MY WEDDING WEEK ROUTINE

Let's talk today about wedding week workflow, shall we? I will admit that I am type B kind of girl and work the best under pressure. However, this may have worked for me in college with term papers and finals, but not so much when you have a big beautiful wedding on your hands. Figuring out the best time management strategies for myself come wedding week has been a game changer.  Everyone has different ways of setting up their workflow, these ways I'm about to share just work great for me; I'd love to hear some of your ideas too! So let's dive into it! 

Photo by Andrea Pesce Photo

I place my floral orders about two weeks in advance. Maybe a little longer if I need something a little exotic or out of the box. This way I don't have to worry about not being able to get something in time, and if something is wrong, I have plenty of time to work it out and not feel stressed. Two weeks out is when I make sure I have everything I need supply wise too and if anything needs to be constructed installation wise, now is the time when that happens. If something needs to be built or made, I know it will be done well before those gorgeous blooms arrive. If I have multiple wedding months like this upcoming Fall, my calendar needs to be scheduled to the minute to make sure I'm not leaving anything out for a wedding. For example, I'll take a Monday and use the morning to work on nonperishable items for one wedding and the afternoon to work on something for the next wedding. This way I'm not leaving anything till last minute. Timing is everything, my friends. I also use this time to confirm timelines with my brides regarding set up time so I can know well in advance what time loading needs to happen and when we need to be on the road to the venue. 
A few extra things I get together two weeks out are lists of everything. For example.
1. List of my floral orders so I know if I'm missing anything.
2. List of vases and inventory I will be using.
3. List of the wedding day timeline.
4. List of pieces that needed. 

MONDAYS

Once we get into wedding week, the fun begins! During wedding weeks, I usually have my vacation responder on my email and my wedding becomes my priority. Mondays are when I get buckets ready and prepare the ribbon for the bouquets. I also wipe down all the inventory I'll need and get all my supplies in place. This way when my flowers arrive, I can attend to them right away

TUESDAYS

Tuesdays are when my first floral order usually comes. These typically include all the greens I'll need and any hearty roses I want to allow to open before a Saturday wedding. If I have a Sunday wedding, this schedule moves back a day. A Friday wedding, it shifts forward a day. Tuesdays are when I get all my vases ready with either chicken wire or foam. The processing of flowers starts this day too. I like to spend a couple of hours in the afternoon doing this. Then I "green out" all my centerpieces. That means I put in all the greenery for each piece so I can place flowers in accordingly on Wednesday and Thursday! 

WEDNESDAYS

Wednesdays are when the bulk of my orders arrive. I take a few hours to process and then knock out as many centerpieces as I can before the end of the day. I like to try and get about half of them done so I know I have a good head start on Thursday.

THURSDAYS 

Thursday is centerpiece day and knowing I have half of them done from Wednesday, I'm not stressed and can enjoy the day designing without feeling rushed. Priceless my friends. If everything goes according to schedule, they are wrapped up by 5 pm, and I can enjoy my evening with my little family. Working into the night during wedding week is bound to happen from time to time. I just like to make it a point to stick to work hours as much as possible. It's better for my piece of mind and overall well being the week of a wedding. 

FRIDAYS

Fridays are bouquet days. I like to start with the bridal bouquet. It's my favorite (of course), and it just starts my day on the best note. Bridal bouquets sometimes take hours and doing them on Friday mornings allow me ample time to get it perfect. Doing it first also lets me make sure Once the star of the show is complete I move on to bridesmaid bouquets. These tend to be less involved and smaller, but still take up a few hours. I like to place ribbons on bouquets once I arrive at the venue, so the don't get soaked with water during transit. Once bouquets are completed, I move onto small personals. This category includes boutonnieres, flower crowns, and corsages.  These need to be made last since they are the most perishable and need to be delivered at their freshest. On Friday evenings, loading begins. Anything non-perishable gets put in the cars the night before so that all I need to do the morning of the event is load the florals. 

I think the key for time management for the week of a wedding is finding what works best for you and your team. It took over a year for me to finally nail down a schedule that didn't leave me rushing and stressed. My brides deserve the very best work and the utmost professionalism from me, and that starts with planning a schedule and timeline that works for me. A detailed and curated workflow that allows me to wake up on a wedding day feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the day is priceless. 

Happy Fall season y'all! 

Warmly,
Michelle 

MY LIFE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. ADVICE AND HAVING BOUNDARIES

Happy Tuesday, sweet friends! 

