Alt image
St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Island Destination Weddings | st simons wedding planner
-1
archive,tag,tag-st-simons-wedding-planner,tag-2201,edgt-core-1.3,ajax_fade,page_not_loaded,,hudson-ver-3.3, vertical_menu_with_scroll,smooth_scroll,blog_installed,hide_inital_sticky,wpb-js-composer js-comp-ver-7.0,vc_responsive
couple wearing masks as they meet with their wedding planner
Nov 13 2020

Let’s Talk About The ‘C-Word’

Our Cocktails & Details® team hasn’t been using the ‘C-Word,’ – COVID-19 – in our blogs, and social media. Instead, we’ve focused on sharing the fantastic images and stories of our couples.

Weddings Reimagined

Earlier this year, we talked with People TV and The Knot about reimaging weddings during COVID-19. We focused on reimagining intimate experiences that captured what our clients wanted in their original wedding plans.

Reimagining weddings focused on incorporating personal details and unique elements, but on a slightly smaller scale. 

The World As We Know It

As life moves forward, regulations in our little corner of the world, especially around COVID-19 and weddings, have become a little blurry.

What is required, interpreting guidelines, and what is enforced has become confusing for our couples and pros alike.

smiling bride and groom at a wedding planning meeting wearing masks

Rules that allow for fifty people in a space, but allow more than fifty people if you can maintain physical distancing, are hard to decode. For example, outdoor weddings are permitted and encouraged. Even wedding receptions in a tent are allowed – but just not a tent with walls.

Some venues are requiring masks inside. Unfortunately, other spaces are not enforcing masks. And, while we know guests are not required to wear masks while eating and drinking, many are getting a little too comfortable and not putting them back on after dinner.

Reality Of COVID-19 for Wedding Pros

We’re not here to bash people who are not enforcing the rules. We want to share the reality of our Cocktails & Details® team and many of the pros we know.

A majority of the wedding pros we are working with are wearing masks. Wedding pros who are fortunate enough to be working might be around multiple couples and their guests in a single week. Not only do we have families at home that we’re trying to protect, but we’re trying to protect you as well.

wedding vendor putting on a protective mask

Don’t be surprised if some of your wedding pros ask you to sign a waiver. We’re just trying to make sure we’re all safe and protected.

Sharing The Truth

And, it won’t surprise you that our Cocktails & Details® team will be completely honest with you. We’re liable to tell you, ‘yes, you can do this, but think about the complications!’

And honestly, we’ll get the job done, your day will be fantastic – but don’t expect any hugging or kissing from us. We love you, but we’ll get the job done from six paces away.

Suggestions for Safer Weddings

Here are some planning and design suggestions we have put into place or recommend for creating a safer environment.

Getting Ready

makeup artist applying lipstick to a bride
  • Whenever possible, request larger cottages or meeting spaces so that wedding parties can spread out while getting ready. This provides a more comfortable space for them. But also a safer work environment for the hair and makeup artists, photographers, and videographers working with them.
  • Take some time ahead of the wedding to gather your accessories, personal items, and things like invitations so they can be photographed away from the wedding party.
  • Consider the idea of choosing outdoor locations to do portraits, family, and wedding party photos wherever possible.
silhouette of a photographer giving direction to a bride and groom

Safer Ceremony Seating

We’re always mindful of physically distant seating when it comes to wedding ceremonies.

  • Outdoor wedding ceremonies offer more space to accomplish physical distancing and include beautiful design elements.
  • Indoors, primarily in houses of worship with pews, roping off every other pew can keep your guests safely separated. 
  • In some areas, houses of worship require assigned seating to maintain physical distancing. Our Cocktails & Details® design team can assist in creating seating charts and pew numbers, similar to those used for a wedding reception. 
  • Make masks available to wedding guests who have not brought their own. Providing hand sanitizer is always a nice touch as well.
masks and hand sanitizer for wedding guests

