5 Days Of Wedding Planning | Try Living With Lucie | Refinery29

On this episode of Try Living With Lucie, our host, Lucie Fink breaks down how she planned her entire wedding in 5 whole days. From venue to menu, she walks us through what it takes to plan a big wedding. Press play to get some wedding planning inspiration!
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Try Living With Lucie follows our favorite R29 millennial, Lucie Fink, as she dives headfirst into social experiments - five days at a time. From a week without sugar to full-blown street performing; there is nothing she won't try!
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[@refinery29]

What have you learned from your experience of planning an event? Share your insights with us below!

[@themurphy6279]

Refinery29 I love your channel

[@amethystna]

omg september 21 is my birthday!!! 🎂

[@sajitkhan8599]

@@amethystna 🚾🚾 , तो, सीबीआय

[@ansergondal4697]

@,,

[@madi846]

as a florist.... PLEASE be aware of what flowers are in season. sometimes florists can color flowers, but not always. it’s gonna cost you soooooo much more money if you insist on having say, tulips in September, if you’re even able to somehow get them at all. and if the florist can’t get you the flowers you want, don’t throw a giant hissy fit about it. you not doing your research is a you problem! (also that repeat roses thing is wonderful, being a florist rly makes you see how wasteful it can be lol)

[@refinery29]

+madisonclayton Thanks for the advice!!

[@msphasha6321]

I agree

[@luciebfink]

Madison Clayton love this tip!!!

[@TheDecoCottage]

Agreed! My florist and I had discussed putting ranunculus in my bouquet, but her wholesaler couldn’t get them so substituted small spray roses which had a similar look, and threw in some additional lisianthus at no extra charge :)

[@madi846]

The Deco Cottage Yup that sounds about right! I know at my shop they’re almost always willing to do substitutions for no extra cost

[@cherrypie3830]

In my country, guests take the flowers after the wedding, instead of us throwing them. They can try planting them or decorate their house.

[@refinery29]

+cherrypie That's lovely!

[@zgi7907]

Where are you from

[@cherrypie3830]

@@zgi7907 Dubai. This is something that recently started about 5 years ago.

[@joelmelissam]

Cherry Pie we did that. They were gifted to people close to us.

[@iya7428]

Yes this trend started in Saudi too. Must be a khaliji thing

[@hc2159]

This taught me that Lucie is Rich! Or her family is.... That's some serious coin she spent. And a dress from Milan 😱 the invites looked perfect! I'm sure it will be an amazing wedding

[@VishaVishna]

They have been dating for like.... 10 years? Probably started saving for a wedding a long time ago.

[@monart4210]

yeah it says on the card that they invite their guests "together with their parents" 😅 but good for them 😊

[@keira226]

well her dad is a local celebrity bc he’s a radio host i believe and her mom is an artist and interior designer so they have some coin

[@lupeeep6186]

Her fiance's parents have money too!

[@princesschi7689]

It's called saving

[@MafaldaTeixeiraa]

I missed Try Living with Lucie!! My favorite thing ever!! 💛💛

[@refinery29]

+mafaldateixeira We're so glad she's back!

[@luciebfink]

I missed YOU!!!!!

[@joereyes9474]

@@refinery29 hola MI Amor..

[@kosipova01]

Weddings are so expensive, I’m so glad small scale weddings have become more popular.

[@TheMeghan99]

Did anyone else freak out for a second when she said “sadly this will be one of my last Living with Lucie episodes....in this bedroom??? 😳😅

[@luciebfink]

TheMeghan99 hahaha !!! ❤️

[@terria4991]

Congrats on your upcoming wedding Lucie, I'm sure it's going to be amazing! :-) FYI, to some of the comments, lets stop telling Lucie how to spend her own money. She's a grown woman and if she wants a big wedding she has every right to have one. Different people spend their money of different things, expensive cars, bags, shoes, so lets not judge that she wants to put some coin into a wedding.

