I found these ten very helpful hints to help you create a logical, reasonable wedding budget in the latest issue of Bridal Guide magazine. I paraphrased Denise Chipani’s excellent article to shorten it just a bit. Here goes…

1. Set Budget Priorities.  Resist the impulse to rent a Rolls Royce limo. Begin with a realistic overall budget (which will involve planning meetings with your fiance.) Make a list of, in order of MUST-haves, your wedding details, so you can spend your dollars on the higher priorities.

A

AAAAa

AA

2. Read the Fine Print. Read everything. Don’t skip over anything, and ask any questions immediately, especially when it comes to payment terms. You need to know when payments or balances are due, if there are any minimum charges, corkage fees, cake-cutting fees, etc.  Instead of signing a contract on the spot, take it home and read it carefully. The vendor shouldn’t mind waiting 24 hours or so. If there’s pressure to sign then and there, proceed to the next vendor on your list.

3.  Look Before You Leap. Even if you fall in love with the first reception venue on your list when you visit, be patient. Don’t write a check, only to find a beautiful place that costs less and offers more a few days later. Investigate. List the details of each venue—costs, services, extras, terms—on a spreadsheet or something similar. You just may wind up taking the first place you saw, and you’ll know in your heart it’s the best!

4.  Don’t Fall Prey to Peer Pressure. Resist keeping up with the Joneses. You don’t know all the details about that fabulous wedding you just attended—lobster, filet mignon, the best champagne. Who paid for it? How much debt did this couple take on? Don’t be affected by the choices of others. You’ll be more likely to create and stick to a budget you can afford.

5.  Don’t Get Stuck on Shoulds. All you really need is love and a wedding license. Do you really need the priciest favors when unique wedding favors are available at affordable prices? Consider whether a particular detail will mean something to you in the future. Wedding photos are priceless and everlasting, but how important will that two-minute ride in a ritzy car mean to you in the future?

6.  Know What You Both Want. When you go food shopping without a list, don’t you often come home with lots of stuff you didn’t need? Ditto for weddings. Sit down with your fiance and list what you absolutely must have, and you’ll make wiser financial decisions.

7.  Don’t Let Your Guest List Get the Best of You. More people=more money. Period. Their solution is to “figure out how many guests you can actually afford. Split your list among your own guests, your groom’s and your parents’. Then have everyone chop from the bottom to create a “B” list.” They recommend you order extra reply cards to send after the initial RSVPs come in and you know you have space.”

8.  Don’t Stuff Your Guests. Certainly you don’t want your guests to leave your reception hungry or unhappy, but overordering food or planning a seven-course dinner-palooza isn’t the answer. The more choices you order, the higher the cost. Work with your caterer. Let her know what your budget is, what kinds of food you want, and she’ll determine what she can give you within those parameters. Trust that she’ll come up with creative options.

9. Think Creatively. Don’t follow the crowd (or re-create your sister’s wedding.) Be imaginative. Bridal Guide’s example is to “ask a florist to create one centerpiece that you and your friends can use as a template for making the rest yourselves.” You’ll save on the cost of labor you would have paid the florist.

10.  Don’t Do It All Yourself. Frankly, you don’t have the time to do all the research and footwork it takes to find the best, most economical choices. Get help. A wedding planner. Mom and sis. Your BFFs. Your fiance. If you have talented friends, enlist them to help you with invitations, decorating or flowers. They’d probably love to help you make your wedding a triumph!

Personally, I think these are incredibly valuable ideas. To see the whole story, check out the May/June issue of Bridal Guide magazine.

A

A

A

All photos courtesy of Google Images.

Whether it’s from school loans, car loans, life’s emergencies, job loss or just plain bad buying decisions–we all have debt!  Sometimes, we can handle it and sometimes we can’t.  Even when we’re doing our darnedest to pay it off, a mountain of debt can be hard to move.  And if you’re planning a wedding on top of that with everything from the wedding dresses to wedding favors, the mountain just seems to get bigger.  So, if you’ve gotten to the place where your debt is standing in the way of your big day, we may have a solution–The BillPayRegistry.com.

