"It's not going to be easy, there may be some bumps along the road"

My plan was to blog last Sunday, the day after my first day of class, while everything was still fresh in my mind, but due to a bad case of the flu, I am just now crawling out of the cave that I have been stuck in the past week.

So, despite being sick, I survived my first 8 hour session of the course!! Wooo! It was long and there was SO much information, like, an overwhelming amount, but I'm excited for the next 5 months and learning everything I can.

The director of the program, Joyce Scardina Becker, is a multi-award winning Special Event Planner, owner of Events of Distinction, and the Founding President of the Wedding Industry Professionals Association (WIPA). She is also the author of "Countdown To Your Perfect Wedding", a book that will be my bible for the next few months.She definitely knows her stuff and knows a ton of people in the industry.

The class only has about 12-15 students/aspiring wedding professionals (all female), so it is a very intimate setting. After going through introductions and talking about our backgrounds and what we hope to accomplish, I was embarrassingly sent to the back of the class so as to not infect anyone with my SICKNESS. Things really got off to a great start =/

Each session covers different aspects of being a wedding planner/designer/consultant/coordinator/stylist, etc. These are titles that we went over in class and really got me thinking about what I want to call myself.  Do I want to be a planner, designer, stylist? This class focuses on full service wedding planning as that is what Joyce offers through her company. Right now I think I want to focus on month of coordination, at least as I start out, but  it is definitely good to know all the aspects of full service planning. And who knows, maybe by the end of this course I may change my mind.

So, in order to pass the class and receive my certification, I have to complete all homework assignments, pass the quizzes and final exam and complete {and receiving a passing grade} on what is called a "Staging Guide". The staging guide is just a binder but it will hold all the information on the hypothetical wedding that I will be planning over the next 5 months. We have the option of basing our wedding off a real wedding of someone we know, or creating one. I thought it would be fun to design a hypothetical wedding. Hypothetical wedding = hypothetical budget. What can be better than planning a wedding with a completely made up budget?!

Day 1: Lots of notes, books and new information

It's going to be a lot of work and I definitely have a lot of studying to look forward to. It has been some time since I have studied anything {about 7 years actually - ugh, I'm old} and I am already finding myself getting very easily distracted at home as I attempt to review my notes/read a few chapters of my "bible".  One of the first things Joyce said at the beginning of the class was, "It's not going to be easy, there may be some bumps in the road" and I think she may be right. I will probably be a bit stressed and overwhelmed with this additional workload; on top of my full time job, my assistant gigs I have lined up, and everything I have going on in my day to day life {like my adorable puppy CHARLIE}, it's going to take some good time management skills, but I definitely think it's worth it. I am going to work hard on this Staging Guide and make this an unforgettable wedding, even if it isn't real. This might mean that I will have to take some time away from a very serious relationship I have …  with Netflix … but it's probably for the best  =)

Not this time Netflix!

I'm excited to share my journey with you guys; and stay tuned for some sneak peeks of my Staging Guide. For those of you still in school, please share any good study places you know of in the South Bay!

As always, thanks for stopping by!!

XOXO
kels
♥