Setup Day Toolkit

Holds cords flat across the dance floor, tacks up a drooping garland and comes off venue walls without taking the paint, which duct tape does not. Black for cords and floors; a white roll disappears on linens and walls.

~$20 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Greenery to an arch, drapes to a tent pole, a wobbly sign to its easel. White vanishes against an arbor and black against a stand; snip the tails flush so nothing catches a dress.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Hang the seating chart, a garland or a sign anywhere without losing the venue deposit; they come off clean at the end of the night. Check the weight rating against a foam-board sign, and press each strip for thirty seconds.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Invisible in photos and strong enough to hang greenery from a beam or float a sign. One spool of 20 to 40 lb test is more than a wedding needs; the rest goes to whoever fishes.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Place cards blow off, menu cards slide, a runner will not lie flat. A removable dot under each one holds it invisibly and peels off the linens without a mark. One roll goes in the setup kit, one to whoever sets the tables.

~$5 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A cracked centerpiece, a hairpiece that will not sit, a sign letter that fell off. Cordless means no outlet hunt at the venue. Charge it the night before, and keep it away from the kids' table.

~$35 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A heel that separates, a cake topper that snaps and a broken hair comb are all one-tube fixes, and the gel version stays where you put it instead of running onto fabric. Tubes dry out once opened, so keep the second one sealed in the setup toolkit.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A bouquet stem that snaps or a boutonniere that droops is a florist fix, and the florist left at noon. Green tape, 22 and 26 gauge wire and a cutter cover every repair the day will ask for.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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The DJ, the string lights and the coffee urn are never near an outlet, and a ten-foot power strip does not cross a barn. Fifty feet of outdoor-rated cord with a lit end so you can see it is live. Add a rubber cover where it crosses a walkway.

~$45 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Getting-ready rooms never have enough outlets for hair tools, steamers and phones.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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The bubble guns take four AA batteries each and the photo clip lights three, and neither comes with them. Forty-eight covers the lot with spares for the day.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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LED tealights run on CR2032 coin cells and most flameless pillars on AAA, so the AA pack does nothing when half the votives die during dinner. Count your tealights and buy enough for a full swap, plus a 24-pack of AAA for pillars and fairy lights. Coin cells are a swallowing hazard, so keep them well away from the kids' table.

~$5 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Breakdown in a barn or a field at 11 p.m. goes twice as fast with both hands free. One per person loading the cars, charged the night before.

~$20 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Someone has to light 80 votives in ten minutes before guests walk in, and the one lighter in a pocket is always empty. Charge both the night before and give one to whoever is on candle duty. Many venues ban open flame, so confirm before buying real candles.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Most venues ban open flame, and real tealights burn out before the first dance. Set the timer once and they glow all night without anyone lighting them. Count tables times votives, add ten percent, and check the battery type.

~$25 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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For the aisle, a mantel or the head table, real-wax pillars with a flickering LED read as candlelight in photos and do not blow out in the wind. Nine sizes make a staggered cluster; set the timer during setup.

~$25 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A strand of warm micro-LEDs fixes a dark corner, a cake table or the card box with no outlet in reach. Twelve strands at ten feet each; they take AAA batteries, so add those to the setup list.

~$25 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Everything arrives in boxes and shrink wrap. A safety cutter opens them without slicing the linens underneath or a helper's thumb. Two so one lives in the kit and one in the car.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Planners name scissors as the most-used item on the day, and folding travel scissors will not cut ribbon, zip ties or floral stems. Keep this pair out of the kit, with your name on it, so it does not walk off.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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For venue walkthroughs, table layouts and checking the aisle runner length.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Arches and sign frames ship flat-packed, and something always needs one screw tightened at 9 a.m. A basic kit with a screwdriver, hammer and pliers lives in the car on the day and in the hall closet after.

~$25 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Every venue has a beam or a doorway someone wants greenery on, and standing on a chair in a dress is how weddings end at urgent care. Ask the venue first; many keep a ladder.

~$40 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A six-foot table that folds in half, holds 300 lb and lives in a closet: the gift table, the bar, the dessert table, and every family party after.

~$30 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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A folding table is always covered at a wedding. These fit a six-foot table to near the floor, and they wash without ironing.

Don't forget a tablecloth for every folding table.

~$20 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Faster than an iron and you'll use it before every occasion for the rest of your life.

Rental linens and backdrop drapes arrive creased from the bag.

~$70 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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The getting-ready suite fills a bag by noon with tags, packaging, takeout and bottles, and the bathrooms, bar and vendor tables need them too. These fit a standard kitchen can; the contractor bags are for the heavy teardown.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Breakdown produces a mountain of florals, packaging and cake plates, and venue bins are small. One box of heavy bags means the last hour does not end with a split sack in the parking lot.

~$30 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Rented tables arrive dusty, the self-serve bar gets sticky, and the getting-ready bathroom is shared by everyone. Three canisters: one for setup, one for the bar, one for the suite.

~$15 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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For trash, wet floral foam, ice and cutting fruit for the bar, without ruining a manicure you booked for the wedding. Powder free and latex free; medium fits most hands.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Every vase, mirror sign and candle holder arrives with fingerprints, and after a shower someone has to dry 120 ceremony chairs. Twenty-four cloths means nobody is hunting for a paper towel.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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One bin per area of the venue makes setup and teardown easy, and they store the decor after.

~$65 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Your helpers cannot set up what they cannot find. Put a bold label on the top and the side of every bin, with an inventory taped inside the lid, and the setup runs without you. These peel off clean when the bins go back to the garage.

~$10 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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The thing someone asks for at every setup and teardown: labeling bins, the cooler, the leftovers and the box that must not be thrown away. Twelve, because they walk off.

~$5 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Forty centerpieces, three bins and a card box across a gravel lot, twice. The wide wheels handle grass, gravel and sand, and it folds into the trunk. Probably the most useful thing a DIY couple buys, and it keeps its value after.

~$120 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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Thirty bud vases do not survive a car ride loose in a bin. Divided cells get them to the venue and home in one piece, ready to resell. One box per twelve vases, with a roll of bubble wrap for anything odd-shaped.

~$20 · Prices are approximate and can change. Check the shop for today's price.

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