What is Event Design for Weddings?
What is event design for weddings? In short: event design is what makes your wedding look and feel good.
Let me tell you more.
What is event design?
Let me explain it in house-building terms: like a contractor deals with all of the trades, schematics, logistics, and budgeting, so too does a wedding planner consult with all of your vendors, create your detailed wedding day itinerary, and oversee your budget.
Where the beauty comes into your home is thanks to an interior designer: the way your floor plan is brought to life, the well-planned uses of colour, the perfectly combined elements to create the space you live your life in. In the wedding world, this is the job of your event designer: to thoughtfully craft an aesthetic experience with all of the visual components in mind: stationery, linens, rentals, lighting, bridal party attire, floral design, and so on.
Photos by Esther Funk Photography
In short: event design is what makes your wedding look and feel good.
Event design is a common service in the US, but here in Winnipeg, it’s still a bit unknown. Many couples inquire with me about hiring me for both floral and event design services, but then the first thing they ask, what IS event design? They know they love the sound of it, but just aren’t sure what it encompasses.
Consider my role as your event designer to be like your wedding’s creative director. I’ll lead you through a multi-layered process that will allow me to distill what you’re hoping your wedding will look and feel like, and then expand on that vision to dream up unique, creative elements that haven’t been done before. I’ll create a detailed design brief, which will outline your colour palette, vibe, as well as the many components that we’ll use to achieve the vision: florals (obviously), stationery, lighting, rental items, floor plan options, and so on. I’ll also refer you to my preferred vendors, who I have complete trust in and know will take the very best care of you!
Who is event design right for?
-Couples who want an expertly crafted visual experience, but don’t necessarily have the creativity to do it themselves. You’ve seen images from weddings that had unique installations, creative displays or a really engaging tablescape and you know you WANT those things…but you just don’t have the innate vision to dream and execute it.
-Busy professionals: you might have a really good handle on the logistics and the budgeting component of your wedding, but you don’t have the time or skill set to pull together the design for yourself.
-Couples planning from out of town. It’s one thing to save images on Instagram of details and ideas you like…it’s a whole other thing to know how to achieve that from another city.
-If you are the type of person who can evaluate a good outfit, but you can’t pull together the individual pieces for yourself, event design services are something you should consider investing in!
Personally, I’ve always been cautious about following trends too closely.
I never wanted to have the same outfit as someone else. I’d much rather invest in quality pieces that will last a few years rather than an inexpensive, trendy item — and since I want pieces to last, that also means that I can’t hit the trends too hard because that outfit will look really dated in just a year — and let’s be honest, with Pinterest and Instagram churning out trends in seconds, a look dates MUCH quicker than in just a year.
I feel the same way about wedding design. I’d rather invest my time and creativity to create a design that has lasting power, that has quality, and that is different than what everyone has done. It may cost a little more, but you’ll be spared the embarrassment of wearing the same outfit as someone else.
So, here’s why I think you should consider hiring me as your event designer.
I’ll start with this compliment to many floral designers: we really are the design experts here.
Those images of weddings that you're finding on Pinterest and Instagram that make your heart sing and inspire your entire wedding? Guess what: that was often made possible because of the FLORAL DESIGNER. So it only makes sense to let your floral lead your entire event design, and trusting the same creative professional to direct the visual aesthetics is the perfect way to make the entire process and design seamless.
Note to add: not all floral designers also offer event design services (and nor are all floral designers interested in offering event design, or skilled to do so). They are not one and the same thing. If you are hiring someone for event design, know that that is a specialized service that should be paid for separately and worked on separately. It’s not just a matter of saying “So and so has nice candle holders, you should rent from them.”
Here’s what you need to look for in hiring someone to fulfill the role of event design: someone who knows how good design works and comes together. You don’t want your designer to just mimic what Pinterest shows you — you want someone who can take the design further.
An event designer should have an excellent understanding of colour, texture, movement, scale and size.
Stone House Creative accepts a maximum of 3 event design commissions per year, in addition to my other floral-only clients. Event design clients also receive complimentary access to my rental inventory!
A note for couples who are working with a wedding coordinator or wedding planner:
Event design does NOT overlap with wedding coordination, and Stone House Creative does not provide coordination services (though I can refer you to several excellent coordinators if you like!). There CAN be overlap between specialized event design services and the services of a full wedding planner, but while I don’t want to be rude, not all wedding planners are gifted in event design. They may be able to deal with the logistics of your wedding better than anyone else, and be able to look at a Pinterest photo and say “rent this linen from this company,” but evolving the design into something creative, polished, and personal is not in everyone’s skillset.
