Videographer: Eddie Hayes, Digital Tide Productions

If anyone knows how to host a beautiful event, it is Tanya Rublaitus.

Tanya is the owner of PT Weddings & Events and is an amazing wedding planner, day-of-coordinator, and officiant. Tanya is lovely and wonderful and exactly the person you want in charge of the important details on your big day.

She has lived in Port Townsend for over 20 years and knows the best vendors and venues to make your wedding day unforgettable.

Tanya was kind enough to do a Q&A for the With These Rings blog. Learn more about Tanya and her services and what makes Port Townsend such a special place to say "I do."

What inspired you to become a wedding planner?

I had been a high school business teacher for 23 years and was ready for a change. Our only planner in town was a guest speaker in my hospitality and tourism class one day and she told me that she wasn’t going to do weddings anymore. If I had ever wanted to jump, now was the time! I have always been very organized, detail-oriented, and a sucker for elegance and celebrations. It’s a really good fit.

What types of weddings do you specialize in?

I do the entire spectrum—from elopements to 200+ weddings. My favorites, though, are the smaller, elegant, and simple weddings. They tend to be more about the “marriage” and not so much about the “wedding production.”

What is your favorite part of being a wedding planner?

I enjoy helping bring a couple’s vision to life. For most people it is their first wedding, and they don’t know what they don’t know! I love that I work with some wonderful vendors who will take care of my clients and treat them like gold. It’s very satisfying to go home after a successful wedding, knowing I did all I could to help the day go smoothly.

What do you think makes Port Townsend, and the Olympic Peninsula, such a special place for couples to say "I do"?

Couples that want the big fancy hotel wedding are not going to get married here. All of my couples have “their story” on how they discovered our little piece of paradise here. There is a sense of magic, with the water and mountains and everything in between.

What’s your number one tip for couples planning their big day?

Pay people to do as much as your budget can afford. Let your family and friends just be there to support you as a couple and enjoy themselves. And I think couples should be resting and enjoying their wedding day, not sweating and setting up decorations and running around all crazy. Relax! Get your hair and makeup done! Drink mimosas! Play a round of golf!

Do you have a favorite wedding tradition?

I give each of my brides a handkerchief right before the ceremony. It has blue flowers on it, so can cover some of the “something new, something blue” tradition. I encourage them to wrap it around their bouquet, as most people will need it (and share with the groom sometimes.) It’s old fashioned, and I love it.