Hawaii Wedding Planner Interview
Interview with Hawaii Wedding Planner Love Letter Weddings
Hawaii wedding planner Louise Moriarty designs for couples who want a personalized approach. Her planning business, Love Letter Weddings, specialized in creating vibrant celebrations. Take a look at one of Louises weddings and you’ll immediately notice how full of life they are! There are always bright colors and lots of people with big smiles.
Many of Louises couples come to Hawaii for destination weddings. She draws on her knowledge of the islands to help make them feel at home. Love Letter Weddings also offers floral design, giving clients more options. With her design, planning, and floral skills, Louise brings couples dream Hawaii destination weddings to life.
Love Letter Weddings owner Louise Moriarty
I am a planner + artist at heart. I’ve been planning events for as long as I can remember, but started Love Letter Weddings in 2011. Every event I take on I make unique and true to my clients personality + style. When I am designing, I don’t only consider the aesthetic of the event, but also the flow and guest experience. It’s all part of the full design concept. Love Letter Weddings couples are quirky, independent, non-traditional, foodies, who appreciate the pretty stuff.
Wedding Style
We design colorful, fun weddings. They aren’t a production or show, but have the laid back flow of the chill event.
Working with couples
I ask them a lot of questions in the beginning about themselves. I have an unlimited communication policy. They can reach out anytime they have questions, ideas or concerns. I share Pinterest boards so I can see what they like. I wait to design their weddings once we’ve book half the vendors (the non decor ones). That gives me several months to get to know my clients better before I start designing.
Hawaii wedding planner + floral design
Flowers are one of the largest design elements weddings, even if they aren’t a priority for the couple. Flowers set the tone for the weddings style, colors, etc.
We started offering floral design partially because we can help get the most bang for their buck. We offer floral services as a full design concept versus itemizing arrangements. It helps with the sticker shock and to see the flowers as a bigger design.
Favorite part of the planning/design process
Getting to know our clients and building relationships with them. Creating unique style boards for each wedding and arranging the flowers. Seeing everything come together on the wedding day.
What makes Hawaii weddings unique
Our clients tend to think of their Hawaii wedding as a vacation with their favorite people. Most of the time, they aren’t only planning the wedding day, but a slew of events.
Hawaii also has a beautiful, rich culture and I love helping my clients honor it. We do so in ways that are culturally appropriate and makes sense for them.
Making guests feel welcome in Hawaii
Our clients are from all over the world! Most of them choose a destination wedding because they don’t want to have to do too much. They also don’t want their family or guests lifting a finger. As a planner, I love this because there are less unpredictable elements on the wedding day. That being said, our clients do a few things to make their guests and family feel included:
– Staying at vacation rentals together or get room blocks at resorts together.
– Planing pre and post wedding day activities to spend more time with everyone.
– Ask friends and family to perform the ceremony, readings, speeches or greet guests.
Hawaii weddings vs. other island destinations
If you’re a US citizen, you don’t need a passport or have to worry about exchange rates. It’s often a midway point for our Japanese, Australian, and Chinese clients who also have family in the US.
Hawaii wedding issues
A lot of our clients forget that in the summer it can get hot and humid. We also have a hurricane season that has threatened several of our past events. Hawaii is more expensive than a lot of other places in the US. Cost of living is higher here which drives up the costs of services and materials.
Favorite Hawaii wedding locations
Bringing the Hawaiian experience to a wedding
There are so many ways!! My favorite is honoring family and guests with a traditional Hawaiian lei.
Issues with Hawaii weddings
Shipping can be expensive! I help couples navigate this by sourcing as much as possible locally. Then I suggest a few places that offer reasonable shipping prices.
Best time of year for a Hawaii wedding
The weather seems to vary from year to year. This year we had some beautiful weddings in January and February. It is a bit cooler out then, but still sunny.
What makes destination weddings and elopements special
They are more intimate. It gives the couple an opportunity to focus on the quality of the event and not worry about quantity.
Working with the photographer to tell a couples story
I always make sure my clients meet the photographer (usually via skype) before hiring them. I also make sure to share our vision boards and explain what their priorities are. That way the photographer can go into the event with a sense of their style and personalities. I also make sure to point out special details the photographer may want to capture. Any special planned moments I make sure to include in the photographer’s timeline as well.
One of Louises favorite weddings
Refer to this blog post : )
Favorite Hawaii wedding vendors to work with
Caterers – Ke Nui Kitchen, Island Fusion Catering
Hotels – Four Season’s Resort Oahu
Bands – Mango Season
MUAs – Reveal
Cake/dessert – Ke Nui Kitchen, Bloom and Butter
DJs – The Perfect Wedding DJs, Troy Michael
Be sure to check out more of Hawaii wedding planner Louise’s amazing work on the Love Letter Weddings Website and Instagram (flowers). Learn more about Hawaii and why it’s the perfect wedding destination.
Exploring destinations like Hawaii with fun couples is my favorite! I’d be thrilled to connect and tell your story. Learn about me and why I’m different than other photographers.
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