[@michaelaleach8195]

I planned an entire lake wedding for under five thousand dollars. That included an open bar, lots of food, a DJ and a great view of the sunset over the lake. You don’t need a lot of money to have a beautiful wedding. My guess is that this wedding is pushing 50k... I could have used that for a down payment on a house and still payed off my student loans. That’s crazy to spend on a couple of hours... while weddings are very important and beautiful at the end of the day you’re still married the same as everyone else.

[@xowdavis]

lucie is clearly very wealthy & privileged so her choice to have an extravagant wedding comes as no surprise. if she can afford it, then meh. she has no reason to try to have a budget wedding. though i completely agree with you.

[@andycalimara]

Is she asking you to pay for it, though? No. She isn’t. Not all of us want budget weddings. Some of us want that big blowout wedding, and we’re more than happy to put our money where our mouths are.

[@katherinekmo8121]

The average cost of a wedding in NYC was $76k in 2017 while the average cost across the US is $30k, everything is just so much more expensive in NYC

[@TheJle88]

Wilhelmina D those are some seriously judgmental comments not only by you but others on here as well. The average wedding in the U.S is $30k + some. I’m planning my own wedding now and I am on a stricter budget, but I can tell you nothing is cheap regardless of what you’re looking for in a wedding. Everyone has the right to choose what they want for their wedding and shouldn’t be judged for it by random strangers who know nothing about what is truly going on.

[@lwolf101]

Michaela Leach I’m guessing more like $100k

[@aliceavery4356]

Very much second her rec to get a wedding planner!! My friends who didn't were SO stressed about the process. I did not want to spend time choosing plate shapes, going to a test of the floral arrangements, researching and signing a contract with a DJ, or designing and printing menu cards - and I was so much less stressed because I didn't have to. This video barely scratches the surface of the many, many tasks involved. Same disclaimer as Lucy that I wanted a fairly large/fancy blowout-type wedding - I understand that a planner is not possible for everyone, but if you live in a big city like NYC/SF/LA and are already planning to spend upwards of $30K (national average) it's such a huge huge help!!!

[@viceb7]

Damn the national average is 30k???

[@missrobinhoodie]

What I learned: Invite less people and keep it smaller and simpler. We had around 150 people. But if I could do it again I‘d stick to 40-60 people. Less chaos, less helpers needed, less stress. We asked friends of my husband to play with their band. My goodmother paid for my hair-do as a gift. Also my mum and I did a lot of the decor ourselves including place chards and name cards!

[@shuyira621]

Eena B we malays invite atleast 300-500 people and expected double the attendees. So food for 1000 people. Wedding is more like wanting to announce our marriage and let our close friends and relatives eat good n free food. Also neighbours! But ofcourse we dont usually spend that much on wedding dresses.

[@amandiux7]

Só cute! As a Lucie fan I’m very happy for them, but I feel she’s been focusing only on wedding related content in her personal channel, I’d love to see more diverse topics on her R29 collabs! She has so many good ideas, let’s spice it up to include more viewers: 5 days of recycling, 5 days of museums, 5 days of sports, 5 days of NY neighborhoods, 5 days of Broadway....

[@luciebfink]

We just make video based on audience suggestionssss haha! When the wedding is over we'll be back to regularly scheduled programming :)

[@ladybugbeth00]

Best advice I received while planning my wedding was pick 3-5 things. 3-5 thing that HAVE to go right; that you, as the person getting married, need to happen. Then you let everyone else worry about all the other stuff and you worry about your 3-5 things.

