Should you hire a day of coordinator?
You’re well into planning your wedding, but perhaps you’re feeling overwhelmed as you approach your big day. The question arises, do you need to hire a professional day-of coordinator?
First thing first, what is the difference between a wedding planner and a wedding coordinator?
In short, a wedding coordinator is involved in the entire wedding planning process, from vendor selection to managing details, while a ‘day-of coordinator” only steps in close to the wedding date to oversee the execution of the planned events on the wedding day itself, ensuring everything runs smoothly according to the established plan; essentially, a coordinator handles the entire planning process, while a day-of coordinator focuses solely on the day of the wedding.—The Knot
So, the question is, should you hire a day-of coordinator? It depends—but, YES! you should
have a day of coordinator, the brides who do, are relaxed and enjoy their day, those who don’t, don’t!
However, there are options;
Hire a well-known planner with a lot of fantastic reviews, you won’t go wrong.
Use our in-house coordinator, this will serve you well. They are familar with our space and will take take care of things before you even know you need something. Bonus; they’ll meet with you for a few hours ahead of your day to get your schedule planned
Ask, a friend or close family member, who is NOT part of the wedding party. If that person is known as an organizer and you have confidence that they will take the day seriously, then ask them—-then give them a nice gift as a thank you.
Whatever direction you decide to take, make it happen, you won’t regret it!
Happy planning!
Tami
Engagement Season
Christmas season, the bright lights, the planning, the anticipation of family gatherings, Christmas parties, and winter driving, ugh.
In the world of weddings, it is engagement season—lots and lots of engagements.
If you are one of the happy, newly engaged couples, congratulations!
If you’ve been engaged for a week or more you may be overwhelmed, that’s okay and really normal.
Whether you are getting married in 2025, 2026, or beyond, first things first and I can’t emphasize this enough: Secure your wedding venue! Especially if you have a specific date in mind. Find the venue with your vibe. Do you want a barn venue? There are many to choose from, or perhaps you’d like something more romantic, like a quintessential white chapel, near Saugatuck. Getting your venue in place will take the biggest decision off your plate, it will take the weight of this decision off your shoulders, then the fun begins.
Of course, if you are looking for a small intimate venue near the lakeshore communities like Fennville and Saugatuck, the Chapel at New Richmond may be the right for you. We excel at giving you an intimate, out-of-the-way, Chapel. We hope to see you soon. Enjoy your holiday.
Cheers,
Tami
Love Big, Celebrate Small
Did you know?
Welcome to the summer’s great escape!
Are you wondering what there might be to do in the area around the Chapel, especially if the guests are coming in for a long weekend?
You might be surprised at all there is to do.
Watertrailventures.com
Watertrails ventures kayak and canoe rental. This is just 500ft from the chapel. They have several floats available, ranging from 2-hour floats to whole days.
“Paddle the river, beath in the trees, adventure awaits, com kayak with me.”
Saugatuckdunerides.com
Speaking from experience, this is FUN!
One of West Michigan’s premier attractions. “Our goal is to provide you with 40 minutes of entertainment, fun, and excitement….learn of the lost town of Singapore or check out our local vegetation and wildlife.”
Saugatuck.com
Oval Beach has been voted one of the best beaches in the country. Wide sandy beach, even when it’s busy, ’s not too crowded.
Fennvalley.com
Visit the tasting room and beautiful property, they have many award-winning wines.
Saugatuck.com
Mt Baldhead is great, if you can do the 302 steps, Mt Baldy has a breathtaking view of both Saugatuck and Lake Michigan. If you like to hike there are also hiking trails under the canopy of trees.
FOOD
Red Dock Cafe
This place is awesome, right on the water, with pub food you won’t want to miss, a light breeze off the Kalamazoo River with a view of Saugatuck, and great for a light lunch or dinner.
Saltoftheearthfennville.com
Right in downtown Fennville. “Honest Friendly Food.”
A meal at Salt of the Earth is an authentic Midwest American rustic food experience.
Rootfennville.com
A cafe-type setting, connect with an artist gallery, featuring local artists. I love this place for coffee, but they have a full menu and many organic choices. I have never been disappointed!
n eclectic menu with a fusion of flavors. We craft sandwiches on homemade bread, samosas, bibimbap, salads, soups, flatbread pizzas, and breakfast options, all scratch-made in our kitchen.
Offering an eclectic menu with a fusion of flavor
Take out, Curbside, Delivery, Indoor and Outdoor Dining
Offering an eclectic menu with a fusion of flavor
Take out, Curbside, Delivery, Indoor and Outdoor Dining
Tips for Visits
It all begins with an idea.
How to make the most out of your visit!
We thought of some TIPS AND STRATEGIES for having a successful open house or scheduled tour visit with us.
Have your “vision” in mind.
Now, you might not have everything figured out about your special day by the time you visit with us. Honestly, you might only know that you’re ready to get married – and that’s a HUGE thing to know. Congratulations! But we recommend you doing a little pre-thinking with your partner about what you want the day to be like – Here are some great questions to have considered before your tour:
What’s our budget? And how much of our budget are we willing to spend on the venue?
What’s our date? When do we want the special day to take place? (Will it be all indoors, outdoors, a bit of both?)
What is our vibe? Do we want something extravagant and spectacular? Do we want something low-key and chill?
What’s our guest count? Approximately how many people do we want to invite?
What are some special/personal needs for your big day? (i.e. “We fell in love over games. Can we set up board games during the cocktail hour for our guests?” – “My grandmother, who’s in a wheelchair, needs to get down the aisle with me and my dress is huge. How wide can the aisle get?”)
Make an appointment.
This might seem obvious to some wedding couples, but we recommend it anyway. Having an appointment with us makes it likely that our team can be prepared to really show you around! We have a very responsive team of eager-to-please folks; however, planning makes things much smoother. If you’d like to set up an appointment to tour The Chapel at New Richmond, you can do so through our website or by emailing us at info@thechapelatnewrichmond.com.
Bring anyone essential to the planning of the day.
Bring your partner. Bring your wedding planner. Bring your parents, your sibling, your maid of honour. Bring them all! We want to make sure that all perspectives are included before you make the big decision. If you plan to bring anyone, though, remember to plan ahead.
Take notes and write things down.
When talking to one of our team members, we recognize that it’s hard to talk through everything during the tour. Stuff gets missed. Things are forgotten. Stuff doesn’t click until later. If you come with a notebook or a note taking app on your phone, use it! Also –
Take pictures.
While looking around, we encourage our guests to take pictures. This might also help you come up with other details for your big day when you can review what you saw later. We highly recommend this especially if you’re touring multiple venues. It’s hard to keep it all straight sometimes! Taking pictures and organizing your photos by venue-specific albums could really help you out in the long run.
Feel free to get emotional.
We make space for you to be you – and that means feeling while you’re here. Planning a wedding can be super emotional; there’s joy and love and excitement and wonder, but there can be other big emotions as well. Please don’t hesitate to feel, really feel. We operate, first and foremost, with respect and compassion in mind. If you love it at The Chapel, feel it. Speaking of which –
Bring your money.
If you really love it – you just know – you can put down a deposit during your tour. This will save your spot and take one task off your to-do list.