FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. HOW MANY YEARS HAS HONEY & JOY BEEN IS BUSINESS?
A: FROMERLY, KARLA LEWENCZUK EVENTS, HONEY & JOY HAS BEEN IN BUSINESS SINCE 2017. WHAT STARTED AS A DREAM TO PLAN A FEW WEDDINGS, GREW INTO A CAREER. WE ARE NOW ONE OF THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER EVENT PLANNING AND DESIGN COMPANIES IN IOWA.
Q: DO YOU OFFER FLOWERS?
A: YES, WE DO! WHEN WORKING WITH THE HJE TEAM ON DESIGN PROCESS, WE WILL GO THROUGH ALL THE OPTIONS FOR CENTERPIECES, CEREMONY, AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN. WE WILL MAKE YOUR EVENT ONE OF A KIND, WHILE KEEPING YOUR BUDGET IN MIND.
Q: DO YOU OFFER DECOR & RENTALS?
A: YES, WE DO! WE HAVE A WIDE VARIETY OF DECOR ITEMS. IN HOUSE, WE CARRY CHARGERS, VOTIVES, CANDLE HOLDERS, FLATWARE, TABLE NUMBERS, SOFAS, AND SO MUCH MORE. ASK TO VIEW THESE ITEMS AT OUR WAREHOUSE!
Q: WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF PLANNING WITH HONEY & JOY EVENTS?
A: WE PRIDE OURSELVES IN OUR RELATIONSHIPS, NOT ONLY WITH OUR CLIENTS, BUT VENDORS TOO. WHEN YOU PLAN WITH HJE IT'S LIKE PLANNING YOUR WEDDING WITH YOUR BFF. HJE PARTNERS WITH SEVERAL VENDORS TO PROVIDE YOU WITH THE BEST DISCOUNTS & RATES.
Q: I ALREADY HAVE A WEDDING PLANNER, BUT I WANT TO WORK WITH HONEY & JOY FOR MY WEDDING FLOWERS AND DECOR, CAN I DO THAT?
A. ABSOLUTELY! WE LOVE COLLABORATING WITH OTHER VENDORS AND WE WOULD BE HONORED TO DESIGN YOUR WEDDING FLOWERS!
Q: DO YOU GUYS SET UP + TEAR DOWN DECOR + RENTALS?
A: YES! ALL OF OUR DESIGN PACKAGES + RENTAL PACKAGES INCLUDE SET UP + TEAR DOWN.
Q. DOES HONEY & JOY OFFER LINENS, DANCE FLOORS, AND DRAPING?
A: YES! WE ARE HAPPY TO PROVIDE LINENS OF ALL KINDS (TEXTURES + PATTERNS) DANCE FLOORS, AND DRAPING. PLEASE ASK US FOR A CUSTOM QUOTE.
Q: WHAT MAKES HONEY & JOY DIFFERENT?
A: AT HONEY & JOY, WE CARE DEEPLY ABOUT PROVIDING PEACE OF MIND ON YOUR WEDDING DAY. NOT ONLY ARE WE ORGANIZED AND DETAIL-ORIENTED, BUT WE ALSO BELIEVE IT’S IMPORTANT TO HAVE A GENUINE CONNECTION WITH EACH OF OUR CLIENTS. OUR PAST EXPERIENCE IN PLANNING CORPORATE EVENTS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE ALLOWS US TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE TO ALL OF OUR CLIENTS AND VENDORS. WE TRULY LOVE WHAT WE DO AND WANT EVERY WEDDING TO BE PERFECT FOR OUR BRIDES.
Q: WHAT AREAS DO YOU SERVICE?
A: WE PRIMARILY SERVICE DES MOINES, IOWA CITY, AND CEDAR RAPIDS, BUT WE ARE HAPPY TO TRAVEL WHEREVER YOUR SPECIAL DAY TAKES YOU! *FEES MAY BE APPLIED* WE HAVE PLANNED AND DONE FLORAL FOR WEDDINGS IN LOCATIONS ACROSS THE MIDWEST.
