Unlike the USA more weddings in the UK are planned by the bride and her mum than by a wedding organiser. But stress free wedding planning is almost impossible to achieve for the average full time working woman – unless you happen to be an event organiser or can wave a magic wand!
That’s the view of Tuscan wedding organiser Erica Bellini, who has created countless events in Italy and knows just how hard it is to keep on top of the detail let alone agree the main event with everyone involved.
She says: “What many people don’t realise is how much time and effort you need to put into your event to really make it work the way you want. There are such expectations for the day and each bride wants to be unique and special and create her own magic. But most of my brides are busy working and have very little time to manage all the bits and pieces that make up a wedding.
“By the time it comes to choosing the dress and the invitations many brides who choose to arrange the event themselves are completely fed up with the whole thing. It really is a skill in itself that is very time consuming especially if you want to marry abroad.”
Other advantages of working with a wedding organiser include:
- Saving you money – while you may pay a fee for their services wedding planners often secure great deals with venues, photographers and caterers and florists which you could not negotiate yourself and which will ultimately save you money.
- Save your relationship – instead of battling with the mother-in-law you can become detached from the event and so can she!
- Event experience – you will only ever hopefully arrange one wedding – your planner will have vast experience of many special days.
- Knowledge of the area, its customs, local specialities and pitfalls – especially useful if planning to marry abroad.
- Advice on every aspect of the day from your dress, flowers, invitations, cakes, venue, service, to entertainment – gleaned from years of experience and having worked with reliable suppliers many times before.
- Someone on the day specifically to manage the event or manage the odd mishap without the bride having to lift up her skirts and deal with it herself!
Demetria Maratheftis, from the UK but of Greek Cypriot origin chose Erica to organise her dream wedding in Italy to make sure she had the day of her dreams and not just of her family! She says: “I was expecting my day to go well but we really didn’t expect it to go so smoothly. We laughed and giggled from the beginning to the end and I wish we could do it all over again!”
Erica, 36, who lives mainly in Italy and also offers Tuscan accommodation to those guests wishing to extend their stay, has a huge range of venues for weddings, specialist caterers, florists and photographers and is always on hand to make sure everything runs smoothly on the day.
She says: “Having a wedding planner means you can concentrate on enjoying your day and leave event organising to the experts. We know how to make our weddings uniquely gorgeous every time.”
