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Pamela reserve Styled Shoot Location: Pamela Reserve, Happy Valley ​ Vendor Credits: Event Styling & Hire: White Orchid Events Photographer: Josh Geelen Photography ​ * Photos shown are taken by White Orchid Events and Josh Geelen Photography * ​ ​ This beautiful, local reserve is proof that you don't need to spend thousands on a beautiful location. We chose this location to showcase our new picnic, eclectic pieces and were more than impressed with Josh Geelen who brought our vision to reality. ​ This location would be perfect for a casual wedding and / or picnic, lunch ceremony and reception.

WEDDING MANAGEMENT (a.k.a The RESCUE ME PACKAGE) ​ Our rescue package is for you if you need assistance confirming and finalizing plans closer to the wedding day, usually 4 weeks to a month before. ​ Upon hire of our services (usually a month before) Unlimited pre-wedding consultations face to face to go through your ideas and what you would like for me to do and not do (including styling) Unlimited communication via email and phone as required Site inspections of confirmed venue locations Sourcing of last minute suppliers etc. Scheduling of appointments to finalize suppliers Management of requirements, contracts and payments for all suppliers Working with you on style of your theme and wedding Development of wedding schedule including final deposits and payment due dates for suppliers and venue ​ Before the big day: Attendance at ceremony and reception rehearsals, if required Attendance at tastings or other supplier appointments, if required Coordination with all suppliers and venues before the day to ensure a smooth day (confirm times, contact details and bookings) Work with the couple on schedule for the day Work with the couple to draw up a list of family for photographs Distribute run sheet to suppliers, venue and the couple Including provisions and methods to handle variables – weather, venue access, timings. On the big day: Coordination of all suppliers and venues on the day Provide an “Emergency Wedding Kit” Set-up, Pack-down and Styling of all decorations and venues Styling of bonbonnieres when not included in venue set-up Attendance on your wedding day until the last big event (or to the end if hired our items) Usher and assist guests to their seats while waiting for arrival Help organising the wedding party before aisle walk and last checks on dresses/makeup etc. Manage family photographs after the ceremony using pre-written list Pack up of ceremony Brief the MC/DJ and venue before start of reception Working with the Venue Managers to ensure everything is on scheduled Running of the ceremony and reception as per the schedule Gather and coordinate the speeches Looking after suppliers that are there on the day (i.e MC/DJ and Photographer) Ensuring that the Wedding Party have eaten and are hydrated And of course, giving the couple the best day yet ​ We would love to chat! Contact us!

J & J Ceremony Location: Sutton Gardens Reception Location: Sturt Baseball Club ​Vendor Credits: Wedding Planner & Event Hire: White Orchid Events Groom / Groomsmen Suits: Ferrari Formal Wear Celebrant: Gaynor Photographer: Ross Lamb DJ and Photobooth: Chloe & Chris DJs ​ *Photos shown were taken by White Orchid Events* This simply, beautiful wedding was a champagne, peach and white theme. The couple were married in the Sutton Gardens under the big tree covered in butterflies, across the road from their reception location - Sturt Baseball Club: special location for the Bride & Groom where they met and continue to be a part of the community through their love of baseball. We had the honoured of styling a couple of unique, special pieces. Setting up the bride's fathers picture on the bridal table and the cup art on the baseball fencing. We just love special wedding locations with a deeper meaning: family. ​ 1/11

