Cut the Cake
Welcome to the Cut The Cake Podcast, where we are here to help you navigate the wonderful, yet sometimes overwhelming, world of wedding planning.
In this podcast you'll go behind the scenes on the wedding industry with us, Melanie and Tania, two wedding-obsessed girls from Melbourne, Australia. With over 20 years of combined experience in the wedding and events industry, we bring you no-nonsense advice, industry secrets, and plenty of laughs along the way.
Melanie, the coffee-loving, fun-obsessed wedding planner, stylist, and coordinator, will be your go-to for all things weddings. While Tania, the creative director and expert in design, will bring your wedding day vision to life through beautiful stationery and signage.
Together, we'll tackle hot wedding topics, have informal and fun chats with leading wedding vendors, and share insights and answers to all your burning wedding questions. No BS, just real talk about planning and enjoying your special day.
So, if you're feeling overwhelmed, elbow deep in a tub of ice cream, and in need of some wedding intel, subscribe to Cut the Cake on your favourited streaming platform. And don't forget to slide into our DMs on Instagram @cutthecakepodcast or email us at hello@cutthecake.com.au with all your burning wedding questions.
Cut the Cake
The Wedding Planning Series | Step 4: Booking Your Key Vendors
In this episode of our "12 Steps from Engaged to I Do" series, we’re focusing on Booking Your Key Vendors First. We’re diving into why you need to book key vendors like caterers, celebrants, photographers, and videographers early in the planning process. Since many of these vendors only handle one wedding per day, locking them in ahead of time ensures you secure your preferred team for the big day.
Catering can be one of the larger expenses, especially if your venue doesn’t include it, and the type of catering you choose will impact your budget significantly. Similarly, finding the right celebrant is crucial, not only to make your wedding official but also to ensure your ceremony feels meaningful. When it comes to capturing memories, photographers are a must-have, and their unique style is something to consider carefully. Videographers, though often overlooked, add an extra layer by capturing the emotion and motion of your day, allowing you to relive those moments over and over.
When reaching out to vendors, doing a little research first will save time and help you find the right match. Review their work online, check price guides to ensure they fit your budget, and provide detailed information in your initial enquiry to receive a more accurate quote. Also, be patient while waiting for responses, and don’t hesitate to ask about package flexibility if needed. If you choose not to move forward with a vendor, letting them know is a polite and appreciated gesture.
To wrap things up, booking your key vendors early will set the stage for a smooth wedding day. In the next episode, we’ll discuss other important vendors and offer more tips for making the planning process stress-free. Thanks for listening!
Other Episodes Mentioned:
The Role and Value of a Celebrant: A Conversation with Marry Us Mich
https://www.cutthecakepodcast.com.au/episodes/marry-us-mich
About Melanie
Mellyrain Creative is a wedding planning and styling company and we specialize in designing luxe countryside weddings across regional Victoria. As the head wedding planner and stylist at Mellyrain Creative, her team continues to grow and assist in styling design as well as wedding day coordination and execution of styling set ups at weddings all over Victoria. Prior to weddings Mel worked in sport and entertainment events in Melbourne and she is obsessed with her golden retriever pup Duncan who you’ll see on the gram from time to time. Mel love's to call country Victoria her happy place so when she's not working, you’ll still find me exploring new places, mostly something with mountains as a backdrop.
instagram.com/mellyraincreative
Contact Mel: mellyrain.com.au/contact
About Tania
Tania is an award nominated, coffee obsessed lover of love, and all round stationery nerd... & that is why she started the Event Wanderer Co. After years wrangling Ballkids at the Australian Open, she stepped into the world of weddings and turned her hand to design, combining a love of stationery with today's modern design and printing techniques to bring her biz baby to life. Tania's speciality is all things stationery and signage and also understanding the stress that event and wedding planning can bring and she's here to help you navigate the chaos of the journey.
instagram.com/eventwandererco/
