Photography by Bernie Elking
Last summer, wedding planner Sheri Steffens appeared on TLC’s Four Weddings. The reality show features a quartet of couples, typically strangers, who attend and rank one another’s nuptials—but this episode had a twist: All four of the couples in this episode, each from St. Louis, were friends and family. “That is the first time, I think, that has ever really happened,” says Steffens, owner of St. Charles–based Heart Events, which planned all four events. “It was like competing with myself. I worked with each couple to really make it amazing.” How can you make your own wedding amazing? We asked the expert.
Advice: “Pinpoint a couple of features that you really want to make stand out. People can’t remember absolutely everything in your wedding, but if you have a couple of standouts that people just ooh and aah over, that’ll go so far, and it will save on your budget as well.”
Preparedness: “We’ve had some weather disasters—we’ve had a tornado, and we lost electricity. One time, a storm knocked in a pane of glass right before the reception. Luckily, we had another room that was ready, so we moved it over and figured out the rest later. In this business, you have to be ready for almost anything. That’s what makes a good planner: ‘What happens if…’ You’ve got to think quick sometimes.”
Trend: “Linens. It’s now big textures, not just colors; some of your tables might be blue stripes, and some might be sequins. Even with just one color, you could go with a lot of different styles.”
Priorities: “Always remember what is important. It’s not all the décor or fluff; it’s who you’re marrying and the family. If you do that, it gets much better, much easier.”
