First of all—congratulations! 🎉
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance there’s a shiny new ring on your hand, a camera roll full of proposal photos, and about 27 people asking:

“Sooo… have you picked a date yet?”

It’s exciting. It’s overwhelming. And if you’re anything like most Twin Cities couples, your brain jumps straight to one big question:

“We should book a venue… right?”

As a Master Certified wedding planner based in Minneapolis–St. Paul, I’m going to give you a little loving, professional, money-saving truth:

Your very first wedding hire should be your wedding planner — before you book anything else.

Let’s talk about why that one decision will shape every part of your wedding experience… in the best way.

The typical order couples follow looks like this:

1. Get engaged 🥂
2. Panic-Google “wedding venues near Minneapolis”
3. Tour a few pretty places
4. Fall in love with one
5. Sign a contract and then figure out the budget, guest list, and everything else

It’s super common. It’s also how couples end up:

• Over budget
• Locked into food & beverage minimums that don’t really fit
• With a venue that’s beautiful… but doesn’t actually match their guest count, priorities, or logistics

A venue is one very important puzzle piece. Your planner’s job is to see the entire puzzle—budget, vision, guest experience, logistics, your actual life—and help you choose everything (including the venue) in the right order.

When you bring a planner in at the beginning, we don’t just “plan your wedding.” We give you clarity and strategy before any big decisions are made.

Here’s what that looks like with My Event Buddee:

1. We get crystal clear on budget & priorities

No shame, no judgment, just real numbers and real talk.

We’ll walk through:

• Your overall comfort zone (and your absolute max)
• What matters most to you (stunning florals, live band, photography, guest experience, etc.)
• Where your money will make the biggest impact

Instead of picking a venue and then trying to make everything else fit around it, we:

Build the budget first, then choose a venue that supports it.

2. We define your guest count & overall vibe

“Somewhere between 120–200 guests” makes venue shopping almost impossible.

We’ll help you narrow to a realistic range and talk about:

• Are you imagining city chic? Northwoods romantic? Lakeside lodge? Modern industrial?
• Do you prefer a simple, classic aesthetic or full, lush, editorial-style design?
• Is your dream “epic dance party,” “elevated dinner party,” or “weekend-long experience”?

Those answers shape which venues make sense and which will become very expensive, very fast.

3. We curate a venue shortlist that actually fits you

Instead of touring 10 venues randomly, we:

• Pull together a shortlist of 3–6 venues that fit your budget, guest count, aesthetic, and logistics
• Talk through pros/cons you might not notice on a tour (rain plan, load-in restrictions, time constraints, vendor limitations, etc.)
• Help you prioritize: which venues to see first, and what to look for when you’re there

You get to spend your time seeing the spaces that truly make sense—not falling in love with a venue that can’t support your dream.

4. We protect you from “surprise” costs and fine print

As planners, we know the questions to ask and the contract language to look for, like:

• What’s included and what’s not (tables, chairs, linens, serviceware, setup/teardown, etc.)
• Exact timing: arrival, setup, ceremony, reception, and teardown requirements
• Required vendors, catering rules, and minimums
• Overtime fees, additional staffing, or room flips

You still sign your own contracts, of course—but you’re doing it with someone in your corner who’s seen it all before.

Here’s a simplified version of something I see all the time:

Couple A: Venue First, Planner Later

They:

• Book a gorgeous venue downtown for 200 people
• Later realize their actual guest list is closer to 120
• Discover that the in-house catering minimum is much higher than they expected
• End up cutting back on florals, DJ, and décor to make the numbers work
• Bring in a planner halfway through to help put out fires

They still have a beautiful day, but the process is stressful and they compromise on pieces that really mattered.

Couple B: Planner First, Then Venue

They:

• Reach out to a planner before contacting any venues
• Get a realistic budget laid out for a Twin Cities wedding with their guest count
• Work through what’s most important (great food, a killer dance floor, warm, welcoming design)
• Tour 3 venues that fit their size, budget, and vision
• Choose one that gives them flexible timing, a good rain plan, and space for everything they want

We build the rest of their vendor team, design plan, and timeline around that solid foundation. They get the day they wanted—and they stay within the budget they set.

