We at Lesner Inn, we know that sometimes wedding planning can get stressful & a bit confusing since you & your fiance probably haven’t planned a wedding before. Since it may seem like we are speaking a completely different language, Lesner Inn made a glossary of some of the most commonly used wedding industry words to help slim down that confusion between you & your vendors!

Bustle: After you’ve flaunted your train during your waterfront ceremony & for portrait shots, it’s time to pin that train up & dance the night away! “Bustle” is just a fancy way to say that you’re pinning your dress’ train up, so that it doesn’t drag on the floor & get damaged.

_{Above: Stellar Exposures Photography}

Cake Cutting Service: After the ceremonial cake cutting by the couple, your caterer will cut the rest of the cake & serve it to the guests to enjoy. Lesner Inn includes cake cutting services & even lets you decide whether you would like to display the sliced pieces of cake, or if you would like our staff to pass them to your guests.

Cake Cutting Set: This one is so simple, yet can be so confusing. The cake cutting set is the knife & serving piece that you use to cut & serve during the ceremonial cake cutting for you & your spouse. Lesner Inn has a house set for you to use, but some couples prefer to purchase their own or even will use the ones their parents used on their wedding day!

Chargers: These may look like fancy plates, but they are actually used as tabletop decoration & are placed at the table setting before china are put on top of them.  Don’t be the one who accidentally takes this plate up to the buffet… talk about social suicide.

Cocktail Hour: This is the period of time (not always an hour) between your ceremony & reception where your guests have an opportunity to mingle with one another & enjoy cocktails & hors d’oeuvres. It is most common that the newlyweds will take wedding photos during this time with their family & bridal party before being announced into the reception.

Day of Coordinator: A day of coordinator (not to be confused with a wedding planner) is basically a wedding assistant who takes over once the wedding is a few weeks away. The coordinator’s main focus is to confirm the details that you have planned with your vendors & to tie up any loose ends. They will also be there for rehearsal & the day-of your wedding to make sure everything from set-up to overall execution goes smoothly. Lesner Inn offers day-of coordination & wedding design services to our couples, so feel free to reach out to us for more details!

_{Left: Brittany Sue Photography}

Food & Beverage Minimum: This is the amount of money that you are required to spend on all food & beverage items. This amount varies from venue to venue but is always the amount that you will be meeting, & possibly exceeding, for any sort of food & beverages for your guests.

Hors D’oeuvres: This is just a fancy word for appetizers. They are made for everyone to enjoy during your cocktail hour, which Lesner Inn includes the hor d’oeuvres for in our base pricing!

Matron of Honor: Most people know that brides have a maid of honor & grooms have a best man, but brides can also have a matron of honor. This bridesmaid is just as special as your maid of honor, but the title changes since she is already married!

Memory Table: Just like any other side table, this one is completely optional for the couple. This table normally holds picture frames of loved ones who have passed away, so they can be remembered on your special day.

Toast: These are short speeches to the bride & groom generally done by the best man & maid/maitron of honor. Of course, there are others who can do them like the father of the bride, siblings of the bride or groom, or anyone who is special to you!  Regardless of who speaks, toasts are generally done with champagne which Lesner Inn provides for each guest!

_{Above: Vinluain Photography}

Venue Manager: A venue manager is there the day-of your wedding to make sure all runs smoothly with the venue & the food & beverage side of things, if they do in house catering like Lesner Inn does. They will make sure your floor plan is correct, any sort of décor items rented through the venue are set, & that the timeline for all food & beverage is followed accordingly. At Lesner Inn, you will always have a venue manager on site the day of your wedding, but they do not act as coordinators with your other vendors or personal details.

Wedding Planner: Your wedding planner will be there throughout the entire process from choosing your venue & vendors to saying “I do”. They will help with designing your wedding, choosing vendors & finalizing contracts with them, & setting up & managing the details of your wedding on the day of. They will also be there the day-of from start to finish to make sure things go smoothly & that everything is handled correctly. Lesner Inn offers wedding planning to all of our soonly weds, so if you’re looking to sit back through the planning process & have a stress free wedding day, then our wedding planning service is the way to go!

We want to make the wedding planning process as stress free as possible, so we hope this glossary of “wedding words” helps out! Of course, there are many other terms we use that may be a little confusing, so just reach out to us if you need some insight!