Cocktails & Details®

  • Whenever possible, take advantage of outdoor spaced for all or a portion of your cocktail hour.
  • Consider displaying multiple seating charts or dividing escort cards onto several tables to keep wedding guests from crowding together.
  • Our Cocktails & Details® team makes sure that high touch areas like your guest book or gift table are wiped down frequently. Including containers for new and used pens.
  • For your cocktail hour and late night snacks, stations and passed bites can be plated into individual portions. 
individually portioned French fries and condiments for late night wedding snacks

Doing Dinner Right

  • Ceremony structures and décor can often be repurposed for your reception. These can create decorative dividers that can work well for areas like the bar to keep guests from crowding. 
  • Display signage with Signature Cocktails, beer, and wine selections several feet out from the bar. Signage can assist in making choices before they reach the bar and keep the line moving. 
  • In addition to keeping dining tables six feet apart – consider a redesign for some smaller tables, keeping family groups seated together.
  • Plated dinner service can help minimize unnecessary movement. Consider a served salad rather than a preset salad. During dinner, Wine service is an elegant touch and keeps guests from moving around and gathering at the bar.
  • If you choose to offer a buffet dinner, sneeze guards are a MUST. But, also consider investing in additional staff to serve guests, rather than having them touch utensils.
a wooden box with a bottle of red wine for service at a wedding

Toasts, Entertainment, and Wedding Cake

  • DJs and MCs can usually provide additional microphones for the people making toasts – these can easily be wiped down before and after each toast or blessing.
  • Gathering on a dancefloor can be a significant concern. Creating multiple smaller dance floors around the ballroom or dancing outdoors can be creative and safe options.
  • If dancing is not an option, look at other entertainment forms to keep your wedding guests engaged. Specialty musicians, singers, or performances can add a unique and personal touch.
  • Photobooths can easily be adapted to include single-use props and provide hand sanitizer.
  • Consider a smaller version of your wedding cake for display purposes with the cake being cut and plated or boxed for your guests.
Intimate wedding cake to display while cutting remaining wedding cake in the kitchen

These suggestions are just the tip of the iceberg! 

We know that every couple, family, and situation are different. Our Cocktails & Details® planning and design teams are happy to work with you to create an incredible wedding day- memorable for all the right reasons.

Our Cocktails & Details® team looks forward to celebrating safely with you and your loved ones.  

Wedding Planners in Saint Simons Island
Apr 07 2017

Meet the Crew!

I know I may be biased, but I absolutely adore my team.  Not only am I so blessed to work with them on our amazing events, I am so very proud of them– their talents, accomplishments and characters.  Each of them bring something phenomenal to everything we touch, so it is always a treat when we are all together.  I knew before our season got ridiculously crazy, I wanted us to get together and have our team shoot.

And honey, they brought their A game.

There was absolutely no doubt where I wanted to shoot and with whom.  Tamara Gibson is one of the most romantic, candid and artistic wedding photographers in Saint Simons Island and Jekyll Island. We have always been huge fans of what she has done for our client weddings and had often discussed getting together with her for some creative work when we could.  Of course, there is no other fabulous place in the area than Straton Hall‘s J’s Boom Boom room, which has a nice Speakeasy type feel.  Straton Hall is almost like our home away from home, so it was fun to hang out with everyone and be so relaxed.

 

So, without further ado– meet my people!

 

Well, this is me.  And as you see I came to serve face, honey!

Saint Simons Island Savannah Wedding Planner and Coordinator

Saint Simons Island Savannah Wedding Planner and Coordinator

 

This is Joseph.  He is just outstanding and makes it happen.  Doesn’t even matter what “it” is. He just says the word and it pretty much happens.  Definitely the guy you want on your side on an event day.  And is he funnnnnyyyy!  We have been known to laugh until both of us are in tears,  and everyone needs someone like that in your life.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator

 

Isn’t this doll fabulous?  Colleen is a rockstar planner and designer.  Her eye for detail and deliciousness is legitimately swoonworthy. Her smile lights up any room and she puts everyone at ease.  And I am sure many people think that we speak our own strange language since much of our dialogue consists of clips and quotes from our favorite movies. She’s the one who can read my mind with just looking at my face.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator

 

Alicia is phenomenal.  There really is no other word for it. And I really mean that– she is our Renaissance woman!  She dances, teaches, is artist and musician.  Her creative mind is such an asset and the way she problem solves saves us at almost every event! Her laughter is infectious, so if she is laughing, we’re all laughing.