Yep,  it finally happened.  A practical registry that lets you forgo the crystal for the cash.  Just like the name implies, it’s a unique way to help you pay down the bills and start your new life debt free…how wonderful is that?!

Here’s how it works!

• Post your bills just like you would a gift to the registry.
• Send out the registry to your family and friends.
• They make contributions that will be applied towards your unpaid bills as a gift to you.

As they post payments online, you’ll be notified that there’s a wad of cash waiting for you.  All you have to do is select which bills you’d like the service to pay for you, and voila!–your bills are erased like magic!  But, don’t worry.  Your personal information is hidden, and your family and friends don’t have access to your accounts.  The service handles all of that back-office stuff, and you can use the registry for any special occasion (not just weddings), like birthdays, Christmas, anniversaries, etc.  You can even send thank-you notes through the registry to show your heartfelt appreciation.

It’s true, this type of registry may not be for everyone–I, myself, would be a little embarrassed to just “put it all out there” like that.  But, hey, if you’re ready to be debt free by any means necessary, freedom is only a click away!

Our Bride on the Brink for today is Stacey Campbell, who’s longer-than-usual engagement resulted in virtually stress-free wedding planning—but there was a slight bump or two along the way!

A

A

NAME:  Stacey Campbell

LOCATION:  Rancho Las Lomas in Silverado, CA

DATE: April 16, 2010

THEME:  Spring Surprises

COLORS:  Turquoise and deep-cranberry red

GUESTS:  200

A

A

A

A

A

Q. Tell us  a little about your wedding (reception location, theme, color scheme, number of guests, etc.)

A. We are getting married on April 16^th, 2010 at a place called Rancho Las Lomas in Silverado, CA.  The wedding is in the spring so in some ways we are having a ‘spring wedding,’ though it is not really our theme.  We want our 200 guests to experience a unique, modern simplicity filled with unexpected surprises and laughter throughout the celebration.  We are using turquoise as the main color for a bright fun feel with deep cranberry red florals and accents to bring in the touch of romance and elegance.  The venue itself is the most unique aspect of the wedding as it is a private estate with many different levels and large lush landscaped grounds for the guests to wander around.  The highlight of the property?  A private zoo featuring two Bengal tigers, two white tigers, two baby zebras, llamas, wildcats and exotic birds throughout.  So fun for the kids as well as the adults!

Q. When did you start planning?

A. We officially got engaged on December 25^th, 2008 but had already begun looking at venues and engagement rings in November, 2008.  As soon as we were officially engaged, I began booking vendors and researching and planning for all kinds of elements of the wedding.

Q. What’s the most important thing on your mind right now?

A. Right now, I’m thinking about finalizing the little details that I have prepped and planned for months ago but couldn’t really finalize or handle until the last weeks leading up to the wedding.  We just sent off the invitations and as responses roll in, we can begin to put together our seating charts, favors, escort cards, programs, etc.  Now I’m working on final planning meetings with my vendors, finishing up the ceremony details with our officiant and getting the alterations handled on my gown and the bridal party dresses.

Q. How’s the stress level at this point?

A. I don’t tend to experience any stress really since I chose to have a long engagement and took my time purchasing things and making decisions for about a year.  What I do experience is a lot of anxiety and nervousness about all the details coming together the way we’ve been planning and hoping for.  I feel like, with so much that has gone into all the planning, there’s a lot of expectation on me as the bride to impress all of our guests and create this big huge extravaganza that they are anticipating.  I’ve had a few wedding-related dreams but nothing major or disturbing.  When I tend to feel anxious about anything wedding related, I find myself focusing on my fiancé, John and remembering that he relaxes me and makes me laugh and that this day is really about us declaring our love for one another for all eternity.  I also selected family and friends as my bridesmaids that I knew would be able to make me laugh, pray for me and just keep my mind off anything stressful as the big day nears.  They are stress-relievers in and of themselves!