[@lindseystein9676]

City hall was my ideal! Rather than spending thousands and thousands on the wedding, we put that money into an amazing honeymoon. My family is more traditional and would have preferred a typical wedding, but we did it our way instead

[@priyadarshinisatish8340]

So this video is just five days of recreating footage of a year's worth of wedding planning

[@brittaneymichelle5110]

basically

[@brittaneymichelle5110]

basically

[@lumpompusya]

I missed you so muuuuuch !!! Be happy, Lucie ! You make us happy 🤗

[@notconvincedgranny6573]

My mom planned/executed my wedding in 4 days. I borrowed my sister's wedding dress; a bakery we always used donated the cake; my aunts all cooked; the church was happy to have us; the flowers were discounted by the florist my family always used (and my bouquet was free!). I planned/executed my son's wedding in 5 days, and guess what? Our "family bakery" donated the cake; the tuxedos came from another shop we have a long-standing relationship with, same with the bouquets. We went to a discount center for a simple wedding dress for my soon to be daughter; I embellished it (thank goodness I can sew). The most expensive thing was the venue, and they did the catering. Ceremony outdoors in their garden (no need for decor); buffet indoors with fireplace and we had pre-recorded their favorite music. All together, from dress to dinner: $3000.

[@luciebfink]

notconvincedgranny I love this!!! How fun!

[@nancynolan4117]

I'm not sure if the average person can find vendors who are willing to "donate" all of their products and services. Most of them need to make a living.

[@elanor8909]

i'm so happy for michael and you, you are perfect together! 💕

[@pumpkinonastick3928]

To each his own of course, however i find in the US weddings and the 'must haves' are so exaggerated and overpriced (eg. napkin holders?? who cares about that??).. in the Netherlands we spent 10k on the whole wedding including rings and dress, had a spectacular venue and our close family and friends attending, everyone still remembers our wedding as the best they've ever attended to this day. Its all about the atmosphere and people you spend it with. However, if money isn't an issue and you want to have a Cinderella moment then sure! nothing wrong with that, do what the heart desires :D

[@Centrioless]

That's so true. In asia, we spend more on things that the guests enjoy directly: food and entertainment. Having more guests are also more important than wearing a more expensive wedding dress

[@InCertainLight]

Congrats Lucie and Michael!! Hope you have an amazing wedding day and a beautiful rest of your lives together 💜

[@bella-nina]

i’ve been binging these lucie videos they are so interesting!

[@skylarsa]

my dad just got married this past weekend! so much work into wedding planning!

[@TheHunterjumper15]

I'm getting married September 20th! Congrats, sending all the good wedding vibes!

[@Drfatmaashraf]

Sending blessing from Egypt on your big day

[@riddheka]

The wedding is soo close🥳🥳🥳

[@AlejandraEnNYC]

Everything is so beautiful, congratulations.

[@luciebfink]

Alex Hez thanks so much!!

[@alessandradonnelly1941]

This was so helpful!

[@dachenieganthier8920]

Yay I love those video Lucie

[@luciebfink]

Dachenie Ganthier thank you so much!!

[@pepperminterica]

This makes me wanna get married so bad but already stressed for my nonexistent wedding

[@jiminkaburney821]

We are so excited for the wedding 💍

[@irishbutterfly369]

My mother in law is getting married (her 3rd marriage) on September 21st too. My husband & I will be married 3 years in October. I still remember how wonderful our wedding day felt but I also remember every little detail that went wrong or not as I planned it. We wanted to elope but since both of us are only children, our mothers would not have let us hear the end of it, so we got married in town & only had 11 guests. Something to make sure you do after your ceremony, is take some time away from everybody, even if it's 5 or 10 minutes, to just enjoy each other, the day will go by so quickly!!!

[@lwolf101]

irishbutterfly369 you’re a child?

[@irishbutterfly369]

@@lwolf101 No I am an adult. My husband & I are both only children, meaning neither of us have siblings.

[@HopeeInk]

so happy for her !

[@annemettemertz2421]

It is getting so close guys. I am kinda exited for you and Michal Lucy! Btw: my cat is born on the day you got engaged and is called Lucy. Find it quite funny, she got that name from the old lady we bought her from.

[@luciebfink]

Anne Mette Mertz awww I love this!!!

[@amylouie1871]

Aw your wedding is on my birthday! Congrats!

