When I talk about the "B" word, I am talking about the budget that nobody really wants to talk about. In fact, there is a Chinese saying that roughly translates to: When you talk about money, you hurt the relationship.
For wedding planning, I hope the couples are going to ignore this Chinese saying and talk about establishing their budget for the wedding as early as possible. Afterall, if you are going to get married, you will have to learn how to talk about money with your partner.
It is important to figure out how much money is available and where the money is going to come from before one rushes out to make any wedding related purchases. Wedding expenses is a list of items that add up to one big chunk of money. Don't let the tiny line item on your Excel spreadsheet fool you. If you are not careful and think this is just one more purchase, you will end up going over your budget in a heart beat.
I believe you can plan a wedding that is within your budget but it takes careful planning. Always keep track of your spending. I like to use Excel spreadsheet but you can do it however you like. There is no point to have a budget if you are not going to keep track of it.
Also, it will be good to figure some extra % of money in your budget for unplanned items as they almost always come up during wedding planning.
As a planner, my job is to make sure the couples allocate the budget to the items that make the most impact for the kind of wedding they want. I work hard to make sure the high priority items are addressed with more money while finding alternative solutions that are more affordable for items that are less important for the couple.
I call it the balancing act. Never easy but we work hard to achieve.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Wedding Venue Search Tips
Without a doubt, venue search is an important step in wedding planning. After determining a workable budget, a couple should spend some time to carefully pick the venue(s) where they want to have their wedding.
I have seen many newly engaged women rushed out to get that dream wedding dress before they even decide where the wedding ceremony/reception is going to be. However, when they finally booked their venue(s), they realized their "dream dress" is not suitable. Maybe it is too casual for that evening affair, maybe it is not suitable for outdoor.....whatever the factors maybe, the girl is left holding a dress that they now don't think is suitable based on their venue choice and has to start the process all over.
Depending on the length of the engagement, you maybe limited in your choice of venues available for the date you want as many venues book months in advance. However, sometimes you can also get a very good deal with a venue if you book your wedding last minute (3 months or less) because it is less likely for the venue to book an event that close to the date.
Sometimes I also see the newly engaged couples starting to look for venues without determining the guest list first. While developing the wedding guest list may not be the most pleasant task, it is important for the couple to at least determine their best estimate of the guest list size before booking any venues. What if you think you will only have 100 guests but end up with 250 but you already book a venue that can only accommodate 150 total guests? Do you really hope that 100 of your invited guests will say no?
Clearly the huge discrepancy in the guest counts will create a huge problem but sometimes even small discrepancy can become a problem. For example, I have been to weddings where the guest list exeeded only 20-30 more than the original estimate but the space booked was so small that it made for a very crowded event. On the other hand, a space that is too huge for your guest list will look very empty (as if half of your guests decide to boycott the wedding!).
In my experience, the venue normally lists the maximum capacity when they put "total capacity" but that maximum capacity may not be the most comfortable level. Therefore, it is very important to ask to take a look at the floor plan to determine how it will work for your guest list size.
It may seem obvious but please go to look at a venue before booking. Do not dismiss a venue or book a venue based on pictures posted online. The overall feel of the venue is something you can only experience when you go to the venue itself to take a look.
With that say, I think it is important to decide on how much you can realistically spend on you venue. Otherwise, you may "fall in love" with a venue that you see but cannot really afford and you may have to start the search process from the beginning.
There are definitely many wonderful wedding venues in Atlanta but it can be overwhelming for engaged couples who just start looking. I hope these few tips will be helpful in your search for the perfect venue for your wedding. Happy planning!!!
I have seen many newly engaged women rushed out to get that dream wedding dress before they even decide where the wedding ceremony/reception is going to be. However, when they finally booked their venue(s), they realized their "dream dress" is not suitable. Maybe it is too casual for that evening affair, maybe it is not suitable for outdoor.....whatever the factors maybe, the girl is left holding a dress that they now don't think is suitable based on their venue choice and has to start the process all over.
Depending on the length of the engagement, you maybe limited in your choice of venues available for the date you want as many venues book months in advance. However, sometimes you can also get a very good deal with a venue if you book your wedding last minute (3 months or less) because it is less likely for the venue to book an event that close to the date.
Sometimes I also see the newly engaged couples starting to look for venues without determining the guest list first. While developing the wedding guest list may not be the most pleasant task, it is important for the couple to at least determine their best estimate of the guest list size before booking any venues. What if you think you will only have 100 guests but end up with 250 but you already book a venue that can only accommodate 150 total guests? Do you really hope that 100 of your invited guests will say no?
Clearly the huge discrepancy in the guest counts will create a huge problem but sometimes even small discrepancy can become a problem. For example, I have been to weddings where the guest list exeeded only 20-30 more than the original estimate but the space booked was so small that it made for a very crowded event. On the other hand, a space that is too huge for your guest list will look very empty (as if half of your guests decide to boycott the wedding!).
In my experience, the venue normally lists the maximum capacity when they put "total capacity" but that maximum capacity may not be the most comfortable level. Therefore, it is very important to ask to take a look at the floor plan to determine how it will work for your guest list size.
It may seem obvious but please go to look at a venue before booking. Do not dismiss a venue or book a venue based on pictures posted online. The overall feel of the venue is something you can only experience when you go to the venue itself to take a look.
With that say, I think it is important to decide on how much you can realistically spend on you venue. Otherwise, you may "fall in love" with a venue that you see but cannot really afford and you may have to start the search process from the beginning.
There are definitely many wonderful wedding venues in Atlanta but it can be overwhelming for engaged couples who just start looking. I hope these few tips will be helpful in your search for the perfect venue for your wedding. Happy planning!!!
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