Taste, is what you're choosing in a vendor

It’s about time we set the record straight on what you’re actually doing when you hire a wedding vendor.

You’re not just booking someone to do a job. You’re hiring their taste.

Whether it’s a hairstylist, planner, celebrant, photographer, florist, or anyone else—what you’re really paying for is their view of what looks good, feels right, and makes sense in the context of a wedding.

Their taste.

That might sound obvious, but too many couples miss this and end up hiring people they don’t align with, or they book for the wrong reason.

Taste is what makes a professional worth paying

Every good wedding vendor has developed their taste over years—through trial and error, through experience, through saying no to bad ideas and yes to better ones. It’s not something they bought off Etsy or copied from Pinterest. It’s built slowly, shaped by life, values, art, culture, and thousands of weddings.

So when you hire someone, you’re hiring the end result of all of that.

Take me, for example. I’ve got a very specific (and, if I may say so, very good) taste in how a marriage ceremony should go. And you’ve got your own taste too—even if you haven’t quite put it into words yet.

You might like a slow, poetic, grand affair with readings and long pauses and dramatic music. Or you might want something quick and casual with no fanfare at all.

Neither is wrong.

But you’ve got to know that if our tastes don’t match, it doesn’t matter how “good” I am. It’s going to feel a bit off. That’s true for every vendor you hire.

The real work in wedding planning

The hard part isn’t making a to-do list or picking colours or deciding how many candles is too many candles. The real work is becoming self-aware.

• What is your taste in wedding stuff?
• What do you want it to feel like?
• What do you want to remember?
• What do you want your guests to say walking away?

Once you figure that out, then it’s about finding vendors who align with you. Who’ve got similar taste. Who you can trust to do their thing without you needing to micromanage or correct them. That’s where the magic happens.

And of course, you’ve got to balance all of that with real-world stuff like availability and budget. But matching on taste has to be the starting point.

My taste

Here’s what my (great?) taste in marriage ceremony is:

• About 18 to 20 minutes long
• Feels like a big smile
• Focused on the future, not the past (aka it’s not me - person who knows you the least - telling your guests - people who know you the best - how you got together)
• Centred around the couple, not the celebrant
• Includes personal vows—because that’s how you breathe your marriage into existence

It shouldn’t be a lecture. It shouldn’t be a history lesson. It should feel honest, warm, and real.

If that resonates with you, then maybe we’re a match.

And if not? That’s completely fine. You deserve someone whose taste fits you better.

So, next time you’re scrolling through vendors, don’t just ask “Are they available?” or “How much?” Start by asking:

Do I love their taste?

Because that’s what you’re really buying.