When planning a wedding in COVID times the key question is how can you make it work? Wedding planning can be stressful for couples at the best of times, let alone adding in a pandemic and ever-evolving restrictions. Reduce your stress and build your confidence in going ahead, have a back up plan and ensure you make the most of it. Our tips and tricks to help you navigate the COVID-safe world of weddings. Click here for more tips and tricks. Here are the tried and tested tips and tricks to hosting a COVID-safe weddings (and enjoying it!!). 1. Smaller, more intimate numbers Guest numbers seem to be one of the frequently affected wedding plans due to the pandemic. Planning for smaller, more intimate numbers helps to reduce your risk of transmission, and is a beautiful way to celebrate your wedding day. 2. Host your reception later Couples more often than note report the most fun part of their wedding day being the reception – that is the party! And luckily, as long as the ceremony is done, you are now married and can have the wedding party at any time. Plus who doesn't love a good party? 3. Outdoor weddings Hosting your wedding outdoors is a great decision - with airflow and lots of space for social distancing. If you have an indoor venue, speak with the venue about ventilation and social distancing. Or if the venue has an outdoor venue, consider moving your beautiful wedding outside (under the stars)! 4. Get creative Let's get creative - there are some fun ways to incorporate COVID restrictions and requirements to your wedding day. Here's a few favourites: Design a name tag for glasses, host your interstate guests via Zoom, provide individual grazing boxes, socially distance chairs in fun designs and patterns, pre-record speeches and display on video (and live stream to those who couldn't make it), as well as fun signage to lighten the situation. 5. Be flexible Previously all wedding decisions made were completely up to the couple. Unfortunately, now there are a lot of factors that need to be considered. State restrictions, venue contract terms and more. One thing couples are having to do is be flexible. Flexible on dates when postponing or rescheduling, flexible on food styles because of COVID rules, flexible on no-dancing or no-drinking or no-signing. 6. Be prepared for lockdown One of the most feared COVID impacts on weddings is a complete lockdown. This is because its not just restrictions, this will mean your wedding day cannot go ahead AT ALL if the date occurs during a lockdown. Although, we all hope this doesn't happen to you - you are highly encouraged to have a lockdown plan. Ensure you know what your suppliers contingency plans are, if you can postpone without any cost and when the cut off dates are for your orders/bookings. 7. Budget for changes It is a great idea to budget for any cost due to changes, postponements and lockdowns. This will help reduce the stress of any associated costs if you were already prepared for them. And a great BONUS if you don't have any costs, you could use the budget for something else to make your day even more special and/or for your honeymoon! 8. Consider contractual obligations You should review all your venue and supplier contracts to ensure you understand your responsibilities and obligations under COVID (or any other health or natural disaster) conditions. If you have a wedding planner, your planner should be across this. 9. Keep up to date with physical distancing & other COVID requirements It is really important to keep up to date with physical distancing & other COVID requirements within your area. This is where your vendors will come in handy. They will need to keep up with their own requirements and can help pull the pieces together for you. The below image is a great example of making great use of social distancing despite COVID restrictions. 10. Communicate the rules to your guests Guests are increasingly worried about rules when attending weddings. The best way to make your guests feel more comfortable is to communicate these rules. Send a rules list with your invitations, and any updates in reply to their RSVP. And perhaps an update just before the wedding date (if applicable). And make sure your MC communicates this on the day! COVID-Safe wedding guest etiquette Weddings have changed and the changes are unfortunately here to stay for a while. As a guest at a pandemic / post-pandemic wedding, your wedding day bag looks a little different. Remember to bring your stylish mask, hand sanitiser, tag your own glass, understand when reduce numbers affects your attendance, and graciously follow the COVID rules provided to you. If you are still feeling overwhelmed by planning a pandemic friendly wedding or event, follow us for more! Or click below for more tips and tricks!

