Experience a Landmark moment.

does not want to be setting your tables. Trust professionals, because proven expertise and experience are going to be the best value for your investment. It doesn’t have to come at a huge cost, but it pays off in ways that you can never imagine.

HS: The Shullys say ditto.

DM: And Dana says amen. I try to explain to my brides that hiring a professional takes the guesswork out of it. I work with photographers to understand what lighting they’re going to use, so I can use makeup that will look the best. And if someone has a skin condition, I can color-correct and mix different formulations to help everyone look as flawless as possible. There are different makeup formulations for the summer versus the cooler months. These are the things that we take into consideration.

HS: Definitely. For us, our family has been in business coming up on 40 years next year, which is incredible. Our parents have seen every single [situation] for the past 40 years of craziness when it comes to weddings. There are a lot of different situations and venues and styles in which we can make memories really special. And there are limitations, too, that we know. Like, if you want your wedding in a field, do you have a generator, because we can’t cook if we don’t have electrical. And if your wedding’s outdoors, you always have to have a good Plan B because we’re in Wisconsin and nine times out of 10 it’s going to rain.

DM: That is critical. I did a wedding on a llama farm. There was no cellphone reception, so the bride couldn’t even communicate with her vendors. They had to have runners, because no one could get a hold of anyone.

NSD: And budget is huge. Know your price overall, or a number that’s comfortable per person.

DC: If you can afford a wedding for 50 people, don’t have one for 250. Not only does Aunt Betsy not want to help, she really does not want to come and spend a Saturday afternoon bored out of her mind. If you can only do it for 50 people, then do it right for those 50 and let the other 200 enjoy their day.

HS: Absolutely. We had a bride this December who had a wedding for just 15 people. They’re foodies. She just wanted their 15 closest family members to eat some really good food, and then go home. I was like, that’s so nice. Dream wedding.

NSD: I think the biggest mistake, and we touched on this earlier, is not being true to yourself. Listen to your gut and your partner. Always work with vendors who want to have a conversation with you first. We want to get to know our couples, what they like, what they dislike. Once we know that, we can jump in with two feet and make it happen.