Alternatively, you might want to handle all of the planning, logistics, and budget details on your own but you want help with the visuals and the wedding management — for that, you would hire both an event designer (👋🏻) AND a wedding coordinator, to get the services that you’re looking for.
My Design Philosophies
I believe that:
A unique design does not come from already produced work
Pinterest is not the end all and be all
Context matters
Your wedding should look and feel like you
Colour doesn’t have to be intimidating
Elegant doesn’t mean boring
Any style should still be refined and well-executed
The most beautiful designs come from an open, trusting partnership
Want to see the full gallery from this shoot?
Watch for Part 2 tomorrow!
LOOKING FOR A WEDDING FLORAL AND EVENT DESIGNER IN WINNIPEG?
Getting married in 2022? Appointments to design your dream wedding are now available. I currently have the availability for a maximum of 2 more event design clients in 2022 — if you want that to be you, click the button below to get started!
Please note that event design services are only available in conjunction with Stone House Creative’s floral design services.
Wedding Event Design 2.0 - The Reception (and the Frequently Made Mistakes by Brides & Wedding Planners)
When we talk about overall event design and decor planning for a wedding, most of our attention is focused on the reception. This is where you spend the most amount of time, and the most amount of money, so it makes sense to focus on the way your reception looks and feels!
Here are the two biggest mistakes I see brides make (and event wedding planners or decorators!) when it comes to planning their wedding decor:
1) Not paying attention to the venue and what suits it.
Every space has a particular style. The architect or interior designer have purposely made decisions to create an overall aesthetic, and when it comes to wedding venues, these aesthetic details are often VERY obvious, and sometimes "theme-y." This might be in style or in colour palette. For example: say you've chosen to have your wedding at a rustic barn. Guess what doesn't belong here? Mod white leather chairs. Crystals and bling. Formal linens and draping. It just doesn't GO. That doesn't meant that there isn't a place for those things; it just means that there isn't a place for these things at YOUR wedding. And that's okay!
Here's another example: we've all walked into venues with carpet, and thought, "what the heck were they thinking with this carpet!?" You know what's way worse than that gold-and-maroon patterned carpet? Textured coral table linens with whimsical light blue flowers on top of that gold and maroon carpet. Guys: pay attention to the space! Maybe gold and maroon aren't your favourite colours - but if you've chosen this venue for your wedding, then your overall event design is going to look the best if you find a way to incorporate the venue's colouring into your wedding's colour palette.
In the same way, notice the most beautiful aspects of your venue and highlight them with your event design choices. Is there a gorgeous fireplace? Position your head table in front or beside it. Is there a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that let in beautiful natural light? Don't ever think of covering those up with draping!
Pay attention to the characteristics, limitations, and features of your venue.
2) Paying too much attention to Pinterest.
I recently sat down with a bride and her wedding planner to talk about her wedding flowers. Both the planner and I cringed (inwardly, of course!) when the bride mentioned one specific Pinterest trend that she thought she might like to incorporate (in this case, it was baby's breath - and lots of it). After we explained that it was becoming a very tired trend, nor did it really fit with her personal style in any way, she mentioned: "I guess I saw baby's breath on Pinterest a year ago when I first started planned my wedding, and I think it must have just been starting to be stylish then." This was really interesting to me, because baby's breath started to resurge in 2011! All this to say: remember that when you see something "new" on Pinterest or on wedding blogs, at least 10,000 other brides-to-be are seeing the EXACT SAME THING. That means that anything trending on Pinterest is not in the least bit unique or personalized to you and your style. That's not to say that Pinterest doesn't have its merits, though!
Here's the thing about those pretty little details and touches that you see on Pinterest or on wedding blogs: they're so pretty because they were first designed with one specific, incredible couple in mind. I very firmly believe that a unique design does not come from already completed weddings. If you hope to have a wedding that looks and feels unique to you, then we need to start fresh, WITHOUT Pinterest.
So what next? If the way your wedding looks and feels is important to you, but you're struggling to figure out what to do or how to make it happen, connect with me. I'd love to help! I get a serious high from working alongside you to design a beautiful, personal, and fun wedding experience.
PS I loved working with Prairie Film Co on this video. If you're looking for an amazing wedding videographer, contact them ASAP.