Lake Charles Bride Guide

wedding planning timeline

10+

months before

[] Set a date! [] Determine a wedding budget. [] Schedule engagement photos. [] Book your wedding and reception venue.[] Book a wedding planner. [] Book your photographer and videographer – don't procrastinate! They book up quickly.[] Ideally, book all the wedding vendors that you "have to have" for your wedding – hair + makeup, DJ, limos, florists, caterers, invitations, cakes, officiant, etc. [] Start wedding dress shopping and purchase (gowns can take 4-6 months to come in and you'll need alterations)! [] Pick your wedding party. [] Start working on guest list.

7+

2+

months before

[] Mail your invitations. [] Finalize menu with caterer. [] Check in with vendors.

2+

weeks before

[] Finish any DIY projects. [] Get your marriage license. [] Create a wedding day schedule and give to important wedding party members. [] Give final head count to caterer. [] Finalize seating chart. [] Confirm all vendors arrival and delivery times of the wedding day. [] Final haircut and color.

months`before

[] Set up gift registries. [] Start planning bridal showers. [] Finalize your guest list. [] Order invitations. [] Order bridesmaids dresses and tuxes. [] Book your honeymoon. [] Send out save the dates. [] Make arrangements for any rental items.

4+

months before

[] Start alterations on your gown. [] Plan your hair + makeup. [] Schedule your bridal portraits. [] Purchase any bridal accessories you need – veil, garter, jewelry, etc. [] Purchase wedding bands.

WEEK OF [] Get mani/pedi. [] Make sure everything is laid out and ready for your big day. [] Get your beauty sleep. [] Have final payments and cash tips for vendors. [] Deliver "must have" image lists to your photographer/videographer.

THE BIG DAY [] Eat a healthy, hearty breakfast. [] Give rings to best man. [] Have the best day ever!

enjoy!!!

Setting the date...

Coordinating a date between families can be hard and you may not be able to appease everyone!

Living in Louisiana, we have some interesting factors to consider when picking a date: -Mardi Gras Season: People are pretty serious about this season of the year. Available venues and people may be sparse if you decide to get married during this time.

Mardi Gras season should also account into your alteration time. If you decide to get married in the spring, your seamstress will probably have a lot of extra work to do during Mardi Gras so she/he may have longer turnaround times.

-Hunting Season: Something I don't know much about, but I do know that some people take it very seriously. If your wedding falls on opening weekend, die-hard hunters may not come.

jewelry Lake Charles has tons of great options for jewelry and you'll need some jewels to get engaged! I recommend choosing your wedding bands at least four months prior to your wedding in case they have to be special-ordered or to give the jewelers time to size your rings.

Fine jewelry is amazing for your big day because it can be something that lasts and passed down to your children (maybe even something borrowed for their wedding day)!

We are so excited about Lake Charles's newest jewelry store! Legacy Jewelers, formerly Bodin Jewelers, is owned by Kimberly Griffin and staffed by some of the best in the business.

-Football Season: I got married at a plantation outside of Baton Rouge and had to plan my wedding around when LSU had an away game. I had my heart set on the weekend of their homecoming but ultimately decided against it to make it easier on my guests.

-Graduations: In our area, a lot of people get married during or right out of college. Typically, you'll still have a few friends in college so check graduation dates before setting the date in December and May! You'd hate for your maid of honor to have to miss part of your big day or your grandma to be torn between wedding festivities for you and graduation for your cousin.

There's so much to think about when setting THE date!

But what is most important is that you, your fiancĂŠ, and your loved ones are there with you to celebrate this next step in your life!

Happily Ever After Begins Here.

Brides deserve a bridal room as beautiful as the life they are about to begin. You’ll find it, under the oaks at Oak Crossing.

(337) 421-6200 | 5656 Nelson Rd.

oakcrossing.net

picking a venue...

Your venue sets the feel for your wedding. It should be one of the first things booked because that will determine (almost) everything else! If you have your heart set on a particular one, it may even determine your wedding date. We love a unique venue and our area is full of them!

