Tips for Planning a Wedding with Three Stress-Reduction Technique

Even if the wedding is relatively small there are a million details to figure out. This can feel overwhelming. From the choice of the perfect wedding cake to the type of music that you hope to have at the wedding, there are a million and one choices to make. As you plan your perfect wedding, consider a few different things that can help streamline the process.

Start Early 

It's best to start planning the wedding as soon as you get engaged. That is because it will take longer than you think to plan it, and venues, caterers and bands book far in advance. You don't want to have your heart set on a certain venue and then not be able to reserve it. That is especially the case if it is a popular venue, or if you desire in-demand caterers or a popular band. Once you get the ring on your finger it's time to get planning, even before you choose the wedding date. In fact, you may have to set a wedding date based on venue availability.

Organize 

As you start the wedding planning process, make sure to keep things impeccably organized. That way you can keep all of them in one place. Otherwise you risk jotting things down and then not having them when you need them. Create sections for vendors, dresses, colors, food drinks and anything else that pertains to your wedding. Make sure that you have blank pages in each section to write down notes on each item and also any conversations that you have with vendors.

Colors 

Choosing the wedding colors is an important part of wedding planning. While you may want to go with a certain color theme, it's important to consider whether or not the colors coordinate. The general rule is that cool colors should stick with cool colors and warm with warm. Of course, they should be colors that you love as well. Lay them out and play with the colors a bit. Also take into account the way that those colors will be incorporated in bridesmaids dresses and décor.

Drinks 

Most weddings serve some sort of alcoholic beverages at the reception. There are a few different drink options to consider. An open bar is preferable but can become cost prohibitive. If you are having a very large wedding, consider serving unlimited beer and wine but limited liquor. One cost-cutting idea is to have a signature cocktail as a way to reduce liquor costs. This cocktail can be a special one made for you as a couple or one that you both love. Each guest can have one cocktail each. This is far less expensive then serving unlimited liquor. Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?Tips-for-Planning-a-Wedding-With-Three-Stress-Reduction-Techniques&id=7266520

Intimate Wedding Traditions Transform Weddings from Ordinary to Spectacular

Getting married is a day that brides and grooms look forward to for many years.  While women are far more willing than men to admit that they have often wondered how their wedding day will be, both parties want to create a day that is spectacular and memorable beyond their wildest dreams.  In many ways, keeping the ceremony simple and deliberate, as opposed to elaborate, will help to create a beautiful day that the couple and the guests remember for years to come. 

When simple traditions are followed during the ceremony, intimate moments are created and the focus of the day is directed towards the special meaning of the nuptials and the bond the couple is committing to.  There are multiple wedding traditions that are commonly practiced in the United States.  It would be very difficult for a couple to fit every popular tradition into one ceremony.  This causes many couples to experience bouts of frustration and to wonder how to narrow down the traditions that will be the most meaningful to their own special day.

In order to narrow down popular traditions for nuptials and the ceremony to just a handful, a couple should concentrate on the aspects of the ceremony that mean the most to them.  To some couples, writing their own vows is a huge deal.  While traditional vows are simple and time-honored, hand-written vows carry special meaning and relay exactly the type of commitment and bond the couple hope to share over the decades to come. 

 It is an intimate tradition for couples who write their own vows to later frame the vows and place them in their homes.  This is an excellent way to keep the memory of the wedding day alive and to remember the words of commitment and love that were confessed on the day of the ceremony. Other special traditions that numerous couples enjoy sharing on their special day include having their family members play a big role in the ceremony.  Flower girls who are daughters, nieces, cousins, or children of close friends help to commemorate the idea that that friends and family are vitally important to the couple.  Likewise, using a ring bearer is also a special way to allow young male children to feel a part of the special day.

