Wedding Advice from 2023 West Michigan Brides

February 26, 2024

By Jamie May Photography: I asked my clients this year to fill out a form to help advise future married couples: Wedding Advice from 2023 West Michigan Brides. I have done this in the past, and people have said they actually read it and it was helpful! So I thought it would be great to do it again to see if any fresh information is helpful. Each number is coordinated to the person sharing throughout the survey. Good luck planning your wedding! Check out my blog for my helpful tips and advice.

Wedding Advice from 2023 West Michigan Brides

Venues you liked or went with

Trillium Events in SL
Millcreek Wilde
Reception Venue: Clearwater Place Rehearsal Dinner and Bridal Shower: Paddock Place
The High Five GR
The Atrium downtown GR

Budget

$15,000-$20,000
$25,000-$30,000
$35,000-$40,000
$35,000-$40,000
$15,000-$20,000

Did you do a first look and are you happy you did or didn’t

No, we didn’t and I’m glad we didn’t. I had a first look with my dad and it was very sweet.
Yes, we loved it
Yes, we loved it
Yes, we loved it
Yes, we loved it

Would you change anything about your timeline?

No. We left time in. Got through what we needed. And had a blast.
I would ask for the bridal party & parents to arrive a little earlier than I had thought. A few were late, which led to rushing through the setup process and not allowing us enough time to eat a quick lunch before we got dressed. Bottom line, plan for more time than you think you need!!
Nothing! It was perfect. We planned it for months and ran it by our ceremony venue, reception venue, day of coordinator, and Jamie May, our photographer 🙂 We had a lot of input to help ensure everything went well!
Yes, would’ve started hair and makeup a bit later
No, it flowed perfectly

Did you hire your flowers or do them yourself? Any tips or websites to share?

Spring Lake Floral
Hired out. Inspiration photos are huge for your florist to see so they know your vision. We did this and our flowers could not have been any more perfect.
Hire! We loved working with Eastern Floral. Rachel was fantastic to work with!
Hired flowers – used Eastern Floral
Hired – Quinn Supply Co did a wonderful job

Where did you buy your dress?

A little store in Muskegon that is now closed.
Adore Bridal (Morton, IL)
Becker’s Bridal in Fowler, MI! It was an amazing experience. My mom and mother in law got their dresses from Becker’s Outlet in East Lansing!
Honey Bridal in Chicago
Magnolia Bridal in Jenison

Where do you buy bridesmaids dresses?

David’s Bridal. With bridesmaids all spread out, even in other states, it was easiest this way
Bill Levkoff
Revelry! It was perfect.
Birdy Grey
Davids Bridal

Decorations do or don’ts

N/A
Yes, but minimal decor. Our venue was already so beautiful. The florist handled all our table decor. We brought the seating chart cards, bar sign, dessert sign, dessert platters, and a few framed photos.
Plan early and work with your venue to understand the space you have to decorate! Decorations can be simple if you have floral.
Less is more, stay classic and timeless, candles make everything better
Do have a few as possible and DIY it!

Organization tips?

Have a detailed schedule. Some people made fun of me for it but my wedding ran off without a hitch.
Make a checklist of things that need to be completed each month leading up to your wedding, including payment deadlines. This helped us stay organized the whole time, which was huge since we planned everything.
Plan early! We were relaxed the month before the wedding because we had consistently been in touch with vendors and kept them updated, stayed up to date with due dates, and had continuously worked out our timeline until we felt ready. Make an excel sheet of vendors and contacts.
Spreadsheets galore
Printed timelines and instructions for the venue

Printers for printing pictures or albums

Made a small one for parents from Shutterfly.
We used Walgreens for framed photos & Mixbook for our guestbook. Our guestbook had photos from our engagement session in it.
N/A
Artifact Uprising for albums, Shutterfly for pictures
Artifact Uprising for albums

Best advice?

No matter what happens on the day, looking back everything will be perfect and such a wonderful day full of memories! We had a ice cream cart which wasn’t too expensive, was a hit with the guests and we got a lot of left over ice cream!
Enjoy your day. Soak in as much as you can. It goes by SO quick.
Don’t stress!
Live in the moment and forget all the drama a wedding brings
Do what you want and don’t try to impress anyone.

Gifts for Bridesmaids / Groomsman Ideas

Personalized mugs for groomsmen, jewelry for bridesmaids
Getting ready robe, earrings to wear on wedding day, and all meals.
I gave custom jewelry and jewelry boxes for my girls. I also did hand written notes! Groomsmen received custom koozies, cups, and ties.
Bridesmaids: Earrings, getting ready PJs and slippers, Groomsman: ties and favorite nfl team socks
Day of jewelry for girls and matching socks for guys

Favorite Food

N/A
My favorite food was probably our cake! Though the mashed potatoes were a close second.
Appetizers – Mini Philly Cheesesteaks Bowls, Dinner – Sun dried tomato ravioli
Steak and mashed potatoes
Pizza and pasta bar

Would you use your Bakery again? What company did you use?

I don’t remember! She did it out of her house but it was delicious!
Black Currant Bakehouse in Union Pier, MI. 100% would use them again. We chose to do a small cake and assorted desserts. Our guests loved the desserts! In fact, we still make frequent visits there for pastries when we are in town. 😋😋
Yes! Connie’s Cakes were amazing to work with. We received so many compliments on the cupcakes!
Yes – Nantucket Baking Company. Was amazing!
We skipped the cake and just had cheese cake from the venue

What do you recommend bringing the day of?

N/A
An outfit to change into when you leave your reception. I ended up going back to our hotel in my getting ready outfit, but wish I had something else.
A copy of your day of schedule, copy of your contact list, emergency kit, and a smile 🙂
Nothing – everything should be dropped off in advance.
Comfy clothes, snacks, and mints

What is in your emergency bag?

I don’t know that I had one. Not smart.
Deodorant, ibuprofen, tums, bobby pins, tampons.
Sewing kit, medicine (advil, Motrin), snacks, back up shoes, bandaids, hair clips, jewelry, back up dress, deodorant, perfume, bandaids, tooth brushes and tooth paste, makeup
Boob tape, hairspray, Tylenol, Bobbie pins, deodorant, perfume, gum, floss, liquid eyeliner, oil sheets for blotting makeup
Didn’t have one

Who helped you set up and tear down?

Parents and master/mistress of ceremony
Bridal party & parents.
Family and friends! We also had our florist, Eastern Floral, do take down for our floral!
My day of coordinator
Venue set up, family helped tear down

Did you hire a wedding planner? if so, who?

Me, myself, and I 😆
No
We had a Day of Coordinator – Nicole Billette! She was amazing.
No
No

Who was your caterer? Would you use again

Trillium Events, it was delicious! People still talk about our food
CK Catering – yes. We did family style and it worked well.
Gilmore Catering – Yes! Gilmore works with Clearwater Place and we loved our food. We received great feedback from our guests too!
Gilmore Catering – 100% yes! We still compliments on how good the food was a year later.
Uccellos downtown