Hey lovers! Congratulations on your engagement! Now it's time to start the planning process? Planning your wedding day is exciting, but also can be overwhelming. There is lots to do and sometimes not enough time to get it all done by yourselves. Especially when you have many ideas and are finding it hard to decide on a theme or venue etc. This is where a wedding planner (person and binder version) come in handy. Even though a wedding planner (person) is not for everyone. A wedding planner (binder) definitely is. This is one of the must-haves for any event. Especially a wedding. Binders are a great way to keep all your ideas, plans and information in one location. If you are a DIY bride, this will ensure your papers are not lost underneath all the wedding crafts and projects you are about to undertake. Before you do, check out our free printables in our latest post! These may help save you DIY brides time! What you will need! Before you can build your wedding binder, you will need to get your supplies: Binder Paper & Lined Notepads Divider tabs (coloured) Clear sheet protectors Sticky notes (coloured) Highlighters, markers and pens (coloured) We highly recommend starting off with a white binder. It is a wedding after all. But even more so, this will alow you to stay focused on the content rather than the binder itself. It is also important to get a range of colours for the colour coding you will be doing later on. Organising your binder! Once you have your supplies, it is time to start organising! Yay! A typical wedding binder will be organised in the following sections. Create a fun cover page design similar to your invitations or theme for each section below: Cover page Timeline Budget Guest list Invitations Venue Theme and Decor Inspo Vendors Wedding party contact details Wedding Dress Bridesmaids Groom Groomsmen Registry Rehearsal Dinner Plans Ceremony Reception Honeymoon Remember this is YOUR wedding. Make it your own. You can have sub-headings, you can change all the above sections. Work with what will help you stay organised and happy. There is nothing set in stone here! What we love about binders is that you can add just about anything. You can add lined notebooks for any notes you take in vendor appointments, or a spot to keep your receipts in the clear sheet protectors mentioned above. Start using your binder! Now that your binder is organised into sections, it is time to start using it. Anything you have already organised, place in the relevant sections. Any inspiration that you haven't decided on, place in the Inspo tab. This will help you keep track of anything you like before making decisions. Make sure you keep your pages in their relevant sections. This will be extremely handy in the future of your planning. Keep a print out of any of your electronic spreadsheets, listed or pinterest board. This will help you stay on top of up-to-date information. QR Codes! And yes, it sounds like a lot of paper and we aren't in the business of ruining the environment. You can easily create QR codes for any links to your online spreadsheets, lists or pinterest board. Simply visit https://www.qr-code-generator.com/ and print this instead. QR codes can be read easily with your smart phone - most phones read without an app!! Check out our latest posts for more tips and tricks to planning a wedding!! - Briana, White Orchid Events ~ Weddings | Parties | Corporate Events | Conferences ~

Hey lovers! Congratulations on your engagement! It's time to kick off your wedding celebrations in style. An engagement party is a great way to celebrate the start of your married life and get family / friends together to celebrate before the wedding. As any event planning, there is much to do and more often than not short amount of time. And questions, so many questions. Hopefully we help answer some of them below! So join us for the journey and get your top engagement party tips from our Event Designers. We are going to talk all things Engagement Party from Etiquette to Steps to plan to Best Decor Tips! Your Engagement Journey Engagement Party Etiquette Who is the host? Traditionally engagement parties are hosted by the Bride's parents, but as weddings and engagements become more modern. It is anyone's game, whether you want to host it on your own or be showered with love by your parents hosting the party. When should I throw the party? Most professional event planners will say within 3 - 6 months of your engagement. But we say - WHENEVER YOU WANT! Everyone's situation is different and things happen to get in the way of party (and wedding) planning. Do what feels right for you. Invitations - paper or e-vite? It truly depends on your style. Having a formal, sit down engagement? Send paper invitations for an added elegance. Having an informal, casual or cocktail event? Send an e-vite. It is a great money saver and also eco-friendly. In fact, send an e-vite where possible. There are so many wonderful choices for e-vites and wedding / engagement party websites which are great alternatives. Save on stamps! Guests - who to invite? It is polite to invite only those who you will be inviting to your wedding. An engagement party is like a pre-wedding celebration, so your guests will be waiting and holding out for an invitation to your wedding. There are some exceptions, such as elopements. You may invite all your friends and families to your engagement party but elope in secret. Or when you have a huge engagement party and a small, very intimate wedding. And obviously, things change. Friends may move away, you may make new friends depending on the date. You may decide to invite more than your engagement party, which is totally fine. But it is taboo to invite less than the engagement party. Just keep in mind that guests will be expecting an invitation to your wedding and it can be awkward when they aren't invited. Gift registry - yes or no? Gifts for engagement parties are not mandatory, they may be given by your guests, but certainly not mandatory. Avoid signing up to the registry and avoid including the details with your engagement invitation. What you can do is: sign up to the