Category Archives: Wedding Planning

Wedding planner books and guides

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I was at Barnes & Noble last night with my husband and I wandered near the wedding books shelf. Wow, there are all manner of wedding guides, planners and books, aren’t there? It seems a waste of money to spend $25 or more on a book that’s going to tell you what to do…oh wait. That’s a good chunk of the book industry. Never mind! :)

In all seriousness, are these wedding books truly helpful to you, you brides-to-be in prep mode? I am all about lists, but I like to create them on my own. In a way, I wonder if a book with just wedding decorations, flowers and what to expect would be more helpful (maybe that’s why I’ve come to enjoy writing this blog!)

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Wedding decoration ideas in the Ikea catalog

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I don’t know about anyone else, but the Ikea catalog that just seems to magically arrive without you’re doing anything is massively dangerous for me. There are always so many thinks you can see in your own home, am I right? Anyway, as I thumbed through every page, I saw various possibilities for a budget wedding. Follow me inside the catalog…

On page 334 and 335 of the catalog is Ikea’s vase offerings. All of them are really nice, with some lovely colors, but there are a few I’d really like to point you toward. I really like the BLOMSTER bowl, a glass, shallow bowl. They’re $9.99 each and can easily be filled with water to hold floating tea lights or candles and a few blossoms.

On the same page, at the end of that top row is the SNARTIG (sorry, I have no umlauts) vase. This vase has a narrow mouth, so you can’t have too many flowers in it, but picture it with some food coloring-dyed water (matching your colors, of course, with a white Casablanca lily or a similarly thin-stemmed, big blooming flower. Nice, huh? This vase is only 79 cents each.

Below it, in the middle of the second row, is also called a BLOMSTER vase, but this one is a bit cheaper at $3.99, with a small mouth, but a very round, almost apple like shape. I’d say you should also go with some big bloom flowers for this vase, also — maybe a hydrangea or even a fully matured rose bloom. The flowers in this picture are also very nice; I think those are baby roses, but I could be wrong.

Next to that picture is the BLADET bowl, which is $12.99. It’s a bowl, so you’ll have no trouble putting things in it. The arrangement here is interesting — they appear to be flowering roots in rocks — but I would suggest something a little more flashy if you want it to be a reception centerpiece. Maybe colored water, maybe colored rocks? Shoot, you could even put a stack of Granny Smith apples or plums in there, depending on your color.

In the bottom row, at both ends, are more traditional vases. The BLADET vase is the most expensive of the bunch at $14.99, and its apparently 11 inches tall, which is not bad at all. There are so many possibilities for a vase like this.

Many possibilities for a vase like the second one that caught my eye — the VASEN vase. Its 8 inches tall, and costs $1.49 each. I think this one might be the best deal of the bunch, really. It’s got that interesting hour-glass shape and a wide mouth. And its cheap!

A couple pages over is Ikea’s candle page. I really liked this section too and I think there are so many possibilities with these candle holders — especially when you combine them with the vases. :)

The KARABODA lantern is really nice. It’s made of glass and steel, is 11 inches tall and goes for $2.99 each. I like the texturing on the outside. However, I wonder if the handle on top gets hot?

The STOCKHOLM candelabra is really nice. It’s pricey at $39.99, so maybe this would be something nice to decorate the cake table or sign-in table with. If you do use this candelabra, I think it would be very easy to decorate the foot of it with some flowers.

Check out the HALLARE tealight holder. I know that there are some who like the idea of the long guest tables that hold many on both sides of the table, rather than the round tables that have been in fashion for so long. A tealight set up like these would be ideal for ambiance along each side of the table. This tealight holder is 22 inches long. I can also see it being used on a round table, maybe 3 of them in a triangle, but with all the stuff put on a round table, there may not be enough room.

Next to the tealights is the GALEJ candleholder. I really like these. They’re 9 inches tall and are $3.99 each. You can simply add a tealight with your color, or maybe add a blossom of some kind for a little pizzazz — I think I’ve seen a gerber daisy used with a candle holder like this one.

Need to cut down on your wedding costs? Get away and get married!

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Photo by Flickr’s willshoot

I’m a big fan of personal finance stories in the Washington Post, so I was pretty interested in this article recently that some brides are saving money by having a destination wedding. To me, that seems counterintuitive — wouldn’t having your wedding somewhere else make the costs skyrocket? But I make sense of the entire paradox — eventually.

The biggest cost of a wedding is people — bridesmaids, groomsmen, sponsors, guests. Most people would invite everyone and their mommas, daddies, nieces and nephews, if you think about it. So by having your wedding in some exotic locale, say Maui like in the photo above, you end up pre-excluding some because a lot of people usually can’t afford to fly somewhere, put themselves up in a hotel, and give you a gift. That’s just reality.

From the article:

These unromantic downers are forcing couples to take a hard look at what they’re spending on their special day. In many cases, the new economic reality means downsized ambitions. Couples are scaling back on their guest lists, replacing filet mignon with chicken, and crossing out honeymoon plans to Italy because of the sinking value of the dollar. Some are choosing exotic destination weddings instead of hometown fetes to keep their guest numbers low. Others are making small cuts where they can: getting professionals to print invitations but stuffing envelopes themselves or replacing expensive peonies with cheaper roses.