I'm talking today about a topic that I've felt passionately about recently. Earlier this year, (March I believe) I deactivated my Facebook account....and it stayed that way for 3 months. 3 whole months away from the non stop scrolling, clicking on unimportant links, and time wasting. Friends, it was amazing. Now, if you've known me for quite sometime you'll know that deactivating Facebook for me is a huge deal. Not too long ago I was addicted. Really addicted. I would take my phone with me into the bathroom, have it under my pillow at night, and I was that person at dinner with friends checking my feed. Yikes! Facebook with OSDIM came to a point of overwhelm with me and that was my tipping point. The constant messages from friends and fellow wedding industry pals and group notifications became too much. So one day I just did it. I hit deactivate and after Facebook asked me one thousand times if I was really sure,(yes I AM SURE) I was off it. That first day, hard. Really hard. Second day? I didn't even think about it. So strange for me, but I found it so worth it. I'm back on it now, but I've changed the way I use it and all other social media platforms. I wanted to share today the little rules I go by to get the most out of my social accounts and the systems I put in place as well as the boundaries that have helped put a little zen back in my life. 

BOUNDARIES

Boundaries on SM is hard when you're running a business. Our society as a whole is consumed with distractions and the  need of information quickly and sometimes I feel us as creatives are more prone to the constant scrolling. We want to know what our industry peers are up to and what pretty things will pop up on our feeds. We want to post and keep everyone updated with what we're working on (or what we're eating for lunch) It's normal, totally normal. We own businesses who's ideal clients are on platforms like IG, FB, and Snapchat, it's where we have to be, but it's a tricky road though. Here are some things I'm doing to make sure I'm using social media platforms to their full potential for my businesses while minimizing my time using social media. 

Facebook- 

While I'm not loving being back on it, for me Facebook is where I network with area creatives and have access to business groups that I find helpful. Those things I did miss while I was gone. Instagram doesn't have an events section so while I was off of FB I missed out on a few gatherings I would of loved to attend, but didn't know about them because I couldn't be "added" or "invited" 

So what I basically did was took out everything I could that I didn't like. I no longer check messages on there. Regardless of who they are from. One less inbox to worry about. I also unfriended anyone I haven't spoken to in 2 or more years. My feed became a lot less cluttered and more filled with the people I love. I also went and unfollowed about a hundred more people so I don't see them on my feed and did the same with pages I have liked or groups I'm in. I turned off notifications to all but a few groups so I don't get those annoying notifications anymore. Hooray! Seems a little harsh, I know, but my mental health I figured was more important.  Since taking a Facebook hiatus I'm not attached to my phone anymore and have even on multiples times forgotten it at home and actually felt relieved about it. That my friends is me living the dream. I also recommend social media free weekends- life changing. 

Limiting my time spent on Facebook has been key for me to stop the scroll. I like to "check in" 3 times a day max and for no longer than 10 minutes. Facebook for me isn't where a lot of my business comes from so it's the last thing I post to. I love to keep my business page updated, but it's not a key tool for me in the overall picture. This is just me though. I know some ladies who kill it on FB. Using it as more of an informational outlet and networking tool has worked a lot better for me as far as time and benefiting my business.  

So FB, I think I'll stick around. (but please give us a way to disable messaging for personal pages...) 

INSTAGRAM

My (and everybody's) favorite platform. I can talk for days about how much I love IG. It's where almost half of my inquiries come from and is such a huge part of my business therefore I spend the most time on it. Instagram is my brand. It's where you get to know me (as well as here on the blog) Some rules I like to abide by are...

1. QUALITY IS MUCH BETTER THAN QUANTITY

Something I've learned this year  is that for me quality over quantity is key. I know now that posting a few times a week about things I'm working on, intentional captions, and shots of behind the scenes work is a lot better than posting constantly. Quality of posts is so much more beneficial than everyday multiple times a day for me and my business. I don't have any rules when it comes to what I post (like 5 work posts 1 personal post etc) I just post what feels right. To me Instagram is little snippets of a bigger picture. Mini chapters of the book I'm theoretically writing. 

2. CONSISTENT FEED

Instagram is an extension of my brand and my website. I want it to feel like a little nook of my business and I accomplish that my sticking with a similar color scheme, exposure, and content. A pretty feed is a happy feed ! I like to also create little hashtag groups outside of weddings and work (#theschmidtchateau, #onesweetsummerfun) They make great little niches for parts of your life and creates consistency between projects. 

3. BE SOCIAL!

I always make it a point to comment back when people write a note on a photo. I also get a ton of emails asking where things in my office are from and I always respond. I think it's important to show that there is a person behind the pretty. I also comment on others photos as much as possible. It's such a good way to break the ice (I've made actual real life friends this way) And it's a great tool for bringing people to your account. Which brings me to my next rule...

4. TAKE RELATIONSHIPS OFFLINE 

I learned this one earlier this year. A comment or a few likes are wonderful, but even better is branching out and inviting that fellow creative out for coffee or lunch. This of course really only works if your local, but if not send someone you admire or would love to work with or become friends with a little note. Snail mail is a glorious thing in this day and age. Instagram might disappear at any moment (I really hope not, but you never know!) So it's important to bring relationships you start on IG into the "real "life"

5. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY FOLLOWERS YOU HAVE OR LIKES YOU GET 

Seriously! I'd much rather have 50 likes on a post and interact with 20 of those followers than 200 and interact with 0. Again, it's about those relationships. Focus on the followers you have now and cultivate those friendships and be social with them. Your business should not be solely run on social media and based on how many followers you have. If Instagram shut down tomorrow where would all those thousands of followers be? Nowhere. Start focusing on the ones you have now. (This also works for booking clients, but that's a whole other post..) Also, please don't like your own photos...I promise you the amount of "likes" doesn't matter. 

