​Photo credit: Pexels

​Blog by guest blogger Alice Robertson

A wedding day is among one of the most important days of a couple’s life and while the main
focus is the union between two individuals, there’s no doubt that the actual reception is top of
mind for many Americans. Case in point, a recent study revealed that the average cost of a
wedding reached an all-time high in 2016 — $35,329 — while the guest count dropped. The
reason being is that couples want to enhance guest experience by adding bells and whistles
such as fireworks, photo booths, live musical performances and games.

​Whether or not you you choose to invest a lion’s share of cash should not change the fact that
you can still have a memorable wedding — especially if you choose a unique venue. While not
all-exclusive places come with a low price tag, they are likely to have built-in entertainment and
natural beauty that rivals rental decor, so you’ll be saving money in other areas. Before
choosing your dream venue, there are a few pertinent details to keep in mind.
​
Things To Consider

● Logistics: This includes everything from the time of the year (will your venue have
ample heating or air conditioning?), distance (do you expect guests to drive far or fly?),
budget, size/number of guests and date — most venues book up quickly, so choose a
location as soon as possible.

● Pre-Visit: Visit your venue at the exact time of the day (and season, if possible) you plan
on having your wedding and reception. This will help you determine what type of lighting
and heating/air will be needed, as well as potential noise or obstructions that will need to
be masked.

● Commitment Level: It’s likely that a unique venue will require outside rentals to include
a caterer, tables and chairs, table settings and extra lighting. This extra layer requires
extreme organization and extra costs, so keep that in mind before signing on the dotted
line, so you don’t go over your budget.

Venue Types

Destination-Based: Whether it’s on the beach in Mexico or in a villa in Tuscany, destination
weddings are definitely in favor of the couple and guests alike. You’ll probably want to choose a
date that falls during a period when the weather is favorable — not hurricane season, for
example. If you can swing it, visit the location beforehand so there aren’t any surprises. It’s also
an opportunity to meet with all of your vendors in person. Keep in mind that it’s likely that all of
your friends and family won’t be able to attend, so you may want to have a small reception
(even something casual at home) before or after the actual wedding.

A Beautiful Backyard: Home weddings are personable, intimate, and family focused — but
that doesn’t mean they can’t have the same level of class as a celebration at a traditional venue.
Enhance the space with a DIY arbor or pergola — the average cost is $3,506 — lighting in the
trees and a tent in case of bad weather.

On A Boat: Many major cities have dinner boats that are a one-stop-shop reception venue.
Food and beverage are taken care of on the boat and there’s already a built-in dance floor, so
all you have to do is handle the entertainment. There’s no need to go overboard with decor as
guests are likely to be mesmerized with the view.

At A Sports Stadium: From baseball to football to hockey, several stadiums across the country
can be rented for weddings. Keep in mind it’s likely that you’ll have to use an in-house catering
service, but all-inclusive packages can make the planning process easier. You may even want
to keep it casual by offering traditional stadium food to keep with the theme.

No matter what type of venue you choose, there are many details that need to be checked off
your list. Consider hiring a full-time or day-of planner to help you stay organized and on track.

Despite the stress, take some time out once in a while to enjoy the moment as it will be over
before you know it.

Photo credit: Pexels

​Blog by guest blogger Alice Robertson

Having a home wedding is an intimate (and inexpensive) alternative to renting a venue. According to data gathered by researchers who studied marital happiness and wedding style, having an elegant wedding that’s also affordable is associated with a happier marriage and lower divorce rate. However, you’ll have to make some updates and fixes to make it work. Here are some of the best ways to prepare your home for your wedding day.

Make Any Necessary Fixes

Sometimes, parts of the yard or house might require a little touch up to fit the excitement and color of the wedding. Simple things like painting your fence to match the wedding are little improvements that can help set the mood for the big day. If you’ve been putting off some other fixes that you’ve been needing to make, now’s the time to look into that. Make sure the utilities indoors are working as well in case your wedding is conducted inside your house.

Prepare the Yard

If you don’t have a natural canopy in your backyard, you might consider building an arbor or pergola for the occasion. Professionally built trellises cost between $400 and $900 for materials and labor. Prefab models are more affordable and range from $10 to $100. You can also smooth over any issues you might be having with your lawn. Perhaps there are some fussy spots that have needed some extra attention, and a well-manicured lawn can go a long way.

