As I planned my own wedding, I developed some pretty strong opinions about sites like TheKnot and WeddingWire, which is simply: “ain’t nobody got time for that!”
Truly, these sites are not built for busy people who don’t have tons of free time to scroll through endless articles that are more distracting than they are useful.
In fact, many wedding planning sites are full of:
- distracting ads that are often irrelevant
- superficial articles that don’t offer realistic advice
- generic to-do lists that are impossible to follow
- ridiculous DIY projects that you don’t have time or energy for
Have you noticed this?
Don’t get me wrong, there’s good stuff on those wedding websites. But here’s the thing: you have to spend HOURS researching a single topic before you find something you can use. Often, you might need to visit multiple websites, forums, and read tons of articles to figure out your next steps.
Planning with Poise is different.
You have a busy, active lifestyle, you don’t need the chaos that comes with wedding planning. So I created a clear-cut, straightforward, no-BS wedding planning blog so that you don’t have to waste time trying to figure everything out on your own.
Here’s what you can expect from me in 2018:
- Consistency: I’ll post a new article for you every Wednesday
- Quality: My advice is actionable and easy to implement to help you save time, money, and stress
- Honesty: I’ll tell it like it is, unapologetically
- Inclusivity: I’ll use gender-neutral pronouns because I aim to help all couples: straight, gay, trans, non-gender-binary – all are welcome!
- No ads! I want to help you focus on getting things done, so I won’t distract you with any spammy ads.
These are my values and my vision for this blog in 2018 and beyond. But I need your help!
My ultimate goal is to help you. But I have a favor to ask: tell me about your wedding! I want to hear all about it. I know you’re busy, so I promise it won’t take more than five minutes of your time – I can’t wait to hear from you!
I’ll see you next Wednesday! 😉
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Hello Katie
I love your blog: simple, clear straight to the point. No BS!
My son just made a big announcement: he got engaged! First reaction: tears of joy and a little dance move…
The sad news as a mother is that he doesn’t give me the option of a “mum & dad” guest list.
Out of 80 plus guests they want to invite, I want to invite 12 guests +partners= 22.
How can we find an agreement. I told him that if it is not possible, I will plan my own before or after party ! They want to pay for their wedding, but I told him that I will contribute (by 1/3) regardless of very short guests’ list.
Please help …and write an article about it!
Many thanks and warm regards from South Africa
FINA
CONGRATS on your son’s recent engagement – that’s great news!!!
Thank you so much for the kind words, I’m really glad you’re enjoying the blog! And thanks for requesting an article about guest lists – it’s on my to-do list 🙂 Now, to answer your question …
Well, first off, I LOVE your question because it includes three of the biggest challenges about wedding planning: money, guest list, and family. 🙂
In my personal opinion, when parents plan to pay for the wedding (in whole or in part), they should make it clear from the beginning whether there are any strings attached. So if you’re paying and you want to have some decision-making power (regarding the guest list or otherwise), it’s important to communicate that up front. That way the couple knows what to expect if they choose to accept the financial support and if there are any conflicting plans/opinions – you can negotiate from the beginning and come up with an agreement. (It doesn’t sound like your contributions have any strings attached to the guest list, but I just wanted to mention my opinion on family contributions!)
I can’t tell if the “mum & dad” guest list idea was outright rejected, or whether it’s still on the table. If it’s still on the table, perhaps you can ask the couple if there’s a number they’re more comfortable with if 22 guests is too high for them. You may need to back and forth before you can agree on a number that works well – or they may reject the idea altogether.
If the “mum & dad” guest list idea is rejected, then I absolutely love that you have a backup plan for a before or after party! (My husband and I did this because we just couldn’t invite everyone we wanted – we hosted a day-long after-party the next day, and it was SO MUCH FUN!)
I hope that helps, and if you’d like to discuss further – I’d be happy to chat about it more!
We’ve postponed our wedding to June 5, 2021, which was supposed to be June 5, 2020 (we got engaged on 1/1/2020). Have a quick engagement actually worked out until the pandemic hit. I’m thankful though because I get to start over and change anything my heart was completely set on .
The blog has helped my wedding planning renovation process so much. I’ve spent the last 2hours reading almost every article.
Thank you so much!