Wedding recommendations

[Judess]

Hi everyone,

My fiancee and I are getting married in Levi, Finland in December.

I am finding it really hard to find the following:

1) Photographer
2) Videographer
3) Bakers (for wedding cake)
4) Florists (for hand bouquet)
5) Hair and make-up artiste

I have never been to Finland and so don't know where to start! I have been told by my wedding planner over there (who really hasn't been much help) that since Levi is a small place, most of those providing the above services do not have websites or portfolios I can peruse. This is worrying me as I cannot imagine going for my wedding taking that big leap of a faith.

At my request, she sent me some photos taken by the photographer she intended to book for me and I am quite disappointed as those photos looked really amateurish - they just looked like what a friend could take for me on a holiday. I don't mean to come off fussy and I am not but I think photographs are quite important as they document the memories you'd have on your special day.

So if I cannot know what is in store for me, the least I can do is to try and get recommendations from people who have perhaps used some of the above services before in Finland and so guide me in a right direction.

Really really appreciate the help! It's surprising how little you can find online for such services in Finland.

Thank you everyone!

[Adrian42]

I have been told by my wedding planner over there (who really hasn't been much help) that since Levi is a small place, most of those providing the above services do not have websites or portfolios I can peruse.

Really really appreciate the help! It's surprising how little you can find online for such services in Finland.

The first question is what is available at all that far in the North.

Levi is part of Kittilä, and Kittilä is 6000 (six thousand) people living in an area the size of the North East England region.

The nearest big town (60,000 inhabitants) is Rovaniemi (150km south of Levi).

[richard berman]

I have sent you a private message

[rinso]

It's surprising how little you can find online for such services in Finland.

There is no big market for wedding planners people arrange most of the things themselves.
In Finland people generally spent much less money on a wedding than in the US.
Often only the official portret is made by a pro. The photo's (and video) of the event are made by friends and relatives.
There are cake builders in Finland but they have a limited choice. My guess is that the nearest is in Rovaniemi. (if you're lucky)
Flowers and hair can be done in Kittilä but don't expect miracles.

Be prepared to scale down your expectations.

[ritan7471]

I was married in Raahe which is about half the size of Rovaniemi. My husband's family rented some nice dishes. My mother-in-law made a salmon soup lunch, with various snacks and voileipäkakku (sandwich cake) on the side. My husband's aunt made a beautiful cake (she used to work in a bakery). Everyone who had a camera took pictures. We didn't even bother with professional portraits since a couple of the pictures were good enough to send with the thank-you cards. The local parish minister came and performed the ceremony in the historic family home (rustic 3 room house, definitely not a showpiece but home). About 40 people came.

It was perfect.

Your wedding will be in a very small area, so don't expect too much. Probably most of the bakers and photographers are small businesses that don't have websites since everyone in the area would use them in any case, where beggars can't be choosers. If you're really set on the perfect photographer, florist and baker, you might need to consider hiring someone to come from outside of the area, or moving your venue closer to town.

But I know that every bride has a vision of her wedding, so I wish you the best of luck and a beautiful wedding.

[kharnynb]

It is better to throw away any and all ideas of American style "proffesional" weddings.

Best is to book a decent size venue, get the basics reasonably right(catering and some entertainement) and don't sweat the small stuff

We organised practically everything ourselves, apart from getting the food catered, if you get married by the church, they will very likely be able to come to the location you choose, although you might have to pay cab-fees.

1,2 photography is pretty non standard, apart from the wedding portrait(even that isn't very common any more).
Most people either hand out one-use camera's or ask guests with decent camera's to make pics and send/give them afterward.
We did not have a pro at our wedding, one of the uncles who hobbies did a lot of the "special" shots, and about 20 people left all the photo's on our laptop at the end of the day.

3. You'll have to meet up with the baker on site, there's no way around that, unless you have a very good baker in the in-law family
4. Florists are hopeless in finland, especially if you get married in winter/early spring. you probally will be lucky if there is even a specialised florist close enough to levi.

I'll let a woman handle 5. as it isn't my strong point.

Most of all, you only have 2 important things to do.
1. Decide about the alcohol on the reception, either a paid bar, free drinks or a dry wedding(if you have anyone with a big car coming from helsinki, you get to import from tallinn at about half finnish prices ;D)
2. get someone to cater the wedding, preferably a full service.(some restaurants will do on request too, so it is possible to ask at a place you like to eat).