Balancing a Wedding With Work or School

December 23rd, 2009

Timing, as they say, is everything. There is no doubt that as soon as he pops the question, most women start thinking about having the wedding and getting married. The idea of putting off your nuptials due to the other things going on in your life can seem downright unromantic. On the other hand, if you know that you are in a hectic part of your life now, but that in a year things will have settled down, a long engagement might be well worth the stress saved.

Balancing school with planning a wedding can be one challenge. Although it seems very exciting to graduate from college in May and get married in June, the truth of the matter is that you might have more fun with both your senior year and your wedding planning if you push the wedding back to the following year, or at least until the autumn. After all, you don’t want to feel rushed when you are shopping for your wedding gown or bridal jewelry because you have an exam looming that you need to study for. Nor do you want to miss out on the best venue or band because your weekends were so tied up with school that you did not get anything booked.

Women with demanding careers would be wise to determine if the workload is temporary or ongoing before jumping into the wedding planning process. In other words, if you are finishing a medical residency, you would be insane to try to plan a wedding at the same time, but waiting is not so terrible, because there is a definite end to that particular work situation. On the other hand, if you are trying to make partner at your law firm and eighty hour weeks will be the norm for the foreseeable future, there is no point in waiting, since things are unlikely to change.

When a demanding career is the norm for you, the best possible thing which you can do for yourself is to hire a wedding planner.  Better yet, plan a destination wedding at a beautiful resort. They are used to taking care of most of the details for their long distance brides, and when you are working a grueling schedule, a trip to a tropical paradise is exactly what you need! You can have your dream wedding and a relaxing vacation, all in one. What could be better?

Does Your Wedding Need a Makeover?

December 13th, 2009

If you love wedding shows like I do, you have probably seen “My Fair Wedding”, the one where a famous wedding planner comes in and totally remakes weddings at the last second. The results are crystal clear: the “afters” are always way more fabulous, elegant, and chic than the “befores”. Now, most brides are not going to get any last minute guidance from a celebrity wedding designer, but every bride can make her own wedding more beautiful with the right tools. Read this article to figure out if your wedding needs a makeover.

Your wedding might need a makeover if…fake flowers are the main form of decoration. In fact, this has been a common theme on the episodes of “My Fair Wedding” that I have seen: rather than investing in fresh flowers, brides hope to get by with the fake ones. Most of the fakes are not at all natural looking, either, generally coming in too-bright colors or not resembling the shape of genuine flowers at all.

Your wedding might need a makeover if…you spend most of your waking hours with a hot glue gun in hand. While there are certainly any number of lovely diy wedding projects which a crafty bride can undertake, it is also all too easy to go way over the top with the homemade decorations. Here is the key: if your efforts look like you made them at home with a hot glue gun, they are not elegant enough for a wedding. One of the worst examples I saw of this on television was a bride who hot glued fake flowers (two strikes!) to everything in sight, including the bridal hair jewelry for her bridesmaids. Flowers can be a pretty theme for bridal jewelry to wear in the hair, but only if they are delicately handcrafted – never humongous and stuck to a stretchy headband.

A wedding should always feel magical, which means that your guests never see the behind-the-scenes stuff taking place. The good news is that it is never too late to make the small changes which will yield big improvements in the style and beauty of your wedding day. From decorations, to attire, to the reception, you have the power to make everything absolutely gorgeous so that you will be able to enjoy the dream wedding you deserve.

Who Needs a Wedding Planner?

November 28th, 2009

Think wedding planners are only for opulent weddings with six figure budgets? Well, think again, because couples with all different budgets and tastes hire wedding planners these days. In fact, more people can benefit from some professional help than may realize it. This is a look at who needs a wedding planner and why.

Budget conscious brides and grooms. Surprised? Yes, you have to pay a wedding planner for his or her services, but they can also be really helpful in making sure that you stick to your budget. There are even planners who specialize in fabulous weddings on tight budgets, which is ideal if you are looking for tricks to stretch your wedding dollars. Besides knowing the tricks of the trade, a planner will also know vendors with whom they can negotiate to get you the best rate or freebies thrown in.

Busy brides. Let’s face it, most of the wedding planning is still handled by the bride, maybe with help from her mother. If you are a bride with a demanding career, finding time to interview caterers, shop around for the perfect bridesmaid jewelry gifts, and pore through dozens of wedding stationery books can be flat out impossible. The planner will do all the legwork for you, and present you with the top few options which suit your needs. From listening to bands to searching for custom gifts of bridesmaid jewelry for your girls to seeking out a caterer who specializes in Portuguese cuisine, a wedding planner can do it all so that you don’t have to.

Destination wedding brides. This is a big one. Planning a long distance wedding on your own can be next to impossible. How are you going to visit with florists, check out venues, and go hear local bands play when your home is hundreds of miles from your wedding location? A common scenario is that the planner does all the research and the bride and groom make just one or two trips to the wedding location to see the options that the coordinator has rounded up and to make their final decisions.

It is always a good idea to know when you could use some help along the way, whether it is just a wedding day coordinator to make sure that everything goes smoothly, or a full service planner who will arrange everything from soup to nuts. One thing is for sure, if you need one, you sure will be glad to have a professional wedding planner on your side!