Q. What’s been the most difficult part of your planning process?

A. It is definitely difficult trying to find ways to incorporate both mine and my fiance’s taste and personality.  We have so much in common, but when it comes to opinions on colors, favors, flowers, etc., we can’t seem to find very common ground.  My fiancé has an opinion about anything that I bring up wedding-related, but it is usually opposite of what I have been hoping for or planning.  Therefore, I have found it best not to bring up too many of the little details with him and rather focus on the bigger elements of the day that he really wants to be involved in.  He had a huge hand in designing our invitations and is even constructing the stand for the cake we want to have made.

Q. Knowing what you know now, is there anything you’d change if you had the chance?

A. There’s really not much I regret or wish I had the chance to do differently when it comes to the wedding planning.  I have enjoyed every single aspect of the process.  I think the one thing I would have changed was how many Save the Dates I sent out to guests.  We mailed these out about 9 months before the big day to almost every guest we planned on inviting.  However, as the months went on, we found family and friends who we didn’t think would originally be able to attend who we had to add to our guest list at the last minute.  This put a lot of stress on us having to stick to the 200 people that our budget and venue could comfortably allow.  If I had to do it over, I would have held back on many of the Save the Dates we sent out so that I had more flexibility with our guest list just before the invitations were mailed.

Q. Tell us about the most rewarding part of your wedding-planning process.

A. I am not great at keeping surprises to myself.  I usually will tell at least one or two (ok, maybe a handful) of people about ideas I have for the wedding or things my fiancé and I have come up with to entertain or surprise our guests.  We have a very special, fun and personal video I am creating to play at our ceremony which tells the story of our lives and our relationship.  I showed it to a few members of our bridal party and they loved it.  I showed my do-it-yourself project for our table numbers to some friends and they said they were beautiful.  Getting to share the plans with friends and family has been the most rewarding part of the process.  Everyone keeps telling us how excited they are about our wedding and how fun it will be.  Knowing that we have so much support and anticipating all of our loved ones coming together on the big day has kept me focused on getting through the planning and being excited about the wedding itself…the relational part of it.

Q. Wedding Planner—yes or no?

A. There’s a lot that goes into planning a wedding.  And if you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s really good to hire a planner.  However, I had done this a few times for friends/family in the past.  I’d also had plenty of time to research and read up on everything I could to educate myself about vendors and to find lots of choices for things like invitations, décor, favors, etc.  Therefore, I knew I didn’t need a planner.  However, our venue does not provide anyone to assist you on the day of.  And I knew that I did not want a friend, family member or God forbid, me having to deal with running the rehearsal, ceremony, coordinating vendors, setting out favors and place cards, packing up gifts, toasting glasses, etc on the day of our wedding when we wanted to be relaxed and enjoying all of our guests.  Therefore, I hired a “Day Of” Coordinator.  Even though I hired her for the day of and the rehearsal the day before, she agreed to assist me at some florist meetings and the walk throughs with our caterer and such so that she knew what was going on and what was needed to make our vision a reality.

Q. You sound as though you’ve got everything well covered. Any last minute details?

A. With two-and-a- half months to go, I can honestly say that the planning is complete.  We are fine tuning some details like the cake design, song choices for the bouquet/garter toss and cake cutting and we still need to get some gifts for the guys in the wedding party and pick out some shoes for the flower girl, but other than that, it’s totally done!  Of course, we still have to put together favors and print escort cards and things like that.

Q. How as the economy affected your wedding plans?

A. We gave up two things due to finances being tight:  1)  We originally wanted to include rented gaming tables (blackjack, craps, roulette) as part of our reception but decided the extra $1500 – $2000 was not in our budget.  2)  We originally wanted to take private dance lessons and have a choreographed swing dance as our first dance, but after feeling overwhelmed by unexpected financial issues and some stressful family related issues, we decided the time and money were better served saved.

Q. What life lessons did you learn from planning your wedding?

A. My fiancé and I have different tastes and opinions on things.  Though we have always had great communication and conflict-resolution skills in our relationship, the wedding has taught us what it truly means to give and take and how to figure out what’s really important to one of us when there is a difference of opinion.  Relationships truly are about compromise.

