How to stay organized and on top of your wedding plans in your inbox?

There may be a bombardment of emails in your inbox regarding wedding plans from your venues, vendors, and more. You may just want to toss your smartphone at the end of a hectic workday between personal, work and wedding emails.

You want make sure you and your fiancé receive all emails pertaining to your wedding plans in your personal email address, but at times you mistakenly delete one or two important messages.

How about creating a personal wedding email address? For example: jackandjillwedding2012@gmail.com . You can create a wedding email address for your wedding inquiries only- give this email address to your venue, vendors and bridal party, so they can use this email address. Your emails can be nicely organized in your smartphone as well.

8 common mistakes to avoid in wedding planning- Why should you hire MBB for your event?

Our My Bridal Budget Team strives to make your day memorable and enjoyable. Most couples say “oh I don’t need a day of coordinator or a planner- I can do it! Or “I can have my friend, cousin, auntie coordinate it”! - But it’s not the same because they wouldn’t know the ins and outs of planning a wedding flawlessly.

On your big day you need to unwind, relax, and not worry about any detail or any vendors approaching you about the smallest details because it interrupts your joy.
We guide you to make affordable and smart decisions on your wedding day that is valuable.

Here are some tips that we advise our brides to avoid obvious mistakes:

1) Always meet with your DJ to hear your final selections of your songs. Never discuss final walk through via phone- it’s always good to meet in person. There can be several versions of your first dance song so you don’t want to be surprised if it’s a wrong selection.

2) Planning a wedding on a budget is key, but making sure you have an upbeat, professional and reliable entertainment is important. Hire a DJ and an Emcee upon selecting your desired package. Do not hire a one-man show. You need an Emcee that is going to coordinate with the crowd and a DJ that can only focus on the music from their technical savvy systems. We have great DJ vendors for you to fall in love with so stop your search because hiring a day of coordinator or a planner from your team; we will only refer you to the best in the industry.

3) If you are not hiring a DJ, instead you are creating a playlist on your IPOD- make sure you have dance music such as, upbeat music for all your guests to dance. If you create dance set that is mainly slow tunes, guests will depart after dinner.

4) Always work on your seating chart a month in advance before your wedding- which means setting an early RSVP date to avoid delay. The seating chart can seem as an easy task, but it can be difficult task because it requires to make sure the chemistry is enjoyable at the table such as if guests can get along and that will talk with each other (even though they may not know each other). Also a seating chart is helpful for buffet dinners to avoid crowded buffet lines. It’s all about structure and elegance!

5) Always request a final mock trial of your centerpiece and bouquet from your florist. You don’t want to be surprised if your florist brings you the wrong florals that you didn’t ask for , most importantly you don’t want to overpay your florist and notice that’s not the exact the arrangement you requested.


6) Always request a final proof of your invitation before you send out your invitations, there can be a wrong date, incorrect spelling of your venue, wrong color of your invitation, and, wrong font. It doesn’t matter if it’s a reputable invitation company or printing company-costly mistakes can occur if you do not double check your invitations

7) Just because you have a park nearby-don’t assume you can take wedding photos at your leisure for an hour. Most parks in NYC require a photo permit to use their property for photography sessions, therefore a photography timeline is essential to coordinate at what time you need to use the park. My Bridal Budget team creates a photography timeline for their clients to coordinate the essential details with our photographers, limos, and bridal party to avoid any confusion on your big day.

8) We all love DIY (Do it yourself) projects, but it would be hectic to do your own centerpieces, favors, bouquets by yourself- why not hire a day of coordinator to oversee all those details. My Bridal Budget team will take care of all the details you have planned and put it into action instead of relying these duties on yourself, your family your bridal party. We want our clients, clients’ families, bridal parties to live, laugh and love on the big day!

Sweet Lingerie for your unforgettable day!

As brides, I know we focus on our direct attention to the dress, venue, flowers, photography and entertainment, but we seem to forget in how to beautify our undergarments for our big day.

Today’s Metro newspaper shows an article that talk sassy lingerie to wear for your big night!

My favorite and affordable lingerie is the Blush Lingerie Sweet Vintage strapless bra-$44 and hipster-$32 Check out www.dollhousebettie.com – the image above

Affordable favors – “Chocolate Truffle Scented Candles”

Dollartree always has affordable and creative favors to give to your guests. Check out these Chocolate Truffle Scented Candles. A great décor to add to your plate setting for a fall wedding !
http://www.dollartree.com/floral-decor/Wholesale-Bulk-Candles-Holders-Votives/-Chocolate-Truffle-Scented-Candles/202c205c205p307893/index.pro

How a yoga practice can keep you calm during wedding season?

As most of my clients know I do have a yoga practice on the mat and off the mat. Often, I always get the popular question, how are you a wedding planner dealing with so many weddings, personalities, timelines, checklists all at the same time-how do you handle it all? The answer is Yoga.

Yoga is a connection between the mind, body, and spirit. It stimulates balance and rewards your body sense of healing, calmness, and confidence. That is how I can multitask and still be in the present moment with each client’s wedding. My yoga practice is like a daily cup of coffee- either through yoga asana, mediation, or focusing on my breath. It definitely keeps me prepared for the unexpected on a wedding day.