 In addition to flower girls and ring bearers, it is also a popular tradition for brides and grooms to show their appreciation to the members of the wedding party by giving them intimate gifts.  Each couple has a unique budget for their nuptial ceremony and the gifts do not always have to be elaborate and expensive in order to be thoughtful and special. Ideal and affordable gifts for bridesmaids, maids of honor, groomsmen, candle lighters, and ushers include small photo albums, vintage picture frames, and bottles of wine with the date written on the wine label, and other unique tokens or mementos.  Creating a magical day, using soft lighting, and emphasizing intimate parts will help to create a beautiful ceremony. Read Our Another Article About : http://www.streetarticles.com/wedding/good-planning-leads-to-a-dreamy-wedding

Wedding Vendors: Know What They Do and How to Make the Right Selection

Once you have decided on a wedding venue and date, it is important to start researching and booking wedding vendors early to ensure your favorites are available on your big day. The number and type of vendors you will need depend on the specific event, but most people select the following vendors: 

1. Caterer and bartender for food and drinks. First, check with your venue as they    may already provide this service.
2. A bakery for cake, or whatever desert you decide to serve. Some venues may also provide this if they have a caterer, but at an extra cost so it is good to look into other options.
3. Photographer to take photos on the wedding day. It is important to have these to look back on after the day is over.
4. Florist for help with flower selection. This is a great way to get recommendations based on the season and colors of your wedding.
5. Stationary or paper provider for save the date cards, invitations, menus, programs, etc.
6. A D.J. or band to provide music at the reception.
7. Transportation or limo service if the event occurs at more than one location. 
8. Other miscellaneous vendors such as; photo booth, videographer, wedding favors, etc. 

In order to select quality wedding vendors perfect for your event, there are a few simple guidelines to follow. 

First, know your personal budget and how much you want to allocate to each particular vendor. This will all depend on what is most important to you. If you have been dying to have that awesome videographer, be sure to put money aside as they are not cheap! Also, know the style of wedding you want. Whether it is outdoor, ballroom, vintage, contemporary, etc., finding the right wedding vendors to fit your particular style is essential.

Meet with at least three of each type of vendor in order to find the right fit for your event. If you like one, don't feel as if you have to commit at the first meeting, leave and review the contract again before signing just to confirm they will be providing you with everything you need and expect. Research those you are most interested in and look at their reviews online. Various wedding planning sites allow users to post vendor reviews regarding their personal experiences. These honest reviews can save you from a bad experience. Also, be sure that you like the person you will be working with, especially any vendors that will be present the day of the wedding. You want to be sure you are comfortable around those that will be with you on your special day.

Last, hire a wedding planner if it fits your budget. Planners are great resources as they are very familiar with local wedding vendors and can provide you with recommendations based on your budget.

Putting extra time into vendor research and selection will definitely pay off in the end when your event goes better than expected!

How to Have an Eco-Friendly Wedding

'Going green' has become a popular trend lately. More and more wedding vendors have been taking steps to have less of an impact on our earth. Now many couples are implementing these eco-friendly steps into their wedding. Many wedding vendors are familiar with these eco-friendly practices so be sure to ask them how you can contribute. Here are some ways in which you can minimize your impact on Mother Nature.

-Invitations:  Use recycled paper for you invitations. This is, of course, going to cost more than normal invitations. Ask your wedding vendor that is doing your invites for ideas to minimize the impact as well. There may be different printing options to help with this, such as chlorine-free papers. You can also send your invitations out online or through your wedding website. Include in your invitations to your guests that this is an eco-friendly wedding and include options for eco-friendly transportations, hotels, etc.

-Location: Choose a convenient location for most guests, one that is close in distance to make the travel shorter. Hire local wedding vendors to make their travel distance shorter as well. Also, have the ceremony and reception location close together, or in the same area. Pick a site that won't require a lot of decoration. A natural setting, such as a garden or vineyard, is pretty much decorated for you. Make sure the venue recycles and better yet, practices composting.

-Florist: This wedding vendor can really help you with the natural decor. Find a florist that makes it a priority to recycle packaging and uses locally grown flowers. First, ask for the option of choosing organic flowers. Again, this will cost more. Ask your florist, or a family member, to re-use the flowers for the reception and have them transported there. After the wedding, donate the flowers to an organization that can use them.

