Wedding Planning Mistake Number Five

Wedding Planning Mistake Number Five:  Trying To Do Everything Yourself 

Trying to do everything yourself will leave you frazzled, stressed, and unable to enjoy your wedding day or the events leading up to it.    If you have never planned a wedding before, you will soon find yourself in unfamiliar territory, which includes more details then you can wrap your mind around.   Choose some things to do that you would particularly enjoy doing yourself.  Maybe you are very creative and would enjoy making your guest favors, or decorating your flower girl’s basket, or personalizing your attendants gifts.  You will be addressing invitations and writing thank you notes, and a gazillion other things.  By the time you pay fuel costs to shop for every little detail, you could have hired a professional wedding planner.  Save yourself hours of time and frustration by hiring a professional who can guide you through the process in nearly a stress free way.  It will be worth every penny!

A Brief Announcement

Hey Everybody!

I am excited to tell you that the pre-sale on my first book is available now.  Please go to http://www.99-series.com

to pre-order your copy of “99 Things You Wish You Knew Before Planning Your Wedding”.  It will be available by Spring of ‘09.

This is part of a whole series of “99 Things You Wish You Knew”, commissioned by Helen Georgaklis and Michael Wells.  I will be writing additonal books in this series on a variety of topics.

The books are pocket guides and sell for $9.99.  With easy to read bullet points, they also include funny stories and advice.

As a personal favor to me, please forward this to others on your e-mail list.

Thank you so much!

Pam Archer, Author

http://www.pamelaseventdesign.com

http://www.idoweddings.wordpress.com

Wedding Planning Mistake Number Four

Wedding planning mistake number four is inviting everyone you know, once knew, or have ever said hello to to be in your wedding.  By the time you pay for that person’s flowers, a gift, the rehearsal dinner, out of town accommodations, etc., you can count on spending $150.00 - $300.00 attendant.  If you want to trim some cost from your budget, this should be the first place to cut.

Wedding Planning Mistake Number Three

Inviting everyone you have ever met.  This is one of the biggest money pits in planning your wedding.  For an average cost estimate, you can count on $2,000 in food budget for every 100 guests.  Allow for approximately eighty percent of your invitations to be accepted. 

When making your guest list, you may need to consider is it more important to have 250 acquaintances or a more intimate affair with closer friends and family.  The latter will allow for more amenities.

Check out my Slide Show!

Wedding Planning Mistake Number Two

Not making a budget.  Once you have done your research, you will need to sit down with pen and paper and total the costs of your dream wedding.  It is at this point that you will prioritze what is most important to you.  Then, you will need to meet with the parents and determine the budget.  Be specific about who is paying for what, and put it on paper.  With a well thought out plan, you will be able to sail through the planning and be confident that the money will be there.  Most importantly, STICK to your budget!

 

Wedding Planning Mistake Number One

I apologize that it has been a while since I posted anything new to this site.  It is wedding season and my little fingers have been busy putting together bouquets, so not much time for typing.

Over the course of the next few days or weeks, I will be blogging about the biggest mistakes you can make when planning your wedding.  These tips will save you money, time, and heartache so be sure to check by soon, or subscribe to the blog, to get the next post.

Wedding Planning Mistake Number One is something I have termed ‘blurting’.  This means doing something before you think about it.

You get engaged, you’re all excited.  You call all your family and friends to tell them the big news.  Then, you focus on the first order of business.. your wedding dress.   So, you run out and spend $1,500 on your dress, only to find out that your budget is $5,000 for the entire wedding and you still have to pay for the venue, the caterer, photographer, florist, invitations, postage, etc.  This is blurting.

The solution to not running out of money is to do your homework…RESEARCH.

Sit down with your fiance and decide as a couple what you want.   Your top four expenses will be the venue, caterer, florist, and photographer.  Get recommendations from other vendors and friends, and go to see at least three of each of these vendors.  This will give you a good idea of what your dream wedding will cost.  Unless you have deep pockets, you will probably need to do some compromising and trimming.  The average cost of a wedding now, and I do mean average..nothing lavish, is $28,000 plus.

Once you have these quotes, sit down with your families, or whomever is paying for the wedding and you will have solid figures to put before them.  This will be the basis for deciding a budget. 

Educating yourself about the costs will save you time and money.  Research is your GPS to get to your destination.  Without a map, you will take many detours, and run into many ditches along your road to nuptials.  You might even get blindsided, so be prepared by having a solid plan in place, prior to spending money

Outdoor Weddings Are In

Outdoor weddings are growing in popularity.  Brides and grooms who are seeking a less formal and more intimate ceremony opt for venues that inspire with their natural backdrops.

It was a perfect day for Ben and Tara’s wedding.  Their outdoor venue, Maple Lane Farms, in Johnson City, TN, provided a glorious backdrop with it’s surrounding mountains, trees, and pond. 

A favorite flower for outdoor weddings, that will be a show stealer, are Gerbera Daisies.  Tara favored multi-colored daisies to enhance the color of the surroundings, and to complement the Bahama blue hue of the bridesmaids dresses.

Mandy Patrick of Inspired Images by Mandy captured the colors and the spirit of the wedding in these lovely images.

Check out my Slide Show!

Check out my Slide Show!