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Doing it yourself? Here is some advice from another DIY bride, who is also a wedding planner:

Planning your wedding without a wedding planner takes a lot of patience, organization, and creativity.  First, when picking your date, don’t lock it down until you talk to the venues you are interested in.  Not only may they not be available, BUT there are ways to save money!

#1 Having your wedding during the peak season (spring/summer) will ALWAYS be more expensive.  Maybe decide to have a winter wedding and run with with that theme…

#2 Saturdays are the most popular day to have a wedding, so of course it is more expensive. Then comes Fridays and Sundays.  Originally Derek and I decided to get married on August 14 (a Saturday,) our venue was open for that date but we were able to save $2000 just by moving our date to August 12 (a Thursday.)

**Other wedding vendors may be willing to come down on their prices on weekdays or during the off season.  Our photographer came down $200 because he knew he would not have any other prospects for  that day.  If you feel comfortable asking them, do so, but don’t expect the discount.

Here are some other things to think about while your planning:

Derek and I are having a wedding of 120 people, of which probably 80 are coming from out of town! How many of your guests are traveling for your big day?

**Look into having your ceremony and reception at the same venue.  Also, see if your venue/hotels will provide a shuttle back to the hotel they are staying at.  If your guests are from out of town, they will need to find transportation and very detailed directions to your venues.  Chances are your Aunt Judy will still get lost on her way to the reception. Getting everyone safely back to the hotels afterwards is very important.  Unless you want a whole bunch of drunk out-of-towners driving around your city!

DIY brides tend to think that nothing will go wrong on their big day. I hate to break it you ya- something will go wrong.  Expect imperfection!  Don’t Hyperventilate– here’s where my wedding planning package “brown paper bag” comes in.  You’ve done everything by yourself.  And that was a very large task to take on.  Do you really want to have to make sure everything goes well on YOUR day.  You can hire a wedding planner for “day of services.” While your relaxing, getting your hair done, and preparing for the “i do’s.”  Your wedding planner will take car of the rest. Such as:

*making sure vendors are paid and doing what they are supposed to

*Making sure the ceremony runs without a hitch

*help with set up and break down

*most importantly- when that something does go wrong, they will take care of it and hopefully you’ll never even have to know about it!

LaShauna Goines
August 2009 Bride

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