Planning an event is one of those tasks that seems straightforward until you're actually doing it. There's an overwhelming number of decisions to make, and the internet is full of contradictory advice from people who planned one wedding five years ago and now consider themselves experts. Here's what we've actually learned from setting up hundreds of events.
Start With the Venue, Not the Theme
We see couples arrive with a detailed Pinterest board and no venue booking. The problem is that decor choices depend heavily on the space. A rustic wildflower scheme looks wonderful in a stone barn but strange in a modern hotel ballroom. Book your venue first, then let the architecture, lighting, and surroundings guide your decorating decisions.
Spend an hour at the venue during the same time of day as your event. Notice where the natural light falls, which walls are blank and need filling, and where guests will naturally congregate. These observations will save you from over-decorating areas nobody looks at and under-decorating the spots that appear in every photograph.
The 60-30-10 Colour Rule
Interior designers use this ratio and it works brilliantly for events. Sixty percent of your visual palette should be a neutral base — white, cream, soft green, or grey. Thirty percent should be your primary accent colour. The remaining ten percent is a contrasting pop — metallics, deep jewel tones, or a bright seasonal flower.
This ratio prevents the common mistake of using too many colours at equal intensity, which creates visual chaos. It also makes styling easier because you have a clear hierarchy: table linens are the 60%, centrepieces and runners are the 30%, and napkin ties, candles, and favours provide the 10%.
Hire Instead of Buy — But Be Strategic
This one is close to our hearts, for obvious reasons. Buying 150 glass lanterns for a single evening makes no financial or environmental sense. Hire is almost always the better option for structural decor — centrepieces, arches, charger plates, candelabras. These items are expensive to buy and impossible to store afterwards.
Where buying makes sense: personal touches like printed stationery, favours that guests take home, and any items with genuine sentimental value that you'll keep. A custom welcome sign with your names and date? Buy that. A set of gold charger plates you'll use once? Hire them.
Build a Realistic Timeline
Most event timelines are too optimistic. Here's a rough guide that accounts for the delays that always happen:
- 12 months out: Book venue and main suppliers (caterer, photographer, entertainment)
- 9 months: Finalise colour scheme and begin decor planning
- 6 months: Book hire items and confirm quantities
- 3 months: Order stationery, confirm menus, arrange transport
- 1 month: Final headcount to all suppliers, rehearsal walk-through at venue
- 1 week: Confirm delivery times, pack personal items, delegate day-of tasks
The Setup Day Is Not the Day to Improvise
Have a written plan for exactly where every item goes. Better yet, have a floor plan with numbered tables and a corresponding list of which items go on each. The people helping you set up — friends, family, or professionals like us — need clear instructions, not vague gestures toward a stack of boxes.
Photograph your test layout if you do a trial run. Print the photos. Stick them in the boxes with the relevant items. It sounds excessive until you're standing in a venue at 3pm the day before your wedding, realising that nobody except you knows where the table numbers are supposed to go.
One Last Thing
The single most common regret we hear from couples after their wedding? "I wish I'd spent less time worrying about the details nobody noticed and more time enjoying the evening." So yes, plan carefully. Get the big things right. But on the day itself, let go. The candles are lit, the tables are set, the people you love are in the room. That's already more than enough.
Need help turning your vision into reality? Get in touch and we'll help you plan the details so you can focus on enjoying the day.