-Catering:  Ask the wedding vendor at your reception venue if they know of any organic caterers, or organic restaurants that do catering. Have the caterer help you pick out foods that are in season and consider vegetarian selections, or meats from free-range organic farms. It is rare to find a wedding vendor that doesn't know about organic food options.

-Favors/Decor:  Give guests organic chocolates or other organic food items. You can also give out plants, natural soap/candles, a donation to charity in each guests name, or potpourri.

           

Check with every wedding vendor for eco-friendly options. If they don't provide any, have them refer you to another wedding vendor who can help you. The best wedding vendor to ask about green options is a wedding planner, as they cover all aspects of weddings and usually have a lot of experience.

World’s Most Expensive Weddings

We all remember the lavish Royal Wedding of Kate Middleton and Prince William. What about the $100 million weddings you haven't heard about? Weddings including private jets, silver invitations and a stadium built for guests are amongst the most expensive weddings in the world.

First we start off with the wedding of model/actress Priya Sachdev and Vikram Chatwal. Vikram's father owns a chain of luxurious New York hotels. The wedding, which took place in 2006, cost around $20 million. This was a 10 day celebration that flew in guests from all over the world on private jets. Guests were also charted on jets from Mumbai to Udaipur and Delhi during the festivities.

The ever well-known Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is one of the mostpopular weddings, viewed by a TV audience of nearly 23 million in April 2011. The $34 million wedding included $800,000 worth of flowers, a $70,000 Alexander McQueen wedding dress, a $136,000 wedding ring, a $80,000 wedding cake, a $600,000 wedding reception, and of course security. Prince William is the oldest son of Prince Charles and son of Lady Diana

When the wine alone for a wedding reaches $1.5 million there's no doubt the rest of the wedding will be anything but extravagant. Vanisha Mittal and Amit Bhatia's 2004 wedding cost $60 million, which would be about $78 Million today. The bride is the daughter of billionaire steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal and the groom is an i-banker and owner of Swordfish Investments. The 1,000 guests were mailed 20 page invitations contained in a silver box and were put up for five days in five-star Paris hotels. The women guests received designer bags filled with jewelry. The 45 chefs created over 100 different dishes during the five days of festivities. To top it off, Kylie Minogue performed at the wedding followed by a firework display at the Eiffel Tower.

Perhaps another of the most popular weddings was that of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. In 1981, their wedding came in at $48 million which is around $70 million today. Diana's dress, which cost around $15,000 then, had a 25-foot train made of ivory taffeta and antique lace. The 27 wedding cakes took 14 weeks to prepare.

Princess Salama and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan's wedding would cost  about $100 million today. That might have something to do with the 20,000-seat stadium that was built for the wedding guests. The brides gifts were delivered by 20 bejeweled camels. The week long wedding included feeding every town in the emirate by horseback. The crown prince of Abu Dhabi married the princess in 1981.

To get the feeling of a royal wedding inside your spending budget, you can visit http://www.wedding.com/. It provides all of the services you require and support to make your wedding, a pleasant moment. Book your wedding now…

How To Save Money When Planning Your Dream Wedding

One of the biggest concerns for couples planning their weddings today is how to budget one of the most expensive days of their lives without compromising on their vision of a dream wedding.  According to Wikipedia, the average cost of a wedding in the United States in 2011 was $25,630, the majority of which is spent on the wedding reception.  Once you start talking to vendors it’s easy to see the cost of your wedding going up and up, but taking a few simple steps can significantly lower the amount you will spend on your wedding without compromising on your wedding vision.

There are many great websites on the internet that let you review and compare the profiles of different vendors to get a better sense of your options and an average price point for different types of services.  The more vendors you contact, the more informed of a decision you can make when booking a vendor’s services.  By researching a large amount of vendors, you will also have a larger selection of vendors to choose from and will more likely find a vendor that meets both your budget and your wedding vision.

It is very important to be open about your budget with your vendor.  Often, a vendor will work with you to customize the package they are offering you to meet your price point.