…skip

Richard Markel, director of the Association for Wedding Professionals International, estimates that couples are spending $1,500 less this year on the average $28,000 wedding.

Tough times also are hitting wedding vendors: photographers, caterers, planners. “People are coming in with smaller budgets, but we’re trying to make the most of what they have to still give them a special experience, and if that means losing $100 to $150 for us because of the cost of a better quality of meat, that’s okay for us,” said Dan Capobianco, president of American Catering in Centreville.

Experts say there are many ways to cut wedding costs. “This is the time to prioritize what you need and realize that there is always something in your budget” to economize, Markel said.

The article continues on to say that hometown celebrations often come with guest lists of 200, 300 or more, but when it comes to destination weddings, it mind end up being 50. That’s a lot of $100 dinners you’re cutting from your wedding budget. Read the whole thing its very enlightening.

Anyway, there’s another plus. If you bring your wedding to one of these resorts, chances are you won’t need decorations. I know, I know, as a former wedding decorator I shouldn’t be advocating for no decorations. But I’m also in love with the beauty of nature. And if you’ve got a view like the one from the pictured Maui wedding, you really don’t want any flowers distracting from the simple beauty of your surroundings.

Transportation gets cut from the wedding budget first

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So if you were wondering what to cut from your mutating wedding budget first, here’s what everyone voted on what to snip first: transportation. In most cases, this means that stretch limo, Hummer, Range Rover, Audi — whatever. (I really did see a stretch Audi on Flickr.)

Photo by Flickr’s philippebierny

So what does this all mean for you brides who must still get from Point A (the church) to Point B (the reception)? It could mean any number of things. Heck, it could mean a golf cart for you and your new hubby. This may be a little too out there for some, but if you happen to have your church and your reception in a relatively small, low-trafficked city, I think it could be a fun option — sort of like the whole horse carriage thing, without the horses. Imagine all the fun you’ll have waving at drivers as you go!

Photo by Flickr’s urbanshutterbug

Trains seem to be a very popular option. I’m a big fan of trains myself, even though I’m from Southern California — as a license-less college student, I used to haul train from Orange County to L.A. every day. That’s another story. This appears to be an Amtrak train, and Amtrak just happens to have a page where you can request group reservations for 20 or more. Of course, you never know if they’re going to stick it to you or give you a discount for a big group. If this is something you do, let me know.

Photo by Flickr’s ohdebbieo

And, as I noted before, subways are an environmentally friendly and inexpensive option. I’m not clear if the photo above was taken in France, though. Anyway, this would be a great option for someone getting married with good public transportation. Here in Los Angeles, that might be a tad difficult — maybe it could work if you were getting married at Our Lady of the Angels in downtown and having a reception at, say, the Renaissance at Hollywood and Highland or the Sheraton or Hilton at Universal CityWalk. Of course, then you have to wonder — what will the guests do with all their cars? Yeah.

Photo by Flickr’s coach_stacey

The above photo is a bride (rocking a non-white dress, no less) and groom….in a canoe! Now, I don’t know for sure if they were being taken to their reception, but it is labeled wedding transportation. At any rate — how cool is this?? I would love to be rowed across the lake to my reception.

Find A Wedding Photographer: Christopher Becker

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I am such a fan of photojournalism. Seriously. I’ve been enamored, sometimes even infatuated, with photographers that I’ve worked with in the past, they were so effortlessly talented. I like to think I attract similarly talented people. But anyway, combine photojournalism and wedding photography and you’ve got a recipe for incredible memories for life.

All photos by Christopher Becker

Only because I had a bunch of other posts in the queue, I’m only now blogging about Becker. He’s a photographer out of Orange County and he’s spectacular. Not only that, he seems to have massive fun as he works. Who doesn’t want that at their wedding?

Above, is a wedding Becker shot in Colorado at the Roaring Fork Club (what a great name!). Hehe, with scenery like this, you don’t need much in the way of decorations! By the way, you can click each photo for the full size.


I’ve only been a casual reader of his blog for maybe two, three months now, but the man really has a sense of what to capture. Check out the groom above, seeing his bride for the first time — I love this photo. Society says men are not supposed to get emotional, but I love the tenderness of the awe and love in his eyes. I don’t know about any other bride, but I’d want to engrave that image in my mind forever. This was part of Becker’s all-time favorite wedding images post.


Again, here, Becker gives you details that you might miss in the hullabaloo that is most weddings. At this wedding at the Ponte Family Winery in Temecula, you might only focus on the rose petals, the gorgeous skies, the tastefully decorated trellis. But I love the details on the back row — pink, black and white ribbons tied to the backs of the chairs in the rear. Cute and simple.


Becker, in his favorite wedding images post, said that this one was among his most commented images. I can see why! I love awesome, slice of life stuff like this. What a great story to tell the kids…”kids, when we got married, it was on the beach and it was a beautiful day, and while we were taking pictures, this nude old man walked by and gave us a dirty look…” Awesome.

