YOUR PROFESSIONAL WEDDING SPECIALIST

ADVICE FROM THE COORDINATOR

Being engaged is exciting!  You’re finally going to marry the one who loves and adores you.  You’re glowing with happiness.  Chances are that you’ve been thinking about your plans for quite some time.  Now, it’s time for you to get serious.  All the best places and vendors are sometimes illusive.  Thought must go into your day, your dream, your vision – after all, you only have one wedding. 

Here is some helpful ADVICE FROM THE COORDINATOR.  The first item of business is to set your budget.  Know how much you are willing or able to spend on your wedding.  Make contact with anyone who you would expect to be a financial contributor to your wedding day.  Sometimes aunts, siblings or grandparents are willing to contribute financially to your wedding day.  Only you know your situation.  Perhaps a God-Parent would be willing to pay for a photographer or disk jockey in lieu of a traditional wedding gift. 

Your next step would be to get the family involved in the decision process of who will be invited to the wedding.  Without this communication, you won't know whether your invitation list is 75 or 275.  The number of expected guests has great baring on your choice for a reception site.

Choosing the reception site can be time consuming.  It has to be the right size, have the right ambiance, in the right location, offer the right amenities and be available on the right day and oh, we mustn’t forget it has to be the right price.  This alone could take a couple of days to a couple of weeks to decide.   

The next step is where so many brides and/or grooms get out of order.  Your next step is to choose a coordinator. Whether you choose a full service wedding planner or a planner that specializes in “Day of Event” coordinating; now is the time to start the interview process.  Choosing the right vendors is what coordinators do best.  We have worked with a wide milieu of wedding vendors so when you ask a coordinator for their input, it’s best for them to help you choose the vendor that will provide the best service in your price range.  At Special Event Solutions, we offer our brides any “kick backs” that are offered to us by vendors for referrals.  We believe that the bride has already paid us for coordinating and our goal is to help her save money whenever and wherever we can while not compromising quality.   

Finally, it’s time to start having some fun.  Now that you know the when and where of your ceremony location, you can have some fun with your friends.  It’s time to start choosing your attire, invitations, guest favors, and wedding colors.   

Next month we’ll cover some additional ADVICE FROM THE COORDINATOR but in the meantime let’s review our steps in chronological order. 

Step 1 – Set your budget

Step 2 – Decide your guest count

Step 3 – Choose the reception site

Step 4 – Choose your coordinator

Step 5 – Choose your wedding vendors

Step 6 – Have fun with choosing attire, invitations, guest favors and colors

WEDDING FLOWERS

Not many people speak the “language of flowers” these days.  But when choosing your wedding flowers, it is important to realize that flowers do speak to us.  In the days before text messages, emails and voicemail there was a period of romance when a young man could present just the right flower to his young lady and communicate a message of love, affection or devotion.   

In many cases, the groom would have to wait for the right season for his message to be conveyed by flowers.  Fortunately for us, modern technology has made it such that most flowers are available year round if you’re willing to pay the price.  

Here is a list of Seasonal flowers and the language they speak.  What message will you send on this Valentines Day or on your wedding day? 

*Reference Emily Post’s Wedding Etiquette

ELIZABETH’S ETIQUETTE 

This month we will cover the proper Guest Etiquette. 

Good manners should be displayed by guests as well as the bride, groom and the wedding party.  The list is very short.  

#1    If you are a guest and you receive an invitation with an RSVP you should respond as quickly as possible.  This is especially so if you  plan not to attend because your quick decline to the invitation allows the couple to possibly invite someone else.  Responding So Very Promptly (RSVP) is a must because weddings are very expensive and your failure to respond could result in unnecessary expenditures by the bride and groom.   

#2     You should send a gift whether you attend or not.  If you got an invitation, you are obligated to send a gift. 

#3     Always show good manners and behave sensibly and respectfully at the ceremony and reception.

THE CULTURAL CORNER 

America is truly a melting pot of various cultures, religions and races.  We mix culture in everything we do. This can be true in your wedding plans too.  In the Cultural Corner we open a window to various cultures specifically related to wedding traditions.  When making your wedding day plan, remember that the day should be a reflection of you.  The wedding ceremony itself is cloaked deep in tradition so it would only be appropriate if you could find the right cultural flare to express your culture and individualism.   

French Wedding Traditions:  It is an old tradition in small French towns for the groom to walk to the bride’s home and walk with her to the church.  White ribbons are stretched across the side walk and as the bride approaches the ribbon, she cuts it.  These days not many of us get married walking distance from our home so you could emulate this tradition by having children stretch the ribbon across your aisle which leads you to the altar or having them already stretched between the pews and a child cut the ribbon with decorated scissors. 

Another French idea to bring to your reception is a toasting cup called “Coupe de Marriage”.  This is a silver cup that has two handles and it’s in the shape of a small bowl.  The bride typically drinks before the groom and in doing so they make their commitment to each other.

EVENTS YOU MIGHT WANT TO KNOW ABOUT 

As seen on Oprah and in Redbook Magazine, Brides Against Breast Cancer will have a wedding gown sale in Orlando.  The sale will take place on Friday March 24^th and Saturday, March 25^th at Comfort Inn and Conference Center in Longwood.  Please see the attached press release or visit the website for more information at www.makingmemories.org  

The Polasek Museum in Winter Park cordially invites you to their Bridal Open House featuring their preferred vendors.  The affair will take place on February 25^th from 11am – 3pm.  Please see the attached invitation for additional details or visit the website at www.polasek.org 

Wedding Noir is a bridal magazine that speaks to “the bride of color”.  They have launched in New Orleans and Atlanta.  Now the publication is coming to the Orlando area.  This is a free publication that will soon be available to all brides at a bridal store near you.  Look for the Bridal Expo to take place in conjunction with the Orlando Magic Saturday April 15th basketball game.  Visit www.weddingsnoir.com for additional information.    

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