[@WhereweddingCoUk1]

Thanks for useful tips!

[@amberdawn8791]

Lucie, on the day of wedding, don't get so caught up in making sure everything goes right, that you forget to enjoy the day and yourself!

[@sarahaharper]

I am getting married the same day!! So cool

[@refinery29]

+sarahhopkins That's awesome!

[@luciebfink]

OMG how fun! Congrats!!!!

[@electricpenguin32]

Getting married at the courthouse because I can’t afford any of this 😅

[@professionalcommenter]

I did 9 years ago and I'm still happily married. We wore what we had, my sister bought my my bouquet and my hubbies boutonnierre. She also bought me some cupcakes instead of a cake. We got married at a courthouse, my MIL bought our marriage no license and took is out to eat after. Then my sister prepped my old apartment for me and my hubby it was great!

[@solesuna]

I mean that‘s the most important part of a wedding. Everything else is just extra. Friends of mine got married at the courthouse just with their families present and had a dinner afterwards with us friends in a cabbin in the woods. It was the wedding I liked the most and cost the least of the ones I went to. And in the end a few people helped clean up everything.

[@Hopekook-or1cf]

Hi lucie! Thank you for another amazing video. I can't believe your getting married so soon. Love from the Philippines. #earlysquad!❤️❤️❤️

[@aoifejayne]

Exciting

[@refinery29]

+ajhowarth We agree!

[@emmaladd7496]

Lucie, you are so so pretty I’ve been watching you for years… And you have inspired me so much! I hope you have the time of your life on your big day!

[@luciebfink]

Emma Ladd thank you so much ❤️🥰🥰

[@emmaladd7496]

Thank you!

[@ivaroa]

when my sister got married, she invited myself. our other sister, and both our parents to a tasting, but little did we know it was a sit down dinner tasting with many other couples and we were the only real family at the event. I'm actually glad you guys made it a private thing because we were trying a menu that was basically their greatest hits (except for the cake, duh) instead of a customized meal.

[@thoughtsideas6929]

Can you do a wedding budget video?

[@morgansmith-boeck9098]

Just saw your moving vlog. I love your new place!

[@nicholeledesma6194]

We opted for milk and cookies for our wedding, over cake

[@luciebfink]

Nichole D I love this! We have s’mores pipettes 🥰❤️

[@eleo_b]

American weddings seem so elaborate, so much work!

[@lindseystein9676]

They are. The sad thing is that any of the catering/florists/venue is significantly cheaper if you’re just having a party. Because it’s a wedding they charge quite a bit more.

[@eleo_b]

Lindsey Stein • that’s probably also because the damage is bigger if something goes wrong on someone’s wedding day compared to a random event?

[@lindseystein9676]

I’m sure that has a little to do with it, but it’s becoming more known that vendors and venues exploit charging costs because some people will spare no expense for a wedding. I just read an article on how much prices have risen in just the last 10 years. But to go off what you said, wedding receptions can be crazy, indeed, because of open bars at the reception. In my early 20’s I was a manager at a nice hotel with a reception hall, every spring wedding season we had to have extra security because of fights that would break out during receptions. I’ll never forget one time I had to call the police when the groom and best man had a drunken fist fight in the lobby, knocking over and breaking a few things, including the huge pottted tree. I overheard the bride and best man had a relationshipthey never told the groom about😬 it was never a dull moment during wedding season haha

[@Tully3674]

Whatever the total cost may be, add 35-40% if its a kosher event.

[@77pragya]

Tully3674 what is kosher?

[@chelgre8149]

@@77pragya the Jewish diet regulations

[@ritikapramanick3474]

Never been this Early. ... Nd the wedding is so close... Congratulations in advance 😊😊💐💐💐

[@luciebfink]

Ritika Pramanick THANK YOU!!