Anyway, enough from me. If you think Becker might just be the wedding photographer for you, shoot him an email and tell him I sent you. But even if you don’t think he’s for you, here’s what he has to say about choosing a photographer:

i’d say to meet with as many photographers as possible, narrow it down to the ones who’s work they admire, then hire the photographer with the best personality match to the couple. after all, you are stuck dealing with your photographer long after the wedding and you are going to want to make sure you like that person.

Save money and go green by renting flowers

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Have you ever heard of renting flowers? Neither had I, until I came upon Elaborate Floral Design‘s booth at the BrideExpo show at the L.A. Convention Center. But I kind of like the concept. I mean, what are you going to do with those flowers anyway? You’ll probably give away all your guest table arrangements. But if you’re like many right now, you’re probably looking to save some cash, yes? So rent.


EFD, as I’ll refer to them here on out, had some really lovely, simple arrangements. Like the one above, for $25, you’ve got calla lilies entwined in a shallow glass bowl, with clear glass pebbles and flameless candles in the middle. You’re probably thinking, shoot. I could do that on my own. You probably could. But why do you want one (or, depending on the number of tables you have, maybe 10 or 15) more thing to do? You probably don’t. Plus, if you want really pretty, spectacular arrangements…


…like this one, it would cost you a pretty penny if you went the traditional florist route. Above, that’s a vase topper laden with roses and stargazers and a footer of roses and more flowers (sorry, can’t identify the spiky ones). Um, although, I’m not positive that this arrangement is silk… Anyway, this would be a seriously expensive arrangement otherwise. EFD even has season-themed lines of flowers from which to choose from.

In addition, there is the whole bonus of leaving a smaller carbon footprint. According to EFD’s site:

We are taking steps to becoming an all green company, here are a few examples of how we are taking action and going green!
1) E.F.D. specializes in renting out silk centerpieces, which not only helps our environment by recycling and re-using but it also helps our economy with our affordable prices.
2) E.F.D. is changing all of our harmful chemical cleaning products to eco friendly and organic cleaning products.
3) E.F.D. is changing how we pay our bills, we will be paying everything online with no papertrail.
4) E.F.D. uses only energy efficient appliances.
5) E.F.D. will be using only compact flourescent lightbulbs.
6) E.F.D. recycles all glass, paper, cardboard, and metal.
7) E.F.D. buys local produce and groceries
8) E.F.D. uses a programmable thermostat.
9) E.F.D. uses energy star electronics.
10) E.F.D. will never share or sell your info to anyone.

You probably never imagined silk flowers for your wedding, I know. But you know what? All that matters is that the decor is still spectacular. And I’ve seen some silk flowers look pretty damn real — they just have to be well maintained.

EFD even lays out all the reason:

Our event Rental Lines feature top of the line silk flowers, that confuse the eye, and entice the touch! Not only do our flowers look and feel real, but they can smell real too! Why rent silk flowers? 1) The Budget-you spend less than half the cost of having an all fresh event! 2) The choice- your favorite flower that might be out of season, is not with our top of the line silk florals! 3) The Privilege- instead of waiting until your wedding day to see all of your flowers you get an exclusive look at everything, and get to make any changes! 4) The Look- no matter hot or cold, rainy or humid, the flowers always look great and no wilting! 5) The Experience- with our uniquely designed silk florals we can manipulate, twist and arrange our florals in ways you can not with fresh floral!

Need I say more?

Bride World Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center

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I came, I saw, I conquered. Well, not quite. This was my first bridal show, but of course, not attending as a bride-to-be made it a little less pressure on me. The big crowds of eager women and aggressive vendor booth people were a little intimidating, but I think I came out OK!

Thanks to the economy and the rise in environmental consciousness, it looks like there are a lot of trends like Do-It-Yourself and Green Weddings that are coming into play. Check out these DIY options from one company offering invitations. I’m pretty sure this company is Paper Wonders out of Temple City.

I particularly liked this idea from Celebration Photography & Video. These appeared to be actual canvas, but these were digital photos on them! So they looked like paintings! That’s something I’d love to do with a lot of photos, particularly the nature and landscape shots I love to take.

Of course, accessories like these Popit Sandals from A Room To View are getting increasingly popular. They’re easy to personalize and useful at any time, not just the wedding day. Those little jewels? You can attach them to just about any accessory they offer here — those comes, brooches, hair accessories, you name it.

I saw this cake topper from Tutto Dolce, which happens to be based right near me in Thousand Oaks. They have some very cool cake and giveaway alternatives, and they’re all deliciously edible. The bride dragging the husband away cake topper was what really caught my eye though. You can send owner Vanessa Calderone an email at tuttodolce@roadrunner.com.

You probably think that’s all I got, huh? Oh contraire! I’ve got plenty more where all that came from (since I’m a voracious photo taker) and am planning some future posts highlighting other concepts and alternatives for you to personalize (and save) on your weddings and decorations. So be sure to check back OR subscribe to my RSS feed so you’ll know immediately when I post.