It takes a lot to surprise Sarah Fay Waller. No, she’s not a spy. Nor is she a volcanologist or a roller coaster designer or an underwater welder. She’s a wedding planner, and when she says she’s seen and heard it all (say, a bride who dreamed of synchronized swimmers performing during the cocktail hour), believe her.
“I’m always up for the adventure of the unexpected!” Waller says. “And any opportunity I have to ensure that a couple’s day is a true reflection of their individual styles and personalities, as well as a blend of their relationship together, is incredibly meaningful to me.”
A University of Virginia grad with a master’s degree in art history, Waller started Day by Fay in 2017 after spending five years assisting a friend with her wedding planning business. She says a semester in Rome, where she immersed herself in the city’s classical art and architecture, literature, music, and tradition, still inspires her style, “a blend of timeless and whimsical.”
Waller’s primary focus, though, is on the planner-client relationship. The first thing she offers her clients is a 45-minute video call, during which she learns more about each of them, their vision for their wedding, and the kind of support or guidance they’re looking for when it comes to their day. “It’s so important that the relationship is a mutual one in which direct conversations can be had with total transparency, and expectations can be managed.”
Waller says one of the things she enjoys most about the wedding planning process is presenting a couple with their design board, a reflection of their lifestyles and a vision for their wedding with “a uniquely curated design…[that she’s created] just for them.” Another favorite moment is on the wedding day, when Waller and the couple walk into the reception space and see their design brought to life, just before guests are invited to join them.
Speaking of guests, there tends to be fewer of them these days, she says, because two-plus years of a pandemic has altered the way many couples are heading to the altar. “It’s caused people to rethink and reconsider so many details,” Waller says.
Weddings are smaller, and couples are willing to get married sooner or during the off-season, so they don’t have to wait for an available Saturday. Ceremonies and cocktail hours continue to be outdoors, and couples opt for plated meals instead of a buffet, where guests are touching shared surfaces and using the same utensils and dishware.
But those smaller wedding ceremonies are often followed by larger cocktail hours and receptions with extended family and friends. As for other trends, Waller says she’s seeing “some absolutely incredible floral installations, which we can never get enough of, and some jaw-dropping veils.” And while she’s “a sucker for a sweet sparkler send-off,” she’s “always excited” to see alternatives—whether it’s a petal toss, a post-ceremony receiving line, bubbles, or glow sticks.
But at the end of the (big) day, Waller says what she loves the most about weddings is “celebrating two individuals committing to each other in the presence of the people who mean the most to them: their families and friends.”