If you are planning a Virginia wedding, finding the right Virginia wedding planner is the first step and with SO many incredibly talented Roanoke VA wedding planners, so I thought it would be fun to feature some of the best here on the KWP blog!
Meet Andrea Ferris with Andrea Ferris Events: Roanoke VA wedding planner. When she’s not working, you can find Andrea travelling at the beach– like we are anytime we can!! Let’s get to know her!!
Describe your dream wedding day: Ah, this is a loaded question, so many things can make a dream wedding day, I’ll list a few great ones — dream team of vendors, no hiccups at all in the plan, timeline runs as close to on time as possible, the bride & groom have a fabulous time, weather is 70 and sunny & I’m curled up on the couch with a glass of wine by 11:00p 🙂
What makes a dream client for you? AFE’s dream/ideal client is realistic with their budget in correlation with their vision for their wedding. They’re stylish and open to discussion on how to make their vision come alive. They respond to communication in a timely manner (24-72 hours), and they have full trust that our team can make their wedding day everything they imagined.
What is the most popular service you offer? This really fluctuates, for a while Month-of Coordination was the most popular collection but lately Full Service Planning and Coordination has come in to be neck and neck with that service. I love keeping a balance of both.
How many weddings do you take on per year? How far outside of your location do you serve? AFE takes on about 25-30 weddings per year with the help of our amazing team. The sky is the limit with the location. I’ve planned an elopement in Spain before (although our team didn’t get to go) and right now am planning a wedding in Boston. I love to travel and most of our planning work is done behind the scenes and can be completed anywhere. Site visits are always a plus, but we can make that happen the week of the wedding if the destination is far. All that to say, wherever there are weddings, we will be there!
Do you specialize in any particular type of weddings? No, AFE plans all types of weddings! One reason I love my career is that every day is different, every wedding and event is different. If they were all the same, I’d get really bored.
Do you offer any services outside of full planning? Yes, AFE customizes every collection to every couple, but our standard list of planning and coordination collections offered are Full Service, Partial Planning and Month-of Coordination. We recently added the Wedding Weekend Collection which is an elevated Full Service Collection including planning and coordination of either a rehearsal dinner or welcome party and a farewell brunch the day following the wedding.
Do you offer services on non-wedding days? Yes! We plan corporate events, holiday parties, rehearsal dinners, retirement parties – any kind of celebration, we’re in!
What are your top 3 favorite venues and why? I always tell people I don’t have a favorite venue because they all offer something completely different, but I will tell you the three I love working at the most, which also all offer something different (and all have wonderful staff):
What would your advice be to brides who don’t currently have a planner? My advice to brides who don’t currently have a planner is: you may LOVE to plan, this might be the most fun and exciting time ever for you, but you 100% need a coordinator for the month-of/day-of the wedding so that you can sit back, relax and see all the hard work you’ve put into planning your big day. This way you can enjoy the time with your partner and family. If you don’t love to plan and you’re struggling with getting everything organized, there are ways to get the help you need even if a Full Service Planner isn’t in your budget. AFE offers hourly planning sessions during the off season to help people kick start planning and answer questions with no commitment to booking a collection. Whatever you do though, hire a month-of or day-of planner – you won’t regret it.
Why did you decide to be a wedding planner? Right out of college I had a job as a venue coordinator, and I loved coordinating events. I went through a couple of different positions and hospitality jobs, and I decided I wanted to be my own boss. Weddings were something I really missed while working in a restaurant, so I just went for it. I knew I wanted to plan and coordinate more than just weddings, which I am now, but to begin with, weddings were where the business was for me. I love seeing a vision come to life and seeing happy couples on their wedding day. It’s truly a wonderful rush that fulfills me in my work.
What is your favorite part about wedding planning? Definitely seeing it all come together and seeing how excited the couples are after months, sometimes years of planning.
#1 piece of advice for current brides wedding planning: Book your vendors early and choose them carefully. Worry about the smaller details once you have your dream team lined up. AND hire a wedding planner!
Favorite current wedding trend: Renting fun soft seating vignettes and cool touches to elevate the wedding aesthetic and guest experience.
Favorite drink: I’d say if we are talking alcoholic beverages: Old Fashioned but if we are talking cozy winter beverages: Vanilla Latte
Favorite thing to do when you’re not working? Not working? What’s that mean? 🙂 Favorite thing to do is travel – mostly to the beach, any beach. It’s hard for me to take my mind off work if I’m not somewhere fun, out of town.
Thanks for checking out this week’s blog post! If you’re new here, I am Katelyn Workman, a Virginia and destination wedding photographer. My husband and I photograph every wedding as a team, and we absolutely love serving the best KWP couples that turn into family by the end of their wedding photography experience. If you are looking for a wedding photographer, just start with an inquiry to check your date and from there we will reach out with collection options and plan the perfect wedding photography package for you! Can’t wait to be besties!!
Enjoy this Virginia wedding photography inspo:
xoxo,
Katelyn Workman
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