Q. What’s the best advice you would give your friend who was planning her wedding?

A. Where do I start?  I could talk about knowing what questions to ask your vendors, being sure your florist lets you see a mockup of your centerpiece before the wedding day and many other little details to make your life easier.  But I think my best advice relates to the length of your engagement:  Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to research, plan and implement all of your ideas so that you can have the wedding of your dreams without a lot of stress.  Though most brides and grooms want to rush into their wedding within 6 months or less after getting engaged, I have found that longer engagements are much better served for couples to enjoy the process.  First, figure out an estimated budget for what you think you want to spend.  Then figure out how much money you think you can set aside for a wedding savings account each month.  Divide the total budget by the dollar amount you can save each month and that is a good estimate as to how long your engagement should be.  After determining that number, you can look at things like living arrangements/plans, how school or jobs may affect when you should get married and just how long in general the two of you want to wait to take this big step.  My suggestion is to take at least a year to plan and just be engaged.  I mean after all, you’re only in the phase of an engagement for a short period in your life; the marriage will last forever.  So do everything you can to relish the engagement!

Become One of our Brides On The Brink!

It’s for brides, it’s about brides, and most importantly, it’s by Brides On the Brink who are about one month away from walking down the aisle. If you’re two or three months from tying the knot and would like to be a featured bride, please click here to e-mail your contact information and wedding date. I’ll send you the questionnaire to fill out and return along with a few photos of you and your groom-to-be. For passing on your wedding wisdom, featured brides will receive a $25 gift certificate* for MyWeddingFavors.com, where you’ll find fabulous wedding favors, wedding accessories, bridesmaids’ gifts and so much more!

* For shipping only within the US and Canada.

For years, dogs have been getting in on the wedding action, but this is probably the first time that I’ve seen a dolphin do the honors.   But, that’s just what happened for Julixa Campusano and Sergio Claudio of New York.  Winning a dream wedding at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida, they “swam” right down to the aquarium for the ceremony.  And, what a long-awaited trip it was.  Having delayed their marriage for years because of her deployment to Iraq and the death of his grandmother, they were finally able to overcome life with love.

Standing next to a pool with the aquarium’s dolphins, they exchanged their vows.  And, with a splash, they were married!  One dolphin brought the wedding ring to the couple, while another dolphin – with Sergio loves Julixa written on its side – jumped on stage for a photo opportunity.

Why they won!

Being engaged since 2006, Campusano was thrilled to find out about this all-expense-paid wedding sponsored by the aquarium.   All they needed to do was tell their story.  Among the 80 applicants received, their story stood out because Campusano served 18 months in Iraq as a member of the U.S. Army. Claudio is a New York City firefighter and was part of the rescue mission on 9/11.  It would be a hero’s wedding!

“We chose a very unique couple with a great story to celebrate their wedding story,” said David Yates, the aquarium’s chief executive officer.  And, I’m sure that everyone–including the dolphins–we’re all smiles at the wedding.

Unique couples deserve unique wedding favors!

Taking advantage of the unique venue and the wedding “attendants”, this dolphin place card holder is the perfect choice for a unique wedding favor.  Stunningly silver, it captures their wedding theme beautifully.  Arching over tables like they’re swimming through the ocean, they are a whimsical way to guide guests to their seat and use to hold a photo memory of the day.  But, you don’t have to have an aquarium wedding to use them.  They’re perfect for beach weddings and tropical destination weddings, too!

Aside from being an enthusiastic wedding blogger, I’m also an award-winning videographer and video producer. This isn’t to brag, but to offer credibility for the comments I’m about to make. I just finished viewing a spectacular save-the-date video produced by a couple who is either incredibly well-to-do, or is in the movie/video production biz or has extremely generous friends in the movie/video production biz. The production values are exceptional, so I can safely say this uncommon save-the-date offering wouldn’t come cheap. I’m talking thousands here. Seriously. There’s some green-screen work in there, and the cost of the graphics alone would probably pay for a nice honeymoon.  Turn up your speakers, cllick here and take a look. You may get one or two knock-your-socks-off save-the-date ideas.
A
A
So what did you think? Judging from the images (video and photo,) this is a well-traveled couple. They were clearly in Australia to shoot part of the video, and they’ll be getting married in southern California. This pair seems to be spending an obscene amount of money on their wedding—and good for them, as long as they have it. Meanwhile, I can think of better ways to spend my wedding budget.