Here are a few things to consider when deciding on a place: 1. Location: How far away is it from everything else?

A long drive between the wedding and reception might not be the most practical.

2. Capacity: Can it fit all the people you want to invite?Is it too small or too big?

3. Availability: How flexible is your wedding date?

Flexible enough to change it to have this venue?

4. Layout: Does it have space for all aspects of your wedding? Are you having a cocktail hour? Dance floor?A space to get ready?

5. Rates: Does it fit within the budget?

6. Caterer: Is that included? Do they have restrictions? Do they have a preferred list? Is their preferred list also people on your preferred list?

7. Facility extras: Find out what is included in the price and what is extra. Do they provide tables?

Linens?Chairs? Find out any add-ons and include that in the price when comparing between venues. Also find out taxes and/or gratuities that aren't included in the minimums.

If you have a wedding planner, they will be able to provide valuable insight to different venues and what is a good fit for your wedding and your budget. If you don't have a planner, book some meetings and take tours of multiple different spaces. If you've booked your photographer, they can also provide valuable insight to which venues they love!

wedding dress Wedding dress shopping should be so much fun. It should be a day you remember and a day you feel like a bride. You should have bridal consultants fawning over you, fluffing your dress, and helping bring your vision to life!

Unfortunately, it can get real stressful real quick. So here are some tips to help you have a smooth & successful bridal appointment!

Know your budget. Know exactly what you want to spend. Let your consultant know if your budget is flexible. If there is a gown you love but it is out of your price range, don't even try it on.

Do your research! You don't have to know what style gown you want...in fact, it'll probably change once you start trying them on. Do know the boutiques you are going to, their price points, their style of gowns, and make sure it lines up with everything you want.

Be prepared to buy! Most of our brides purchase on their first appointment because they find the right gown! Know the boutique's policy on purchasing (how much is required for down payment) and come prepared!

Know if there are any wedding dress restrictions or regulations at your wedding venue. Many catholic churches in our area require some sort of strap or sleeve. Obviously, most churches want your dress to have a degree of modesty so before you go for the plunging neckline, know if there are any rules.

Choose who you bring with you to your appointment wisely. The fastest way to stress a bride out is the opinionated people sitting on the settee. The less people you bring, the fewer opinions you have to entertain. Bring your biggest supporters for the initial appointment.

At our store, we'll always let you bring everyone else back to see you in your chosen wedding dress we'll pop confetti to celebrate with everyone!

Order your gown ASAP! Depending on the designer, it can take your gown 4-6 months to come in. You'll also need alterations for the PERFECT fit which can take a couple months. If you are taking bridal portraits, your gown has to be finished by the time you take those! If you need a gown quickly, some designers will let us rush for a fee, or some bridal boutiques may be able to sell you a gown offthe-rack. The best thing is to order your gown as soon as possible to avoid rush fees and to make sure you get the gown of your dreams!

We'd love to make all your wedding dress dreams come true at L Bridal Couture!

xoxo, Laurie

INVITATIONS We DIE over good wedding invitations and a wax seal! Invitations are the first look people have of your wedding and really set the tone. We love Christine and Michelle at Shop Aurea and the gorgeous work that they do on creating a customized wedding invitation suite (their speciality). They even do save the dates!

Another thing we love? The custom water color work that Emily Green and Kallan Stout do for weddings!

Our area has so much artistic talent and we encourage our brides to always go local for unique, special touches for their wedding.

shoďż˝ Kallan Stout Designs creates beautiful wedding invitations and programs. She specializes in hand-drawn or painted wedding crests that are unique to each couple.