Same city, same season, same general style. The difference is order and strategy.

Because this is often the biggest question:

“Okay, but what will you actually do for us if we hire you first?”

Here’s a peek at your first month together in a full-planning experience.

Week 1: Welcome, vibes, and vision

• Champagne-worthy welcome email + access to your planning tools
• Deep-dive kickoff call (or coffee date) to talk story, values, and how you want your wedding to feel
  
• High-level conversation about budgets, guest count, and seasonality

Week 2: Budget & priorities

• Custom budget breakdown tailored to modern Twin Cities pricing
• Priority map: where we want to invest more, and where we can intentionally keep things simpler
• Early conversation around must-have vs. nice-to-have

Week 3: Venue matchmaking

• Curated venue shortlist (with notes on capacity, inclusions, restrictions, overall vibe)
• Strategy for tours: which to see first, what questions to ask, what to pay attention to
• Option for me to attend tours with you or debrief afterward

Week 4: Big-picture plan

• Recommended date ranges based on venue availability, guest experience, and daylight (hello, golden hour)
• High-level design direction: color story, mood, textures, and guest flow
• A planning roadmap: what we’ll focus on in the next 3–6 months

After those first four weeks, most of my couples say some version of:

“I finally feel like this is actually doable.”

That’s the magic of hiring a planner before anything else—you get to skip the panic and go straight to a plan.

Deep breath—you didn’t “ruin” anything. Promise.

If you’ve:

• Already booked a venue
• Signed with a photographer
• Or said yes to a date before you had a planner

…a planner can still come in and bring order, strategy, and creativity to whatever you have in place.

The difference is simply this:

• When you hire a planner first, we get to help you make those big decisions in a way that fully supports your budget, design, and guest experience.
• When you hire a planner later, we work with what’s already set and make it as beautiful and seamless as possible.

If you’re early enough in the process that nothing (or almost nothing) is booked yet, this is your sign to start with planning.

How far in advance should we hire a wedding planner in Minnesota?

Most full-planning couples reach out 12–18 months before their wedding date. Some reach out even earlier, especially for peak dates and popular venues. If you’re newly engaged and know you want support, reaching out now is not “too soon.”

Do we really need a planner if our venue has a coordinator?

Venue coordinators are amazing partners, and I love working with them. Their job, though, is to represent and protect the venue.

A wedding planner represents you.

We look at your full day (and weekend, if applicable), every vendor, all of your family dynamics, design details, timeline, and guest experience from start to finish—not just the portion that happens in one building.

Can a planner help us stay on budget?

Yes—and this is one of the biggest reasons to hire us first.

We’ll:

• Help you assign realistic numbers to each category
• Recommend vendors that fit your priorities and budget
• Flag choices that will cause budget creep
• Suggest smarter alternatives that still feel special

It’s often not about spending less, but about spending in a way that feels intentional and aligned with what you care about most. Your planner also most likely has connections with vendors to get you the best deals. My Event Buddee sure does! 

What if we’re not “luxury” but still want help?

You don’t need a six-figure budget to deserve support, joy, and a stress-free planning experience.

My focus as a planner is on intentional design and guest experience—whether that’s a black-tie celebration downtown or an intimate, heartfelt gathering that feels like you.

If you’re values-driven, people-focused, and want to be a guest at your own wedding day, we’re probably a great fit.

If you’re newly engaged in Minneapolis or the surrounding Twin Cities and you haven’t booked a venue yet, this is your green light:

Hire your planner first.

Let’s:

• Get clear on your budget
• Map out your priorities
• Shortlist venues that actually make sense
• Build a planning roadmap that lets you enjoy this season (not just survive it)

Here’s your next step:

👉 Inquire with My Event Buddee to schedule a Newly Engaged Strategy Call.
We’ll spend about 45 minutes together walking through where you’re at, what you’re dreaming of, and how full-service planning can support you from this very first decision all the way through your sparkler exit.

You bring the ring and the Pinterest boards.
I’ll bring the expertise, the spreadsheets, and the calm.

And together, we’ll build a wedding day you get to fully experience—as a guest at your own celebration. ✨