 

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator

 

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

 

Of course, there was some acting up.  We just can’t help it. We always have a blast when we’re together.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

And since I love Joanne the Scammer. . .

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

 

But a good time was had by all…even when we try to be serious, it ends up in laughter.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

Tamara even caught me a few times singing to something that was blasting from the speakers, because you know…dance break.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

 

One thing I really wanted was a formal picture of Jay and Stacy– Owners of Straton Hall. I didn’t tell them, but I worked an image of the team as well as this great photo of Jay and I into my Catersource presentation when I spoke at the conference in New Orleans last month.

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

That’s our “official” picture, but if you’ve ever attended a meeting or an event with us, you’ll likely find us like this:

Saint Simons and Savannah Wedding Planner Coordinator 10

 

If you would like to formally meet the team, check our their love notes to you on our Meet Us page. We’ll see you soon at the next event!

St. Simons Island Wedding: Rachael + Jay

st simons wedding planner at villa de suenos :: photo by sarah deshaw

Working with Rachael and Jay was like a dream come true!

These nature and wine enthusiasts traveled all the way from beautiful Wyoming to wed on St. Simons for a relaxed, casual affair at Villa De Suenos. While the winds and clouds threatened outside the beautiful villa,  a warm, sentimental affair awaited inside to celebrate the joining of these two families.

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Island Wedding Planner

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Island Wedding Planner

Rachael was such a stunning bride, we were so very excited about her first look with Jay!  Sarah DeShaw did a wonderful job of capturing their personalities, but also their adoration of one another.

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Island Wedding Planner

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Wedding Photography by Sarah DeShaw

After a tough call due to the adverse weather conditions, we had to move the wedding ceremony inside.  Once the musicians cued up, singing “Crazy Love”, I think we all knew that this was exactly how the ceremony was supposed to be.  It ended up being very intimate, personal and endearing. No amount of sunshine could have given that to us!

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner I loved this exchange between Rachael and her dad. As the youngest and last of his daughters to get married, this really touched her father’s heart.  I love the look on her face as her dad begins to tear up before walking her down the aisle.

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Wedding Photography by Sarah DeShawWedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Wedding Photography by Sarah DeShaw

Wedding at Villa De Suenos :: St. Simons Island Wedding :: St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Wedding Photography by Sarah DeShaw

Event Team

Wedding Planner Cocktails + Details // Wedding Ceremony and Reception Venue Villa De Suenos // Wedding Photography Sarah DeShaw //Catering Tasteful Temptations // Florist The Vine // Ceremony Musicians Backbeat Boulevard // DJ All About You Entertainment // Hair and Makeup Image Artisans

New Year, New Look!

wedding planners and coordinators in st simons island jekyll island and sea island

If you haven’t visited us in a while, you’ll see we have a brand new look!  We decided to ditch the our cookie cutter look and get something completely custom.  We told our fabulous designer, Sunil we only wanted three things: modern, feminine and something to get our future clients excited about their wedding process.  Needless to say, we feel like he knocked it out of the park.

St. Simons Jekyll Island Wedding Planner

We felt like this was the perfect look to kick off 2012, as we engage with new clients who are looking  for a one of a kind wedding experience here in St. Simons Island, Jekyll Island and the surrounding areas.  That being said we didn’t stop there– we did a revamp of our service collections, company wide correspondence and forms.  Additionally, what’s new this year– you can schedule your phone or video consultations with us online, guaranteeing priority and reservation.

Wedding Services Look Book for Cocktails and Details

We love our new look and hope you do, too!