wedding registry prior to the engagement. Ensure you give the details to your parents and bridal party. The reason why is this will give them the opportunity to pass the details along if anyone asks those particular people for engagement party present ideas. Our parents haven't met yet! If they haven't already, your parents should meet prior to the engagement party in an intimate setting. We highly recommend an intimate dinner. This will allow them to meet and get to know each other without the atmosphere and the background of a party. Now it is time to discuss the steps for planning an amazing Engagement Party. Steps to planning an amazing Engagement Party Decide who is the wonderful host Before starting any planning, you should decide who will be hosting your engagement party. As mentioned above, this is usually hosted by the Bride's parents. But this is not always the case. And in modern times, your parents may not be expecting to host. It may be your friend, family member or wedding planner. Make sure you speak with them and identify who will be hosting. This is important for the next step in Engagement Party planning. Set a budget Once you have decided who will be hosting, you will need to set a budget. Traditionally, the host would be the bill payer. Again, in modern times, this is not always the case and the host may not be expecting it. Please ensure you communicate effectively with your host to set expectations. This will help you in the planning process for a smooth and happy planning experience. The budget is important to be set before deciding on the next steps in Engagement Party planning. Pick a date Picking a date or approximate time of the year is important. This will help you set the theme, find your venue and gives you a basis for your timeline. You will need to work all your planning back from the date or time of the year you choose. So choose wisely. Whether you want a spring, fall or winter engagement party. All are amazing times to celebrate love and can really drive the theme for your engagement party. We love themes! Can you tell? Finalise Guest list Once you have picked the date, you need to write up your guest list. We have generated a free printable flow chart that will help you with this step. Remember: The etiquette is to invite only those who you will invite to the wedding. This will avoid hurt feelings and awkwardness. And obviously, things change. Friends may move away, you may make new friends depending on the date. You may invite more than your engagement party, which is totally fine. But it is taboo to invite less than the engagement party. Download here Find your venue Now that you have your date / time of the year, guest list and budget - you are ready to find your venue! Yay! Based on those previous steps, you should be able to narrow down your venue choices. Think about the important things in venue finding: Location, Size, Food and Drink Style, Inclusions, Reputation and Date/Time. Choose a theme Usually influenced by the venue, next is to choose a theme! Ahhh, so exciting! We love themes!!! .... I think I've already said that, oh well. Themes are wonderful. They help set the mood, guide you through your invitations, food, decor and so so so much more. Picking a theme is a chance for you to let your personality shine. Personalise your experiences! It is YOUR wedding. About YOUR love. After all! Send out invitations Invitations are out! As listed above, your invitation is influenced by your style and whether you are going for an eco-friendly approach. Whatever way you chose. It is time to send out your invitations! And get those RSVPs in. Especially dietary requirements. When you receive dietary requirements, keep a record of these in a book or spreadsheet. This will be extremely helpful when you are organising food for your wedding! Food - yum! Now to plan your menu. You may be sensing a pattern to this whole planning thing. Everything has a cause and effect. But again, your menu is controlled by your venue and limited by the style of your engagement party. Think about your guests and their style. Yes, the wedding and engagement party is about you. But who wants a bunch of money spent on food no one will eat. No one does, that's who. Our favourites below are winners for almost all guests. Ensure you have vegetarian, gluten free and vegan options for those RSVPS. Cocktail: Gourmet Meatballs, Burger Sliders, Mini Desserts and Grazing Tables!!!! Formal Sit-Down: Grazing Board for the entrée, Steak or Chicken for the main, and individual royal desserts to finish off the night. Select decor & styling items One of the most fun parts about planning events is the styling! Who doesn't love picking out colours and decorations?! If you regularly struggle making decisions, then this may not be for you, perhaps consider hiring a stylist. They have the perfect eye to turn your engagement party into a beautiful event. If you are just as excited as us by picking out colours and decorations to suit your venue and theme, than go right ahead and start selecting your decor. See below for some further tips for 2020 and 2021 engagement parties. Decide on attire Most engagements have a cocktail dress code. However, depending on your venue and theme, you may go for a more ball gown or even more casual attire. If you are steering away from cocktail dress code, it is best to notify your guests on your invitations to ensure they are aware. I don't know about you, but I hate turning up to an event underdressed or overdressed. It can cause discomfort in those that regularly avoid the spotlight. Engagement Party Decor Our engagement party essentials list for 2020/21 decor We have chosen our favourite trends for 2020/21. Some items double up as functional and decorative! And we love it!! Please remember to stay safe during these pandemic times and follow health guidelines. Grazing Tables Festoon Lighting Candles, lots and lots of candles Neon Signage Florals and greenery Giant Balloons Frill Photo Backdrop Candy Bar Pictures of the lovely couple Lawn Games - Briana, White Orchid Events ~ Weddings | Parties | Corporate Events | Conferences ~