Here are a few tips on how to save money on your big day:

• Talk to at least ten companies for each type of vendor you need.Searching through an online wedding directory lets you easily compare and contact vendors whose services you need.  By talking to many vendors, you will have an idea of the average cost you should be paying for each service.  This will give you confidence when negotiating the terms with your vendors that you are getting the best services for your budget.

                                 

• Negotiate the terms of the packages with vendors.  Often the packages offered by a vendor may not be exactly what you need for your wedding, so it’s important to ask vendors if they can substitute certain services to meet your needs.  For example, a catering company may include dessert as part of their package.  But if you are having the wedding cake for desert, ask the catering company to include extra hors d’oeuvre or upgrade your entrée instead.  This will prevent you from spending money on services that you do not need without incurring any additional costs.

• Ask vendors if they offer additional services or can recommend other vendors.Many Wedding Planners double as a Florist, or catering companies have relationships with bakeries and will even pick up the cake for you.  Vendors often give discounts when they are referred and this can result in a significant difference in your price.

• Understand how you are being charged for various services.  Different types of vendors charge their clients in different ways.  For example, a wedding cake bakery may charge based on the number of guests at your reception, while a DJ or videographer may bill you for number of hours they work.  By understanding exactly what you are paying for with each vendor, you can adjust certain factors to minimize the cost.

• Prioritize your wedding wants and needs.  There are always going to be certain aspects of the wedding that you want to splurge on, whether it be an amazing location or an awesome band to keep your guests dancing all night long.  Before you start planning, discuss to which vendors you want to allocate more of your budget and which vendors you are willing to compromise on. 

                            

                  

• Stick to your wedding vision, but be open to ideas.  It is easy to see something you want to copy in a wedding magazine, but is way out of your budget.  Always share any ideas you have with your vendors.  Since they are the weddings pros, they should have a lot of good ideas about how to emulate a similar style or concept that will fit your budget.

• Create a wedding budget tracker.  Online wedding websites often have a budget tracker tool that allows you to enter your total wedding budget and allocate estimated amounts to various categories you will be spending money on.  You can also enter what you actually spend and see the difference between how much you estimated to spend on each aspect of your wedding, and what you are actually spending.  This is a great way to stay on track and organized about your wedding budget.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed when you start planning your wedding, but doing some research and comparing all your options will keep you on track and on budget without compromising your dream wedding vision.

Find California Wedding Photographers for your Big Day!

California is an extremely popular place to get hitched. The long, scenic coast and busy cities are bustling with California photographers. There are so many different scenes for California photographers to shoot. There are the beach towns of San Diego and Santa Monica, the beautiful vineyards and gardens, and the extravagant Beverly Hills.

When planning your wedding, it is good to book your California photographer far in advance because they will be in high demand. California photographer’s busiest months are during the summer. However, weddings are popular in California all year long, especial Southern California because of the comfortable beach weather. Expect prices for California photographers to be a higher than normal.

Most experienced California photographers will have great recommendations for beaches and vineyards if you are having trouble picking.

The large state can make it hard to find California photographers the traditional way. Which of the many cities should you look search? How do you know how far California photographers are willing to travel? California photographers signed-up on Wedding.com can search for local brides by state or distance. Most will search by distance in California.

There is such a variety of landscape in California. California photographers may shoot in deserts, vineyards, beaches, mountains or national parks. Check to see where they shoot most frequently so you know what their niche is.

Choosing your California photographer may be overwhelming since there is such a large photography market and variety of styles. Take recommendations from friends and family to help you get started. From there, consider their experience, style and location. A California photographer based in Big Bear that is familiar with shooting winter scenery would probably not be the best to hire for a beach wedding, and vice versa.

   
If you want to be more active in the role of finding your California photographer, you can also browse our vendor directory. Add your California photographer into your checklist and wedding budget by using the planning tools that Wedding.com provides. You can share your engagement photos on your personalized free wedding website that is also available to you.

Location will be one of the biggest factors for most California photographers, so make sure to cite where exactly your wedding will be, along with any other important details of course. If you complete all the details in your profile, you should be able to book a California photographer in no time!