[@ritikapramanick3474]

@@luciebfink 😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘u replied 😮💟💟💟💟 i didn't expect this .. thank u

[@themurphy6279]

I love your channel

[@refinery29]

+leonmurphy Thanks for being here!!

[@zelle408]

I hate red roses. to me personally symbolize betrayal lol idk maybe bcuz i would always see on movies the guy bringing red roses to the girl after cheating haha.

[@luciebfink]

ilabee mee lollll

[@raraavis7782]

ilabee mee Ikr? They are usually used as some kind of emotional bribery...rarely as an innocent romantic gesture 😆

[@sushmita8824]

Makes sense😄 I hate them because I feel red roses are cliche and there are many other more beautiful flowers out there

[@isabelcummins6825]

This is sooo cute

[@refinery29]

+isabelcummins So glad you think so!

[@jihyofeels]

i was surprised when i saw this video. I almost thought Lucie doesnt work for refinery29 anymore

[@Sueaanne]

meee meee I thought she didn’t work for them anymore too.

[@alexiss6194]

She still does some work with them but she’s mostly independent now

[@eyerolling5765]

Lucieee!!!!!!

[@amethystna]

Omgggg september 21 is my birthdayyyy!!! i cant belive it !!!

[@joelmelissam]

It’s the day after my wedding anniversary. We’re about to celebrate our 22nd anniversary. Still ridiculously in love. 💛💛💛💛 Wishing Lucie and Michael years of happiness.

[@marwaruby6815]

I love your long hair 💙

[@arielmiller2333]

She looks so beautiful ❤️😭

[@luciebfink]

Ariel Miller thank you 😭😭😭

[@thefrontierfamily3495]

Wow what an extravagant event! Hope you get your money's worth out of the marriage!

[@thetruthhurts540]

I wonder if the Kardashians know about repeatroses 🤔

[@niki3722]

I'm happy she's happy but I still think it's crazy to do a wedding like this and unnecessary to spend this much money

[@mybabiesrbts179]

Well its needed if you're from a certain community or social strata

[@niki3722]

@@mybabiesrbts179 but there are a lot of people that don't really have the money and still feel like they have to spend everything they have on a wedding

[@amyburgess8529]

Your hair looks so beautiful in this video, how do you do it?

[@luciebfink]

Like this!! kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4uaiGSYnadrn7c&t=

[@sherlockholmes6872]

16:19 I learnt that from Cristine!

[@thisiszahra72]

If God wills I will be having my engagement ceremony this year and i am very nervous.

[@aasthachaurasia9849]

I wanna get married rn😭❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@meaghanwood1844]

This video really overwhelmed me 😅 my goal is

[@asiyaalhaddad]

Same 😂

[@Emmsley14]

My wedding cost 3,000 total for everything from the dress to the cake. We did most everything ourselves or had friends help out and it made the planning really fun for me!

[@pritinthecity]

First! Congrats!

[@BiteThere]

Can I please know where you got the shirt in the intro????

[@luciebfink]

karen el the pearl one? Zara!!

[@susanvandolsen2419]

Great video, Lucie. Can't wait to celebrate on 9/21. I love the idea of having the flowers donated to patients in hospitals. Everything looks amazing and beautiful.

[@charlottelong6501]

Omg she is so stunning and such A 😻Queen Arhhj

[@loricafair]

Make sure someone has snacks and drinks for you while you're getting ready and in between pictures and the ceremony on either side. You'll be hungry.

[@peonypuff1004]

ah yes im single and i'm watching wedding videos :,)

[@rachelobrien4181]

I’m getting married today!!

[@refinery29]

+rachleo'brien OMG, congrats!

[@lwolf101]

Rachel O'Brien on a Friday??

[@rachelobrien4181]

Leah Wolf I live in New Zealand so it’s a Saturday here :)

[@luciebfink]

Rachel O'Brien CONGRATTTTTTTS

[@rachelobrien4181]

Married now! It was the best day of our lives and I can’t wait for a nap

[@iceetas]

omg lucie's wedding day is my birthday

[@luciebfink]

isislovesdogs ahhhh!❤️🥰🥰🥰

[@lwolf101]

We booked our venue a full 18 months early and it was just enough time. It filled up.

