It makes us so happy to see all the design elements of your wedding come together seamlessly. We want your vibe to transcend every moment!
What happens when you work with us? Many brides are surprised to learn that the first thing we do is set up a consultation. We can’t possibly begin to bring your wedding vision to life until we have made that personal connection. We want to hear everything! Send us a Pinterest board, bring your photos, and all the ideas…dream big and then let us handle the details.
This process should be fun and exciting! Let’s talk about your wedding hopes and inspiration. Are you coastal? Boho? Elegant? We will help direct you on theming and weave in gorgeous, statement features to make your wedding truly unique and personal. Struggling with color palette? Few things bring us more joy than selecting just the right hues for your season, venue, and style!
Lindsay Hackney Photography
We’ve got you covered on all the moving pieces too. Our event designers know exactly where your signage needs to be placed, how many centerpieces you really need, and what can be repurposed after the ceremony. When you leave, we want you to feel completely psyched and confident that every detail is taken care of.
We always meet a few weeks before your big day to confirm all the details—date, venue, headcount—and make any necessary adjustments. Our team also works directly with your venue to ensure everything is set to perfection—every last detail. You won’t have to do a thing!
Lindsay Hackney Photography
Are you ready to hear more? How can we help? We only have a few dates left for 2022 and we are already booking 2023!
For us, this question is the first one we ask at the beginning of any design process – whether it is an event, a room, or a whole home. Figuring out what you want to feel when you experience it is the first step to defining that vision. We ask that question first when we meet with any of our clients to ensure that we align during our consultation process and have a grounding piece during our design curation. We want to make sure that whatever space we transform matches the vibe that our client is trying to achieve.
What about if you don’t know your vision or how you want to feel? That’s ok – let us help you! The easiest way to navigate this is to grab a comfy blanket, quiet space, fun cocktail and get searching. Start a board whether it is on Pinterest or Houzz. From there, you have a collection of photos that are starting to look cohesive (maybe?) and you will be able to identify the big ideas that make up your vision.
Or maybe, your photos and choices are all over the place – That’s ok! We are here to help. We know what questions to ask, where to start, and how to navigate when a client is just frankly unsure.
Our design process, whether it is for a wedding, event, or interiors, begins and ends with our clients vision. This feeling that is evoked from guests at your event, or guests in your home, are the beginning of foundational pieces to life long memories that will be created time and time again. And, we are so happy that we have been welcomed into that journey!
Let us help you with your next event, or room design! Click here to schedule your next consult for an event or your home!
You are about to begin planning one of your most memorable days, that is over in a blink of an eye. The reality is – the day goes by really really fast.
It’s a whirlwind – but we promise, the guests see all those details that you won’t notice on your big day. But you do remember spending hours upon hours scrolling Pinterest, meeting with your planner, sending text message images to your bridal party, and showing them what your (or their) next DIY project is. Trying to figure out how you’re going to make time for everything that needs to get done…all while trying to enjoy this magical time 😩
Are we overwhelming you? Maybe… but we’re here to tell you what’s important, and what’s not. Where to spend your money, and where to save…that it really is ALL worth it, even though the time feels as if it just slips away.
So – where do you start!?
First – how do YOU want to feel that day? How do you want your guests to feel? How do they feel when they leave?
You need to identify YOUR VIBE…and from there, the venue comes next. Cohesiveness begins when your vision can come to life in the venue. Don’t just look at one, and don’t look at the venue images on their website. Check out IG photos that they are tagged in. These photos come from the guests themselves…this is what they see!
Now that you know your vibe, and you’ve placed your deposit on your venue – it’s time to begin the vendor list! (don’t worry the details are coming)
For vendors – the most important is your photographer! This is all that you have left with at the end of your day.
Next, is your florist. Remember, this is the background of your photos! This is what gives the venue YOUR personality and truly reflects that feeling you want the guests to have!
Then, it’s your DJ. This is the vibe that will set the tone. Notice the first two priorities are about you! You are celebrating a union of you and your someone, not just throwing a party for your college friends.
When it comes to details, we totally recommend doing this in stages…one thing per paycheck. This creates less stress on your budget and you won’t have to sacrifice on details because you have time!
The most important detail here is your dress, your someone’s suit or dress, and then the rest of the bridal party! You are more likely to frame a photo of just the two of you, versus the whole party. From here, think about the details that make up the backdrop to your photos. Again, all that you are left with are photos!
Find a company that does it all, and knows how to bring a cohesive vision together (total plug right here for us at OPD!)
Then comes the secondary details in our opinion — uplighting, food trucks, open bar, favors, monograms, etc! Think about and prioritize what is most important to you. For Dianne, it was a memorable favor! She wanted something special her guests could take home with them. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box here. Creativity and individuality are key components for a memorable favor. Also, a donation is a pretty cool thing to do too!
