Planning a traditional at home wedding is hard enough.
Planning a destination wedding takes that challenge to a whole new level because everything is hundreds, if not thousands of miles away.
You can’t just walk over to your vendor to show them your latest and greatest idea.
You can no longer “stop by” the reception venue to check up on something you may have missed in your initial walk through.
While Pinterest can’t solve all the challenges that a destination wedding presents, it does make certain aspects of planning and researching a lot easier.
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So What is Pinterest?
Pinterest, as you probably already know, is a social networking website based on images from the web and ones that you upload. It is a sharing platform that allows you to create themed boards (think folders) that you can “pin” pictures from around the web alongside your own.
Why Use Pinterest To Plan A Destination Wedding?
Research Locations And Themes
When thinking about destination weddings, the initial question for any couple is “Where should we have our wedding?”.
Researching locations in a visual manner on Pinterest is far easier than having to go to dozens of websites to research a location.
As an example, take a look at these honeymoon ideas (http://pinterest.com/bunny_sophia/honeymoon-ideas/)
In addition to researching destinations, Pinterest may also help you discover what kind of destination wedding you want.
While most people think of destination wedding as being on a beach, that is not always the case. In pinning their boards, many a bride has gone through a discovery of sorts of what kind of destination wedding they really want.
Some figure out that they want a winter wedding at a ski lodge, whereas others discover a love of castles and get married in one.
Research Vendors
If you’re planning a local wedding, meeting with a vendor is not much of a challenge. At a destination wedding, however, meeting with a vendor ahead of the event is a luxury.
In most cases, brides simply select a vendor based on recommendations. With Pinterest, vendors can show off their work on their own boards and many are doing just that.
Photographers, bakers, and florists at destinations worldwide have taken to Pinterest and created their own boards.
Being able to see their work ahead of time makes it a lot easier to select someone for a destination wedding.
Convey Your Needs
Imagine trying to explain what your “colors” are to a florist in the Bahamas. In the past, you would have had to tear out pages from a bridal magazine and mail them overseas. Or if you were savvy enough, you would have had to download dozens of images, organize them, and then email them.
With Pinterest, sharing your sense of style and taste with the florist (or any vendor) is a lot easier. Simply create a board labeled “Floral Arrangements” and add images of bouquets from around the web or upload your own.
Not only can you share the colors that inspire you, but also the style, design, and layout.
Now you know the advantages of using Pinterest when planning a destination wedding. But how do you organize your boards?
Boards To Create For A Destination Wedding
Since this article is about Pinterest, let us explain this visually by showing you some boards that other users have created.
Vendor Boards
Bakers – http://pinterest.com/perfectpalette/wedding-cakes/
Photographers – http://pinterest.com/bunny_sophia/wedding-photography-ideas/
Wedding Dresses – http://pinterest.com/weddingchicks/wedding-gowns/
Destination Weddings – http://pinterest.com/grouptravel/cool-places-to-have-a-destination-wedding/
Wedding Rings – http://pinterest.com/scrapwedo/wedding-rings/
Wedding Shoes – http://pinterest.com/brideandjoy/wedding-shoes/
Wedding Themes – http://pinterest.com/ecofrugal/wedding-ideas/
Wedding Favors – http://pinterest.com/scrapwedo/wedding-favors-useful-things-for-guests/
Tip : If you are looking for additional vendors like hairstylists, makeup artists or anything else, simply use the search feature on Pinterest and take a look at the images that show up. If an image strikes you as something interesting, Pin it onto an appropriate board. Once you feel that a board accurately reflects your sense of style, share it with your vendor.
Destination Boards
Winter Wedding – http://pinterest.com/alexandrawebb/winter-wedding-inspiration/
Ski Wedding – http://pinterest.com/alexandrawebb/vintage-ski-wedding/
Vineyard Wedding – http://pinterest.com/necr/vineyard-wedding-ideas/
Island Wedding – http://pinterest.com/weddex/cayman-love/
New England Autumn Wedding – http://pinterest.com/VictoriaMaryVtg/new-england-autumn-wedding/
Pinterest is not only about destinations and vendors. It can also help you tell your story
Tell Your Story
Rather than tell the world how you and your husband met, why not create a board on Pinterest. Detail a visual story of where you had your coffee together, where you met, and where he proposed.
Create A Guest List Board
Want to show off who is coming to the wedding? Why not create a board with photos of all the people that have agreed to come. As you get more RSVP’s, continue to update the list. Send out reminders monthly asking people to join the “Board” by agreeing to come to the wedding.
Additional boards can include a wedding registry, hotel and resort photos, and activities information. Show your guests what kind of experience they can expect to have at your destination wedding.
Once you start pinning, you are going to forget the era of schlepping a thick binder full of wedding photos from a gazillion wedding magazines. As you continue to pin to different boards, you are going to compile a large collection of images that will represent your sense of style (And it may look a bit like this set of boards http://pinterest.com/weddingstory/) and taste.