INSTAGRAM STORIES AND SNAPCHAT

Anyone else's jaw drop when IG launched stories 2 weeks ago? Yikes! and Rude. I wasn't sure what to think at first. I'm on snapchat, but admittedly not great at it. We know that Stories is pretty much the same thing, but I quickly realized how much of a great tool it can be. lt's basically snapchat but for my for my IG audience. Gotta love that! So far I don't have any rules or advice for it, but I'm thinking of using it mostly when I'm working behind the scenes on a project or a wedding to give followers an inside look. And a little here and there in everyday life. 

FURTHUR...

if you’re needing help with managing your social media content you can look into apps like CoSchedule and Postso.com. You can also create a social media calendar to really get organized! Buy a separate calendar or planner and schedule out the next month of blog posts, Instagram, and Facebook content. Talk about a weight lifted off your shoulders. Once you have topics and and content figured out you can get to work on bringing those blogs and posts to life so that when publish time comes along, you'll be set and not stressed. High fives all around for that! 

There are so many other tools out there to help professionals lead a more organized and stress free life so that we can reach our goals. Everyone and every business is different. Find the boundaries that work for you and the "rules" that take your Social Media game to the next level. 

Warmly,

Michelle 

6 TIPS TO GET FEATURED

Styled Shoots seem to be my love language huh? I talk about them non-stop and today I'm focusing on the all important submission. We spend so much time and money creating bridal inspiration and submitting to blogs such as Ruffled and Style Me Pretty can be nerve-wracking! Getting a no here and there is going to happen no matter what- it sucks, but the great things is there are dozens and dozens of great blogs out there to get featured on so you can just try somewhere else! Hooray! I wanted to share some tips that I've learned over the past year of being a part of and putting on editorial shoots. Keep in mind the smaller blogs too! Of course to get that yes from blogs like Style Me Pretty and and 100 Layer Cake is so exciting, but sometimes the smaller blogs give you better exposure. You stay on their front page longer and in turn getter more traffic to your website.

These are little tips to help you get that yes from editors. My tips focus on online weddings blogs and print submissions may be a little but different, but regardless these are the 5 things I think about when a Styled Shoot is on the schedule. 

Photo by Alicia Lacey Photography.

1. DETAILS

When it comes to details, blogs love them! Portraits of brides and grooms are of course stunning, but blogs really (and I mean really) love details. The paper products, accessories,  the dessert table, the table settings- all are so important. My tip? Make your details unique yet not so out there. Blogs love things that are creative and different but that real brides can attain. 

2. BE UNIQUE 

I've said this before, but it's so important. With the abundance of styled shoots happening everywhere we look, you have to stand out. Think outside the box and make an idea your own. The same things seem to be done repeatedly. Be fresh and use that creative brain of yours! I think as a general rule, you should be your own self in this industry. It benefits everyone. Show that unique side in a styled shoot. it's the perfect platform to be you.  

3. VERTICAL IMAGES

Allow for the majority of your images to be vertical. Editors love to pair images and verticals alway look better on a webpage layout. You have to style and and shoot your designs for a submission. Keep that in mind. 

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Photo by Courtney Morgan Photo. Ribbon by Ruffled Lane.

4. FOLLOW BLOG RULES

Each and every blog has it's own set of procedures for blog submissions whether it's through their site directly, two bright lights, or through a gallery link. Be sure to check with the site you are submitting and follow each direction perfectly. It makes it so much easier for the editors and staff involved and you're more likely to get that yes. 

5. CREATE A STORY

This is my favorite tip. When I start an idea for a shoot, I think about a story. Readers of blogs want to see a story created through your images. For one, it makes your editorial more relatable. Brides want to be able to see themselves in this beautiful setting you are creating. Stories can be told in so many different ways. Through beautiful meaningful  details, the bride and grooms models, the setting. The options are endless and can really make you stand out. 

6. YOUR SUBMISSION TEXT 

Tell the editors all the things! What was your vision going into this shoot, tell them about the details, the flowers, the DIY elements, Tell them your story! 

Another tip, the more vendors involved (the more URLS) the better your chances! Be sure to credit every vendor too! This seems like it would be obvious, but sometimes a vendor gets overlooked especially with sneak peaks on social media. It's time consuming to get every vendor tag and double check you didn't forget anyone, but it's oh so important. No one wants anyone's feelings to get hurt. Make list of everyone involved with their names, business names, social media handles, and website. Once you comply your list, email it to everyone on board so everyone can easily credit everyone when posting.

Good luck sweet friends, just remember to be your true self and make an idea your own. Be intentional and use shoots to express your style and set yourself apart. 

Warmly,

Michelle