Last week I had another one of my real weddings published on Style Me Pretty.  The wedding itself was a dream and I could look at the pictures (and video!!) over and over again and never tire of them.  And having your work featured on such a large platform is forever an honor – even though it may not have been the motivation of working on this particular wedding, it’s always nice when the wedding industry comes along and gives you a pat on the back, recognizing your hard work.

Photo: Kelly Sweet Photography

But let’s turn and look at this from a bride’s point of view.  Was your wedding pretty as a picture?  Do you dream of millions of people watching you and your man say “I do?”  Want to be the envy of the neighborhood (and everyone’s Pinterest board)?

Do you want to see your wedding published?  How do we make that happen?

It is okay to say right from the start that it’s your dream have your wedding featured on XYZ blog.  You’ve been reading it for years, have 1,000 of pins from them and now that your big day is finally arriving, you want it to be showcased front and center.  Sure, your wedding is really about love and commitment, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be pretty.  So my first piece of advice is to be up front with your planner, your photographer and your florist.  While lots of other vendors are definitely involved, these tend to be the key people in making your vision come to fruition, and getting it featured.

If you have a specific blog or publication that you’re aiming for, share that information.  Different blogs feature weddings with different aesthetics.  As a bride, you might know that you love everything you see on XYZ blog but not even be aware of why it you like their style so much.  Maybe they only feature film photography, rustic weddings or flowers that are very textural and loose.  Your planner should definitely be able to help you identify what is so special about that blog.

Then choose vendors that have been published before.  They’ve had real weddings published before.  Real weddings are much more challenging in that they have to be functional, as well as pretty – things can’t just be morphed for the camera.  If they’ve been published on your dream blog/publication then they earn major bonus points since they already know what it takes.

And then you have to trust your vendors.  Why are featured weddings so special?  The make us covet their prettiness.  They make us say “wow, I wish I was there”.  Details are unique, the photography is extraordinary and everything flows perfectly together and feels very cohesive.

With all of this being said, it doesn’t mean that you have to have an over the top budget to make it happen.  I can’t stress how important it is to have confidence in your vendors and how key it is to hire an amazing photographer.  It might seem strange, but splurging on an incredible photographer could actually save you money.  They just know how to capture things in a way that takes the ordinary and makes it extraordinary.  $1,000 worth of flowers suddenly looks like $5,000.  Sometimes the photographer is truly the only reason (in my opinion anyway) that certain weddings even get published.  The event doesn’t necessarily have to be super trendy, just well documented.  It’s all in the details.

Make sure you’re timeline allows for extras.  You’re going to need pictures of the reception “untouched”.  The ceremony site needs to be captured before the guests arrive.  There needs to be time to photograph the invitation suite, the bouquet by itself, the cute boutonnières and maybe even a centerpiece or two off of the table. If everything is rushed, it’s far less likely that your stylist and photographer can get creative together a “stage” a couple extra pretty photos (yes your favorite weddings had tacky salt and pepper shakers on their gorgeous reception tables and their boutonnières probably arrived in plastic containers, not on that gorgeous silver tray – it’s all about staging).

Trust your planner/stylist to guide the decision making process.  While cheap plastic folding chairs might be fine and serve the purpose, it’s rare that I see them featured on a national publication.  Upgrading the chair rentals and going with a more standard linen might be in your best interest to achieve your goal.  They know where to best focus your monies to get the most bang for your buck.

Do you want to get your wedding published?  Me too!  I’d love to work together to make your dream day a reality.

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