Schedule your meetings with your vendors, save your money and pay in stages, and lastly, get off Pinterest! Once you have your vision and have begun the work, don’t keep searching. You will go down a rabbit hole of scrolling and before you know it, you have made 32 changes, overspent the budget, and you probably feel like your hair’s on fire. It might be … or you might take a few of our best practices and have the most relaxing and enjoyable wedding experience possible! (outside of COVID that is).
So if you’re looking for a wedding designer, who will see your vision and take it to the next level…all while relieving your stress by making sure that every last detail is executed to its fullest- then look no further!
Schedule your consult with us today- we can’t wait to create your most beautiful day!
What do each of these have in common? Yes, they’re both places that we’re retreating to, but in the year of COVID, they’re also the new destination for wedding venues!
This year has us all rethinking the traditional wedding and for many brides, it has them opting for a more relaxed, intimate, and smaller version of the conventional ceremony.
Now defined as microweddings – these smaller versions of a traditional wedding honor all the details and essentials of a wedding ceremony, just in a scaled down version.
While we’re all for tradition, microweddings definitely have their advantages. More couples are adopting a backyard wedding, destination wedding, or a micro wedding as a placeholder – they’re not putting their lives on hold just because they can’t have their dream wedding right now. Instead they’re choosing a smaller and more intimate version of their wedding ceremony.
Microweddings can offer more freedom than a confined venue including being budget friendly, customizable and less pressured than orchestrating a huge event.
We’ve loved seeing our brides’ adaptability during this season and have had so much fun being a part of their small wedding and backyard wedding ceremonies including this beautiful backyard wedding for Emily & Jim and their two furry friends.
Do you have a wedding planned for 2020 or 2021 and are wondering what you should do?
Based on White House advisement, the safest and recommended choice is to postpone your ceremony. We know it’s a tough pill to swallow so we’ve pulled together our top 5 pieces of advice to get you started in rethinking your big day.
it’s okay to feel all the feelings.We know the countless hours of time you’ve poured into creating your perfect day. the decisions. the emails. the big dreams and small details that you’ve tirelessly poured over… all to have it turned upside down. This is not what any of us wanted and we want to let you know that we feel for ya! it’s okay to feel frustrated and disappointed. In a matter of days, everything we thought we once had control over has been flipped upside down and we’re all finding our new normal. In this time of uncertainty, don’t be afraid to reach out and lean on those closest to you for support, encouragement, or even a virtual shoulder to cry on.
Stay positive & remember what your day is all about.Take a deep breath. You can do this. While we know it’s not easy, this may be a great opportunity to really remember what is important, to pause and reflect on what this special day means, to prioritize what matters most, and to even laugh at how memorable this pandemic is making your special day. In the midst of fears, sickness, and a global unease, love will endure. You are celebrating union & commitment and that’s just the dose of positivity that we all need right now.
Connect with your vendors ASAP.These are unprecedented circumstances, and most vendors like us are able to work with you to postpone your event to a later date. That being said, many vendors are already booking up for 2021 and any open dates are filling up fast. The best plan is overcommunication. Let your vendors know what you’re thinking, and check with them to find out what your options are.
Create a communication plan for your guests.Traditional wedding etiquette has just added a chapter. Change the Dates! If you’ve already sent out save the dates to your guests and need to modify the date, check out these fun change the date cards from Minted or create your own using Canva (one of our all time favorite tools). It’s okay if you don’t know all the new details yet. Just let your wedding guests know what you can, and which channels you’ll be using to send further up-to-date communication.
Be flexible.It may be time for plan B and maybe even plan C. Many brides are making the hard decision to move their wedding dates, and sometimes it’s a moving target. The key to keeping your sanity in all this, is to hold your date loosely, knowing that plans may change… again. Another option to consider is separating your ceremony and reception. Elopements are getting a lot of hype these days and rightfully so. With a smaller scale format, you’re able to splurge on all the gorgeous wedding details that matter most to you like a decadent mini-cake or the flowing bridal bouquet of your dreams. Whichever route you decide is best for you and your guests, remain flexible and open to thinking outside the box.
Welcome to the OPD Blog!
Hi! We are Heather & Dianne and we’re the proud owners of Only Prettier Design...wedding florists and designers! Our shop in the greater Boston area is filled with fresh blooms and all the home decor to make your heart swoon. Besides entrepreneurs, we are also busy moms to 4 kiddos each! Our lives are crazy, but beautiful. We are excited to share our story with you, all while keeping it very real. While we’re super excited to show you how to execute a beautiful tablescape and design a stunning floral arrangement...we also want this to be a place to share the real struggles of balancing work and life while creating a life we love!