Of course, this video naturally leads us to wonder if there will be an even more stunning wedding video. Expectations will certainly be high. And when they have a baby? Stay tuned to YouTube…

Could these unique wedding favors be considered elegant? I think that would be a bit of a stretch. But are they fun? Oh, my gosh, they’re a hoot! Who wouldn’t want her face on a bobblehead doll? A Web site called Custom.Bobbleheads.com will make a bobblehead with anyone’s likeness.

The Up Side of Custom Bobbleheads

Will your wedding favors generate some serious buzz? I think so! Some of it, from traditionalists and folks without a sense of humor, might be negative, but I think most of it will be positive. The concept is unique, out-of-the-box and, though it’s not a practical favor, I think your guests may find some clever uses for it—a paperweight comes to mind, as does a stress-reliever (bouncing the bobbleheads with a finger until your mind goes numb.)

What Else for Weddings?

A
Besides bobblehead wedding favors, the company also makes custom bobblehead cake toppers. You really have to be a fun-loving couple to plant one of these on top of your cake! Here are two of their many styles:

AA

A

A

A

A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A

Creating your custom bobblehead starts with uploading three photos of you and three photos of your groom (front view, profile and 3/4 profile.) You then pick your hair color (including a “bald” option,) skin color and eye color for each. There are also a few options for an additional charge, like a voice recorder and your names on the base.  That’s all there is to it.

The Down Side…

Not surprisingly, wild, wacky, ultra-personalized whimsy will put a bigger dent in your budget than garden-variety wedding favors. The minimum order is 100 favors for $1200 (not including any optional services,) and the cake toppers start at $189.

If you’ve ever had the desire to be a bobblehead doll (I sure have!) and want to thank your guests with a wedding favor unlike any other, your wedding is the perfect opportunity to debut your bobbling noggin!

Like many brides, you may be planning a beach wedding.  And, why wouldn’t you?  Just the thought of sunny beaches and a tropical breeze sounds really good right now, especially since is pouring down raining right now.

A wedding and a honeymoon all rolled up into one beautiful, sunlit package, it’s the perfect theme and the perfect locale for a summer wedding — or a winter one if you’re ditching the cold and headed towards the heat for a tropical destination wedding.  If you are, then these new beach wedding favors will make the trip a lot sweeter!

Drink in the fun!

Accenting your special day with the tastes of summer, we’re glad to introduce these delicious drink favors just in time for your trip down the aisle.  With three delicious flavors to choose from (lemonade, raspberry tea and margarita), it will be easy finding the right mix for your matrimonial celebration.  Probably best for beach-themed rehearsal dinners, get-to-know-you get-togethers, bridal showers and the like, but I really could see them at a cool, casual garden wedding.  Couldn’t you?

Bon jour! If you’re planning a French- or Parisian-themed wedding or if this blog has just given you the idea, you must see the wedding favors that just flew in from amazing favor designer Kate Aspen!

Nothing says Paris like the Eiffel Tower, and Kate Aspen definitely speaks French with their recently launched 2010 collection. You’ll love the detail in the “Evening in Paris” Eiffel Tower Place Card Holder. And we have the perfect wedding centerpieces for your reception tables, too! The Eiffel Tower place card holder is on the left, and the centerpiece is on the right. Add flowers and candles that coordinate with your color scheme, and Voila! You bring the essence of France and romance to every table!

A Fleur-de-Lis For You!

Another enduring symbol of France is the fleur-de-lis, which means lily flower in French. The fleur-de-lis, a symbol of royalty and aristocracy, is featured in several of Kate Aspen’s wedding favors, including bottle stoppers, place card holders, coasters and tea light holders. Check out the photos below!