She also is an artist who will recreate a photo of your big day in beautiful watercolor. kallanstoutdesigns.com Facebook or instagram: Kallan Stout

CUSTOM WATEll.COLOR ARTIST

email us for your complimentary consultation 1nvited@shopaurea com

www

c;hopaurea com

@11

Emily is a custom watercolor artist specializing in wedding monogram crests, venue portraits, wedding maps, wedding guest sign ins, and signature drink signs. www.emilygreendesignco.com email: emilygreendesignco@gmail.com instagram: emilygreendesign

photographers I know I keep saying this, but we have such talent in our

staples in wedding photography in our area. They took

area! The photographers and videographers are unreal. We

some of the most beautiful photos of our store, our brides,

couldn’t even put all our favorites in the guide, or it would

and our gowns (check out the back cover of this insert)!

have just been a wedding photography guide!

Maggie Bradshaw is another force to be reckoned with!

Emily Fuselier and her husband, Euric, are well known

She spent 6 months in Seattle learning wedding and bridal

wedding photographers in our area. Individually, they are

photography, and you can definitely tell in her photos. She’s

ridiculously talented but together they are a powerhouse

the sweetest person you’ll ever meet, and we are obsessed

of photography. Fun fact. They do all of their weddings

with every photo she takes! She just got her own studio

in FILM but of course, you still get digital copies of your

downtown and is doing a lot of studio bridals which are

photos and they do use digital as well. You can always

new for our area! If you’d like to see a peek, check out the

recognize an Emily Fuselier photo and they have become

cover of this insert. That is a Maggie Bradshaw original!

+

+

videographers Clark Miller is good, y’all. His photos are full of color

Now a videographer may or may not be on your must

and his style is distinct. He got his start in photography in

have list of wedding vendors but I will say it is one of the

INDIA for 6 months with nothing but his iPhone! Now,

BEST things I did for my wedding. Your wedding FLIES

of course, he has much better equipment and is literally

by and this way you have actual footage to remember one

killing it in the wedding industry in our area. We are so

of the biggest days of your lives! And if your photographer

lucky to have such talent and so many options of wedding

missed something, chances are your videographer got it.

photographers!

You also get to have a video camera following you around so you totally feel like a celebrity on your wedding day!

Harp Films is made up of a couple (Dakota and Lodden Harp) that would love to tell your love story for you!

h a i rF+Fm a k e u p All three of these businesses I adore! All of them have the perfect space for large wedding parties and have enough stylists to handle ALL your wedding needs!

Angela (the owner) at Haute Couture Salon has been doing my hair for 12+ years and did hair and makeup for my wedding 5 years ago!

Sarabeth (one of the two adorable owners of Blush) was my tennis doubles partner in high school, so we go way back! Blush's space is gorgeous and is set up perfectly for wedding parties! Their space is great for photos too!!

Dermalogix is literally our next door neighbor. They probably want to kill us for shrieking when we find the perfect gown but they never do. They are the sweetest and have so much talent in their salon!

The most

important day of your life

should begin with us.

Expert hair, skin and make-up consultations for the Bride, Maids and Moms.

5656 Nelson Rd. • Lake Charles Gift Cards dermalogixspa.com • 477.1195 Available

wedding prep You’ll definitely need a limo to ride around in style on your wedding day and we love Platinum Limousine! Mimosa Boutique has the best little white dresses in town which are perfect for bridal showers and your rehearsal dinner. Slender Solutions can help you lose those last few inches if your wedding gown is a little snug! They also do spray tans if you need a little glow for your wedding day. Kim at Kimbla’s Cakes does the most amazing cakes! She is originally from SWLA but recently moved to Morgan City after marrying her husband. She does free setup and delivery to make your wedding day smooth!

your one stop shop for all the other dresses engagement parties, showers, bachelorette extravaganzas, rehearsal dinners

848 MARGUERITE ST MORGAN CITY, LA 70380 985-354-6484 FREE CAKE DELIVERY & SETUP TO SOUTH LOUISIANA

3125 Ernest Street, Lake Charles, LA @mimosaboutiquelc | 337 . 564 . 5818 M-F 10- 5:30 | SAT 10- 4 CLOSED SUN

A NEW FAMILYÂ

tradition

FOR SOUTHERN BRIDES

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY (337) 884-0621 | LBRIDALCOUTURE.COM