ADVICE
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ASK THE KNOT SQUAD You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers. We tapped our team—and one of our go-to industry pros—to solve some of your most of-the-moment planning asks.
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AS A T O -B E -W E D Y O U R S E LF , W H AT AD V I C E D O Y O U H AV E F O R F I E LD I N G UNSOLICITED ADVICE FROM LOVED ONES? MARYKATE CALLAHAN
When it comes to receiving unsolicited wedding advice, I take inspiration from the crafty penguins in the movie Madagascar: just smile and wave. Or, more specifically, smile and then change the subject. You don’t need to heed wedding advice that doesn’t apply to you or your relationship. If discussing it makes you uncomfortable, then you have every right to shift the conversation in another direction. However, in the same way you’re being mindful of your own feelings, it doesn’t hurt to keep other people’s feelings in mind too. Loved ones don’t typically offer advice in order to be harmful; ultimately, their intention is to help.
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A S WE HEA D IN TO A NEW Y E AR, W H AT E M E R G I N G TR E NDS A R E Y O U E X CITE D AB O U T T H AT Y O U ’ D LO V E TO SEE M OR E CO U P L ES A DO P T I N T H E I R O W N N U PT I ALS ?
P R O TA K E
MICHELLE NORWOOD Owner of Michelle Norwood Events Michelle is a wedding planner based in New Orleans who specializes in bespoke destination events around the country.
I’m loving how more couples are planning multi-day destination celebrations for their nearest and dearest loved ones. Even if to-be-weds and their guests aren’t quite ready to travel internationally, we’re seeing a rise in domestic destination weddings. After such a long period of isolation, people are excited to connect and celebrate. Couples are hosting their friends and families in stunning locales (the reception above took place in a quaint courtyard in New Orleans) and creating experience-based trips that go beyond an evening reception. The rise in weekend-long destination affairs has also contributed to another trend I’m loving—highly intimate and personalized nuptials. Many to-be-weds are paring down the guest list considerably, which leaves space in the budget to go all out on the details. For example, if your guest list is small enough that everyone can be seated at one long table, consider splurging on luxe linens or copper Tolix chairs, like those seen above, to elevate the only tablescape you’re creating.
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W H AT ’ S O N E T H I N G T H AT C OUPL ES OFTEN FEEL THEY “SHOULD” INCLUDE IN THEIR WEDDING DAY THAT THEY DON’T AC T U ALLY N E E D T O W O RRY AB O U T ? SAMANTHA IACIA Editor
This is a hot take, but you don’t need to have a wedding party if you don’t want to. If choosing a wedding party makes you feel more stressed and obligated than excited, it’s completely okay to skip this tradition. There are other ways to include the people you’re genuinely close with, such as asking someone to help you choose your wedding attire or give a reading during the ceremony.
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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: MO DAVIS PHOTOGRAPHY; COURTESY OF SUBJECT (2); MO DAVIS PHOTOGRAPHY
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