheese
container lids, whipped topping
container lids, plastic jar lids, coffee can lids, yogurt lids, peanut butter jar lids, butter container lids, ice
cream bucket lids under 8", plastic chip cannister lids.