Q. DO YOU PLAN OTHER EVENTS BEYOND WEDDINGS?
A. YES, WE DO! WE LOVE PLANNING AND DESIGNING EVENTS OUTSIDE OF WEDDINGS! THOUGH WE ONLY TAKE ON A SELECT NUMBER OF EVENTS EACH YEAR, WE ENJOY EXPRESSING OUR CREATIVITY AND PLANNING CORPORATE EVENTS, NON-PROFIT GALAS, MILESTONE BIRTHDAYS, BABY SHOWERS AND MORE.
Q. WHAT IS THE AVERAGE BUDGET THAT YOU WORK WITH?
A: WE WORK WITH A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT BUDGETS, RANGING FROM $40K-$200K. WE HAVE EVEN PLANNED WEDDINGS WITH A BUDGET OF NEARLY $1M. ON AVERAGE OUR CLIENTS SPEND $250-$500 PER GUEST.
Q. ARE YOU LBGTQ+ INCLUSIVE?
A. ABSOLUTELY. WE BELIEVE LOVE IS LOVE.
Q. ARE THERE ANY HIDDEN FEES I SHOULD EXPECT?
A: ALL FEES WILL BE INCLUDED ON YOUR INITIAL PROPOSAL, INCLUDING CREDIT CARD FEES. THE SET UP AND DELIVERY FEES ARE BASED ON A PERCENTAGE OF THE EVENT SUBTOTAL; THEREFORE, THOSE FEES MAY INCREASE DEPENDING ON IF THERE ARE ANY UPGRADES ADDED. WITH LARGER FLORAL AND DECOR ORDERS, MORE STAFF WILL BE NEEDED TO SUCCESSFULLY SET UP YOUR EVENT.
Q. HOW MUCH DO FLOWERS COST?
A: FLORAL COST CAN VARY DEPENDING ON YOUR NEEDS AND PREFERENCES. IN IOWA, COUPLES GENERALLY SPEND AN AVERAGE OF 15%-20% OF THEIR TOTAL WEDDING BUDGET ON FLORALS. WE TYPICALLY SEE CLIENTS SPEND $6,000-$12,000, DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF THE WEDDING. OUR MINIMUM IS $6,000 FOR FLORALS.
Q. HOW FAR IN ADVANCE SHOULD I BOOK WITH HJE?
A. IT'S BEST TO BOOK 9-18 MONTHS IN ADVANCE TO GUARANTEE YOUR DATE. HOWEVER, WE WILL ACCEPT BOOKINGS UNTIL 1 MONTH PRIOR.
Q. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR DESIGN STYLE?
A. WE WOULD DESCRIBE OUR STYLE AS ROMANTIC, GARDEN STYLE AND WHIMSICAL.
Q. CAN I HAVE YOU DO SOME OF THE FLOWERS FOR MY WEDDING AND ANOTHER VENDOR/COMPANY DO THE REST?
A. HONEY & JOY FLORALS OPERATES WITH EXCLUSIVITY. MEANING, IN ORDER TO PROTECT THE IMAGE AND INTEGRITY OF THE WORK WE PROVIDE, WE ARE THE SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE FLORIST FOR THE EVENT. THERE ARE SOME CASES WHERE WE ARE ABLE TO WORK WITH DECOR THAT CERTAIN VENUES PROVIDE, BUT THIS SHOULD BE DISCUSSED BEFORE BOOKING YOUR DATE. IF YOU PLAN ON ORDERING FAKE FLORAL ARRANGEMENTS OR HAVING ANOTHER PERSON PROVIDE FLORALS AS WELL, WE MAY NOT BE THE BEST FIT.
Q. WHAT FLOWERS ARE IN SEASON FOR MY WEDDING?
A: WHILE WE ARE NEVER ABLE TO GUARANTEE SPECIFIC BLOOMS, HERE IS A LOOSE GUIDE TO SEASONAL BLOOMS!
