Interviewing Memory Makers a Dallas Wedding Planner
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Today I have the pleasure of introducing Sherry a fantastic Dallas wedding planner and owner of Memory Makers Event Planning. Sherry is one of my favorite vendors to work with. She is organized, detailed and so incredibly kind. Sherry worked with me on a wedding last year that dealt with Covid reschedules and difficulties. The bride (Emily) had this to say about Sherry.

“I can’t begin to say how wonderful it was to have Sherry’s help, reassurance and grace during the planning and execution of our special day. Sherry was always calm and buttoned up. I had full confidence in her abilities and she never disappointed us. Between rescheduling our wedding date due to COVID, helping us find a new venue less than 60 days from our new date and adjusting who knows what behind the scenes, Sherry was nothing short of a miracle worker. She did a tremendous job and we’re so thankful we hired and trusted her with the biggest day in our lives. I can’t recommend Sherry enough. She’s the BEST!”
– Emily Arden

If you’re interested in learning more about Sherry and her services, you can send her a message here! Now let’s get into the interview!

1. How did you get into planning and what makes Memory Makers different or unique from other Dallas wedding planners?

Growing up, my mom was always the go-to person for planning events at our church and schools. Naturally, I stepped into this role in my adult life at my own church. It wasn’t until many years later, when my family went to my sister in-law’s wedding in Colorado, that I realized I wanted to make a business out of it! Pulling out my laptop for the 13 hour ride home to Texas, I diligently researched what it was going to take to reach my goal. My patient husband got to listen to me talk about everything I was reading for the entire 13 hours (poor guy, but he’s a trooper). Within one week, I started classes to become a certified Wedding and Event Planner. Three short months later, I filed for a DBA and Memory Makers Wedding and Event Planning was born. My first wedding was only four months later and I haven’t turned back since. This was three years ago. I have enjoyed adding two amazing team members and look forward to more in the future. I am very passionate about what I do! Meeting each new couple is always a thrill and focusing careful attention to hear their unique desires for their big day is important for me and my team! My nickname has become Logistics Girl because I love making sure the right thing is in the right place, at the right time. Memory Makers mission is to remove the burden and stress of planning by utilizing systems we have in place to ensure each couple is fully present in every moment of their big day! A large part of the joy that comes with planning in this industry is getting to know other like-minded vendors and being involved in the community. Building an honest and organic relationship with clients and vendors is truly fulfilling. Knowing you have the right team of vendors on a wedding day gives the client the confidence they need to trust our team as a whole! I am currently a mentee under David Tutera and one of the things he focuses on is kindness. I truly believe it is important to lead with kindness and you will always have the clients of your dreams!

2. What’s the difference between day of coordination, month of coordination and a full service wedding coordination? Do you recommend one or other for different couples?

Day-of Coordination and Month-of Coordination are often interchanged when actually talking about Month-of Coordination. This is when the bride and groom find their own venue and line up all of their own vendors. Then about 6-8 weeks out, the Wedding Planner steps in to gather all of the information and works over the next month with the selected vendors to fine tune the timeline and event space floor plans. The Wedding Planner runs the rehearsal and is the point of contact on the wedding day. They manage the timeline and ensure everything happens to plan, to the best of their ability. Most planners don’t do true “Day-of Coordination”, which is where your planner first learns all of the details at the rehearsal and then attempts to run the client’s composed timeline on the wedding day. Memory Makers does not offer Day-of Coordination because we do not believe this yields the best results for any client. We offer Month-of Coordination to allow us time to review everything and have enough time to still make any necessary adjustments so everything runs as smoothly as possible on wedding day.Full-Service Wedding Planning is perfect for those with limited time or those who get overwhelmed easily by the planning process. Here, your wedding planner helps you find your venue as well as curates your vendor team by lining up quotes for ones that match your needs and then gives you the best options to choose from. This saves so much time for the couple as they no longer have to try and navigate the thousands of vendors available. Memory Makers limits the number of Full-Service Weddings we do each year in order to allow for top quality service for all of our clients.If you still like a little DIY, maybe you already have your venue and possibly a few vendors lined up, but still need a little more help than the Month-of Coordination offers, then a custom package for Partial- Planning might be right for you. This is the most common package for Memory Makers and is built based on your exact needs.Every couple is unique in some way so I highly recommend that you take your time talking with potential planners. You want to make sure your personalities match. Depending on the package you choose, you could be spending a lot of time together and it helps if you gel well! And ultimately, you will be depending on them to make your wedding day vision come to life so choose carefully. Be sure to take advantage of the free consultation many planners offer to allow them time to discuss with you your needs, wants, visions and budget. This will also allow you time to get to know them a little before you make your selection and commit to a contract. It is not wise to go with a planner who hasn’t asked you about the details of your wedding before sending over a contract. Memory Makers takes the time to get to know you and makes sure our services match your needs before we ever send over a contract.

3. What would you say is the top reason couples should hire a planner? If they’re on the fence is there a good middle option for them?

Hands down, the number one reason you should hire a planner is so that you and your family can be fully present in every moment of your wedding day!! Trying to have friends and family fill this role oftentimes leads to frustration. Unexpected issues arise that require the bride to be pulled away from her joyful moments to answer questions or become a problem solver if there isn’t a planner to turn to. Other vendors love it when there is a wedding planner! It makes everyone’s job easier and more enjoyable!Secondly, Partial or Full-Service Planning can save you money!! You have most likely never planned a wedding before. There are thousands of vendors to choose from and it can become overwhelming very quickly. A Wedding Planner can quickly identify the vendors that match your needs, style and budget. And yes, believe it or not, you can actually save quite a bit of money by going through a wedding planner. Not only do they have the inside information to line up the vendors right for you, they have the ability to negotiate with many of these vendors. Memory Makers is on your side and there to help you save money in any way we can. Still on the fence over hiring a planner? At a minimum, consider a Month-of Coordination package. It is the lowest priced option and allows you the freedom to still do as much DIY as you want in the planning stages, yet still have a professional there on the wedding day as your go-to person for vendors and family so that you can truly enjoy your day to the fullest! You put in all of the hard work and hours planning, you deserve to enjoy every minute of it!!

4. What’s something a planner does that your couples would be surprised you do? Or the most surprising thing you or another member of your team has done for a couple (Like running into the bridal suite to grab the photographer and save the cake before it collapsed haha! True story, this happened!)

There are so many things a planner does that would surprise couples! Many of them we keep to ourselves because we just take pride in knowing that we resolved the issue and saved the bride from the burden of knowing. Sometimes, they can’t be kept from the bride, like when the wedding cake is about to collapse in the middle of dinner service. I could see the weight shifting on the cake and the bottom layer starting to crack. As it was visually starting to slide, I made the call to go get the bride and groom from their table so they could cut the cake early. By the time I ran to the bridal suite to get the photographer (who was also trying to snarf down a few bites of dinner), and we got back to the cake, the couple was already there literally holding it up. Luckily, they got a great kick out of it and just soaked in the moment as it was! Granted, they were a COVID couple who already had their original date change and then their reception venue completely closed down on them, so a collapsing wedding cake wasn’t really a big deal at this point. We all had a good laugh and will never forget the moment!

5. What’s your favorite part being a Dallas wedding planner?

My favorite part of being a wedding planner is seeing everything fall into place on wedding day!! I love the unknown of what issues will arise and then handling them with my team to the best of our ability! The key is to remain calm and analyze all the options. A planner should know their client well enough by this point to know which option they would choose and then you move forward with confidence. We love seeing every bride and groom enjoy their moments as we handle everything behind the scenes. It is exhausting and yet so fulfilling! I sleep very well the next day!