AA

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

A

AAAAAAAAAAAAVive la France! Vive L’Amour! Vive la Favors!

What’s the number one resolution people make each year?  Getting in shape.  Whether they need to drop a few pounds or just tone up what they have, improvements in diet and exercise always seem to make the list.  And, if you’re planing to walk down the aisle this year, it will probably top the list–especially if you’re donning a strapless gown. Since brides have more of an “incentive” to shape up, I thought it would be a good idea to help you out with that.

Armed and Dangerous?

If you feel that your arms are a deadly weapon, knocking people out with one fling of the flab, here are a few tips that can help you get them in shape before the wedding.

Pump it up! With a moderate amount of weight (typically no more than 10-12 pounds), work those arms by doing 6-8 repetitions of each exercise, such as bicep curls, arm raises, overhead extensions, etc.  You can even add weights to your aerobics workout to achieve muscular–not manly–arms.

Dumbbells aren’t for Dum-Dums! They’re actually a smart addition to your workout routine, and they’re easy to use.  Simply stand with your back straight and arms by your side.  Hold the dumbbells with your palms facing inward, and slowly raise one dumbbell at a time toward your shoulder.

Push Up and Shape Up! There’s just no getting around doing push ups.  They’ve been around forever because they work.  And, with so many variations, you can find the form that’s right for you.  Either way, be sure to keep your back straight, stomach and butt tight and use a full range of motion.  Don’t cheat on the way down by letting momentum (and gravity) do the work.  It’s all about control.  Remember, 10 correct push ups beats 100 incorrect ones any day!

Keep your chin up! Literally!  Doing those godforsaken chin ups will get results fast.  They’re hard, but they work.  If you don’t have a lot of time and you need to get moving quickly, this is the exercise for you.  Just find a good solid steel bar with the proper space and literally pull yourself up.

Now that you’re armed with valuable information, there’s nothing stopping you!

Good News and Bad News?

Just like it takes a village to raise a child–it takes working on the whole body to see a difference in your arms.  In addition to these killer exercises, get a good cardio workout by running, jumping rope or aerobics.  Slimming the entire body will help you reach your goal.  It’s also a good idea to save the sweets until the wedding day when you can eat all the cake you want.  It’s your reward for looking as svelte as the couple on your wedding cake topper. 

So go ahead and shape ‘em up so you can show ‘em off!  Whether you’re going sleeveless or strapless…when it’s all said and done, you can proudly display your amazing arms like Michelle Obama!

I LOVE this! On July 31, 2010, Andrea Parrish and Peter Geyer of Spokane, WA intend to say their wedding vows, knowing their love for each other—and for the planet—brought them to this long-awaited moment in their lives.

Their economically creative and earth-friendly plan to pay for their event has them collecting these:

Yes. Aluminum cans. The couple now have in their living room more than 18,000 cans, which is almost five percent of their goal to amass 400,000 of the containers.

According to The Spokesman-Review newspaper, if the couple reaches their goal, they’ll have about five tons of aluminum, worth about $3,800 when recycled.

At their Web site, WeddingCans.com, Andrea and Peter explain their idea: “Even simple weddings cost more than a few dollars. We don’t really have much extra cash sitting around, since we’re just starting out. Add that to the fact that environmental responsibility plays a big part in our lives, and we hatched the crazy plan. Pay for the wedding—with recycling. Aluminum recycling is one of the most sustainable and useful forms of recycling.”

If you live in the Spokane area and would like to donate cans to this crazy/wonderful cause, the pair asks that you contact them, and they’ll pick up your recyclables. Anyone can also donate money to help them have what I’m sure will be an extraordinary, eco-friendly wedding and reception.

When they start looking for wedding favors, we’re sure they’ll be on the lookout for eco-friendly favors, so I’d like to recommend these “Helping Hands” Personalized Bamboo Salad Servers. And when it comes to this couple, I think the name “Helping Hands” is an appropriate way to commemorate what they will have accomplished. Best of luck, you two—now and always!