ALL YEAR ROUND BLOOMS: ROSE, TULIP, LISIANTHUS, LARKSPUR, STOCK FLOWER, WHITE HYDRANGEA, RANUCULUS, SPRAY ROSE, SNAPDRAGON, CARNATION, AND DELPHINIUM
SPRING BLOOMS: BLOOMING BRANCHES, PEONY, LOCAL ARTISAN TULIP, DAFFODIL, CLEMATI, ANEMONE, MUSCARI, SWEET PEA, AND POPPY
SUMMER BLOOMS: SCABIOSA, LOCAL CHANTILLY SNAPDRAGON, SUNFLOWER, MARIGOLD, YARROW, FEVER FEW, AND ALLIUM
LATER SUMMER BLOOMS: DAHLIA AND ZINNIA
FALL BLOOMS: DAHLIA, AMARANTH, RUDBECKIA, ZINNIA, STRAWFLOWER, YARROW, CONE HYDRANGEA, AND SNOW BERRY
WINTER BLOOMS: AMARYLLIS, HELLEBORE, POINSETTIA, AND ILEX BERRY
Q. HOW MANY HOURS ARE YOU ON SITE ON A WEDDING DAY?
A: WHEN WE ARE COORDINATING A WEDDING, WE ARE THE FIRST VENDOR THERE AND THE LAST ONE TO LEAVE. THIS MEANS WE ARE TYPICALLY THERE FROM 9AM-11:30PM.
Q. HOW MANY PLANNERS WILL BE AT MY WEDDING?
AT EACH WEDDING, THERE ARE ALWAYS TWO PLANNERS, BUT SOMETIMES THERE ARE THREE. THIS IS DEPENDENT ON THE OVERALL EVENT LOGISTICS AND SIZE. FOR EXTRA LARGE EVENTS WE WILL HAVE FOUR PLANNERS.
Q. HOW MANY WEDDINGS HAVE YOU PLANNED?
A. I (KARLA THE OWNER) HAVE PLANNED OVER 300 WEDDINGS + EVENTS. AS A TEAM WE HAVE PLANNED OVER 700 EVENTS.
Q. WILL I STILL HAVE SOME CONTROL OVER MY WEDDING IF I HIRE YOUR TEAM AS MY PLANNER?
A: DEFINITELY! WE WILL DO AS MUCH, OR AS LITTLE AS YOU WANT US TO DO DURING THE PLANNING PROCESS! OUR TEAM WILL ALWAYS ASK FOR YOUR INPUT, AND THEN MAKE SUGGESTIONS TO YOU.
Q: WHY SHOULD A BRIDE AND GROOM HIRE A WEDDING PLANNER?
A: A BRIDE AND GROOM SHOULD HIRE A WEDDING PLANNER TO TRULY ENJOY THEIR DAY. WITH THIS INVESTMENT, THEY WILL HAVE PEACE OF MIND THAT EVERYTHING WILL RUN SMOOTHLY AND THAT THEIR GUESTS WILL HAVE A FABULOUS TIME. AS WEDDING PLANNERS, WE ALSO KNOW WHERE YOU SHOULD INVEST YOUR MONEY AND HOW YOU CAN SAVE IT.
Q: HOW DO I RESERVE MY DATE?
A: AFTER WE HAVE HAD A CONSULTATION AND YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO BOOK WITH HJE, A 50% NON- REFUNDABLE RETAINER IS DUE IN ORDER TO SECURE YOUR DATE. ONCE WE HAVE A SIGNED CONTRACT AND A RETAINER, WE WILL START PLANNING YOUR BEST DAY EVER!
Q: I WANT TO WORK WITH HONEY & JOY, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
A: HEAD OVER TO OUR CONTACT PAGE AND SEND US AN EMAIL! WE WILL GET STARTED WITH A COMPLIMENTARY CONSULTATION. YOU CAN ALSO SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION WITH US HERE.