[@luciebfink]

Leah Wolf yessss! Wild

[@na6241]

Please do wedding venue like a worth it video. Haha

[@carolynfloyd7171]

Haha they said the caters name was PETER AMBROSE where are my ps I still love you from Netflix fans?

[@andreatrajkova4521]

Early 💜💜💜

[@peppa_pig_]

sounds rich

[@soniamerchant2053]

Love u Lucie❤❤ U inspire me a lot 😇😇

[@Clarinalein]

Wow I have to say it's crazy how much people invest in weddings 😅 no hate - I just don't get it. (I know she made a disclaimer) Nevertheless very interesting video and great to have a guide to make planning stress free if you want a big wedding :)

[@princesschi7689]

When u have a big fam

[@Clarinalein]

@@princesschi7689 true! But the dress, invitations etc. have nothing to do with that. But definitely true!

[@jenforbes8728]

is something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue really a thing? cause its my first time hearing this despite being involved in different weddings

[@potatochowmein]

Jen Forbes I’ve known brides who’ve done it. I think it’s more of an intimate thing. Like if you’re a general guest you likely wouldn’t know what a brides items were If you’re in the wedding party or family you’d probably be more aware because you were gifting/lending or someone around you is

[@lindseystein9676]

I think it’s an old fashioned tradition, every woman in my family followed that tradition- both sides of my family. And when my grandmother died when I was 16, my aunts set aside one of her lace handkerchiefs for me to carry at my wedding for “something old.” And let me tell you that small item was hard to keep track of over the years because I didn’t get married until I was 30 (2 yrs ago) at city hall.

[@unknowncaller9696]

You should let you’re Instagram chose you’re week !!!!!

[@Tinamar65]

This is so different from how I got married...🙈

[@mariatxxxc]

I don't get weddings, I would just go to the city council and done

[@anutamar]

yup.... thinking about all that planning and logistics needed for the event....plus the coin. City council, a cute dress and maybe some champagne with friends...sounds about all i can manage

[@Kuwkay]

Weddings are fun and really memberable

[@lindseystein9676]

That’s what we did. Instead of spending all that money on the ceremony and reception, we put it towards an amazing honeymoon.

[@destinyb6131]

5 days of not washing my face only water!

[@_fireplayz56_d54]

When ur Latina and get confused why she’s saying the flowers will be left there as soon as the wedding starts all ur tias are taking the flowers 😂😭

[@MANNYISTHERE]

I find all of this unnecessary

[@tabithalymburner3909]

I so agreeshe didn't relate to most people that DIY and do it themselves and have a small budget. I don't think most people that have and hire wedding planners actually watch these videos.

[@vee8042]

Sis rlly said Adam Nd Eve f in the chat for the gays

[@baharmohelena]

Im 17 ı’m not planning to get married but why not ı just watch it anyways

[@cutiemel91]

Sounds expensive

[@bl00dhoney]

Really really reeeeaaallllyyy

[@proudpinoy1997]

i love your big eyes its a bit scary but their beautiful...

[@Refik9]

Good luck that's a loot of work

[@bellaroseregan4092]

Hi lm new

[@refinery29]

+bellaregan Hello there!

[@rsartore12]

This is too complicated.

[@snrice97]

I click away from one of these wedding videos every time Lucie/the vendors don't use gender inclusive language. It's 2019

[@sudarshanajha2786]

Reads the title *laughs in Hinduism*

[@itpro4830]

... don't think I've seen prettier eyes than hers.

[@jaeheebae9039]

Lol one eyebrow is higher

[@Ceciaguilr]

Weddings are such a waste of money. Yuck.

[@sabahfatema]

yIkes barely any of this is needed. Y'all need a reevaluation