Rent a Generator

According to the Knot, one way to avoid the lights going out on the big night is by renting a generator. This is a good backup plan for any hold-ups that might come up. Consult with an electrician to see what your options are and whether you’ll need just one or two. A generator is especially useful if you’re using a tent for your outdoor wedding.

Think About a Tent

You may be able to control many parts of your wedding, but the weather is something that you won’t have any power over. As a general rule, try and get a tent that is more square-shaped. The more square a tent is, the higher the ceiling. This will result in better temperature control and can create a more roomy vibe. You can fill a tent with all the same decorations and make it just as cozy and personal as the outdoors.

Declutter

Since there is so much preparation that goes into preparing a home for a wedding, it can be easy for certain parts of the home to get cluttered. In the upcoming days before the event, try to clean as much as possible. On the day of, consider doing a quick run-through of the home to make sure that everything is decluttered and party ready.

Match the Florals with the Overall Home Color Scheme

Matching your florals to the look of your house can make it really stand out. Plant flowers that match the colors of your house, yard, and even roof. They can be complementary colors or shades of the same color.

Estimate People and Prepare Accommodations

If you’re hoping for a more intimate wedding within your own home, one option is to invite only the closest of people for the actual ceremony, and then more for the reception. If you’re worried about your backyard not being big enough for the wedding, HuffPost recommends talking with friends or family members with space that can accommodate all the wedding guests. Weddings can be delicate matters, but ultimately, it is your day and you choose who comes.

While the big day is one that everyone will remember for the rest of their lives, the real key to a happy marriage is generosity and kindness. Your future spouse is your number one person in your life. Even as you prepare and experience stress, make sure they feel loved and communicate clearly so you both are on the same page.

Many people dream about the day they will get married.  They dream about the venue, the decor, the flowers, who they'll invite, the colour scheme and the delicious food they will have served.  In all this dreaming and planning it is rare to find someone who has envisioned the vendor shopping, tastings, budgeting or even the struggle of deciding which vendor you want more when your dates don't align.  Even more rare is the person who thought about who would arrange, receive, deliver and manage the details while they were enjoying their perfect wedding day.  Most of the brides I have met have found themselves cast into the deep end of wedding planning searching for anything to keep them afloat as the try to get control of the situation.    

These days, the cost of a wedding can take years to save for and many couples are putting off their day of happiness so they can save as much as they possibly can.  One of the most common ways to save money for a wedding is the DIY Wedding.  Along with all the planning and logistics the bride is also creating as much as possible from scratch.  I've been there myself, not only for my wedding but for my five sisters and two brothers as well.  I cannot tell you how many invitations I've embossed, printed, cut out and detailed with metallic markers or custom stamps, the number of little tulle satchels I've tied shut with ribbon, the number of vases washed, dried and filled with center piece items.  I could go on and on but you can be assured that if anyone knows the number of hours spent on a DIY wedding, it's me.   

Right about now you're thinking to yourself, "but I want to make my centerpieces, I love doing crafts and I've always wanted to make the perfect hand made gift for my guests to take home and use to remember my beautiful wedding."  There are so many couples who want to be involved in, if not take charge of the overall style, decor and theme of a wedding but don't want to be bothered with the day of coordination or selecting vendors such as commissioners, DJ's, transportation providers, tent rentals and set up crews.  There is a way to keep all the exciting creative side of planning to yourself while you hand off all the detailed logistics to me.  I've even made it easier than you could imagine by creating DIY Packages featuring Water Valley Church Event Centre.

The exclusive DIY Packages that we created just for the absolutely charming Water Valley Church Event Centre allows for the bride and groom to have their DIY decor, hand made items and control of the theme and design.  The remaining details, vendor selection and day of coordination has been bundled together into a priced wedding package.  Not only will you have your DIY Wedding but you will know exactly what all the extra work and coordination will cost.  There will be no surprise fees or last minute costs to consider when you select one of our Apple Pie DIY Wedding Packages.

The Water Valley Church Event Centre is the perfect location for any country DIY Wedding theme.  The beautiful church was originally built in 1936 and has been lovingly restored by Kristine and Rick who with their skills and experience in restoring historical buildings have embodied the entire essence of what a DIY Wedding means.  The beautiful wood and windows on the inside have created a bright and delightful atmosphere that is only enhanced by the church grounds.  The spacious side yard is ready to be used for the perfect cocktail hour or reception.  With an outdoor building to be used for bar service and ten perfectly rustic spool tables you can't go wrong with the decor already available at the venues location.  

With DIY Wedding Packages ranging from $5,000 to $23,500 there is an Apple Pie DIY Wedding waiting for you to add your dream decor and style.  This picturesque church and the surrounding community of Water Valley is perfect for an intimate wedding or elopement.  With rolling hills and sprawling fields this lovely little church and the Water Valley Community has so much to offer.  With a brand new community hall being set for a 2018 grand opening you can have your 100 guests at your country wedding ceremony and share the excitement and celebrations at the reception with 250 of your closest friends and family.   This lovely Southern Alberta Community brings together the hometown feel that is perfect for any country, rustic or shabby chic theme.  
Don't worry, you don't need to be a DIY bride to enjoy the priced wedding packages we offer.  Black Licorice Weddings is proud to offer all inclusive packages as well, starting at the elopements for $6,500.

I love collaboration!  Nothing is better than working with another vendor or group of vendors to create something wonderful and amazing, your Dream Wedding Experience.  At Black Licorice Weddings we want to be more than your wedding planner, we want to be your wedding experience planner.  Each wedding should be an experience like nothing else.  Whenever possible every detail should be customized to reflect you as a couple and your personalities and passions.  I set myself a goal to find the best way to make every wedding experience unique to each couple without making their experience of the planning process tedious and overwhelming with detailed decisions and contemplation.  I wanted to create a way to plan a detailed custom wedding experience that was so easy that the couple starts the process with a smile that grows bigger every month until the Wedding Day when they change to the look of a six year old on Christmas morning. 

Brides are always trying to find ways to save money or cut costs where they can when planning their wedding.  There are many ways to spend less and still have your memorable dream wedding.  I will go over three different ways to plan your affordable wedding through drastic cuts, self reflection and communication.

POP-UP Weddings are a wedding style that allows the happy couple to truly customize their celebration to showcase their personalities, themselves as a couple as well as their styles and passions.  POP-UP Weddings are so fluid by nature that frankly anything goes.  POP-UP Weddings are all encompassing and accepting, in today's world POP-UP Weddings are the way to go to have your memorable wedding.

Black Licorice Weddings is a wedding planning company like no other.  We love travel, adventure, excitement, living life and sharing it with friends and family.  There is no better way to apply all these loves than in planning amazing non-traditional weddings.  As you've seen from our Services page we offer POP-UP Weddings, Adventure Weddings, Packaged Weddings and Packaged Stags.  All of these styles are unique, fun and thrilling but none of them added that competitive edge that gives an extra hit of adrenaline to really get the heart pumping.  To this I say, "ADVENTURE GROUP WEDDINGS!!"  Like the team we are, Designer Weddings in Victoria and Black Licorice Weddings in Calgary will both be hosting an Adventure Group Wedding in Fall 2018.  SIGN UP NOW!

While networking with other vendors one of the first questions they ask me is, "What are Packaged Weddings?" That is a very good question with lots of answers.  Firstly they are what I believe to be my own brain child, what I envision for the future of quick and painlessly planned weddings.  Secondly I hope they are what the engaged couples see as a ray of hope in the overwhelming world of event coordination and vendor shopping.  Thirdly they are adventure and fun wrapped up in a neat little package for those who's brains are either too fried or too busy to think of on their own.
What Black Licorice Weddings envisions for packaged weddings as they grow and evolve as a service is a wedding that is as easy to pick and pay for as buying a bouquet of flowers online.  It is a basic easy process of three steps.

Black Licorice Weddings is an extension of the well known Designer Weddings Inc. in Victoria, BC.  The Victoria partners, Linda Payne and Melissa Barrie are an established mother daughter team who work well together and compliment each other as a duo.  How does a new member to the team walk into such a tight knit bond and help carry their dream forward?  For me, Kristy Kivia, it has been rather easy and seamless because of the simple fact that I am also Linda Payne's daughter.  No need to stumble as I find my niche in their partnership as we already know the strengths I bring to this team.

I have been working with these two ladies my entire life.  As a young teenager until the day I moved out on my own adventure I was the in house executive assistant for my mom, taking messages and passing along information and details needed in order to make her day go easier.  Melissa and I have traveled together through many countries and every story we have we look back on with laughter and smiles.  There are not too many people who can spend every waking moment together and still enjoy each others company but somehow this family does just that.

​It is this love for life and the need to bring out the best in each other that makes the Designer Weddings group of companies unique and wonderful to work with.  The relationship we have allows for us to work together to create the perfect memorable moments for your wedding and it's celebrations.  I can not wait to let loose the great adventurous and wonderfully whimsical ideas I have waiting to become your wedding.