Usually, on a weekly basis I have been top of my wedding blogs on a weekly basis. However, for the past 3 months, I have been offline, due to my decision to go deep within my yoga practice to take the 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Registered Certificate with Yoga Alliance that began in January through April. Thankfully I graduated and now I can share my practice.

How can yoga benefit you during your wedding plans?
I often hear from brides, I’m so overwhelmed, I have so much to do, I’m so tired, I have 3 more months until the big day and I didn’t lose any weight, I can’t sleep, I can’t breathe, I can’t stop, I’m scared, etc. Does this sound like you?

Well I have a remedy for you =)
Yoga is designed to meet your specific fitness goals, help you relax and renew, create a space for you to develop inner peace, tranquility, compassion, and grace. Yoga is not about how flexible you are or if you can do a “picture perfect” headstand- it’s about giving your body a gift to surrender and connect with your self physically and emotionally. No matter what, yoga will make you feel perfect and content just the way you are and your day will be close to perfect as it is destined to be.

Wedding planning and the actual wedding day can be a stressful affair. The 5,000 year-old practice of yoga helps brides-to-be, their fiancés, family, and friends meet their fitness goals, relax, celebrate, and enjoy this momentous occasion.

In addition, we live in New York City, a city no place like it, the hustle and bustle, achieving our dreams, balancing transitions such as having a wedding, full time careers, and more- always on the go in a NY minute. We forget to breath in this fast pace city. Most couples are flustered when the time has come to walk down that aisle and they forget to breathe, panic, which takes you from the present moment- that is to live, laugh and love in your day! Yoga can bring the deep breath into the big day!

My Bridal Budget is revamping and taking a different holistic direction – that is to bring Yoga to wedding planning. I will offer private couple yoga sessions and/or have a private class packages with your bridal party and family. If you want a calming bachelorette party, bridal shower, or a wedding day maybe yoga themed class can just be the gift for you and your loved ones.

Do you want check out what this Yoga is all about?

Tomorrow 5/5/12 Cinco de Mayo (yoga without the margaritas!), I will be teaching a 10:30am Level 1 yoga class at Bamboomoves in Forest Hills. You can also catch me on 6/9/12 Saturday at 10:30am, and 7/14/12 Saturday at 10:30am.
www.bamboomovesfh.com

I look forward to seeing you on the mat!

Picture- Me in my headstand- its not perfect, but it gives me balance =)

Namaste!
Fouzia
CEO & Wedding Planner and Yogini =)
My Bridal Budget

Service Charge- Is it taxable or not?

That is a good question to ask to your catering company or catering venue because you don’t want to miscalculate or have any surprises when you pay your final bill. Most catering venues charge 20% for service charge, which you are responsible for that cost that covers waiting staff, linens, directional/place cards, any operating venue costs, etc. In New York, tax is applied to the service charge. Most of us go out to restaurants for dinner, most of the time tax is not applied on the gratuity and service charge. However, in catering venues that have large parties, tax is applied on the service charge.
If you are the type that is organized with finances and likes to see the figures in a spreadsheet. Here is an example in how you would calculate your catering bill with taxable service charge:


$9,095 ($85 x 107 adults)
$280 ($35x8vendors)
$385 ($35x11kids)
--------------
$9,760 (subtotal)
$1,952 (service charge-20% x $9,760)
----------------
$11,712 (total)
$1,010.16 (total x Tax 8.625%)
---------------
$12,722.16-Grand Total

The numbers turn out to be a big difference when tax is applied to service charge, therefore please ask the question to your venue –“Is your service charge taxable?” so, you can make sure your budget is accurate.

Below is NY tax regulations regarding to service charges-


http://www.tax.ny.gov/pdf/memos/sales/m09_13s.pdf
Gratuities and service charges
Gratuities and tips that a customer leaves voluntarily for the wait staff are not taxable.
Mandatory gratuities are different because they are automatically added onto the bill given to the customer. However, a mandatory gratuity is not taxable if all of these conditions are met:
• the charge is shown separately on the bill,
• the charge is identified as a gratuity, and
• all of the money collected is given to the employees.
If any of these conditions is not met, the mandatory gratuity is taxable along with the rest of the catering bill.
Many caterers bill a service charge on banquets or on parties of more than eight or ten people. Since these charges are not specifically listed as gratuities on the bill or invoice, the service charge is always subject to sales tax.
For more details, see TSB-M-09(13)S, Sales Tax on Gratuities and Service Charges.

Wedding Photography Permit at Landmarks

We live in beautiful New York City with so many parks lavished with trees, spring cherry blossoms, you may be thinking of taking pictures after the ceremony with your bridal party at a park nearby the venue, which is a great idea. However, please be sure you check out the city parks information online because most parks require a permit, which includes a fee to use the park’s grounds.

Some New York City parks charge $100 for 30minutes to take photos, such as the Conservatory Gardens. As well as give yourself ample time to send in an application at least 3 months before the wedding date to ensure avaiblity for a photo session.

Another idea, if you prefer to have your wedding ceremony at a park, there is a ceremony fee that is $400 in some NYC parks such as the Conservatory Gardens. You should file an application to the city parks at least a year before the wedding date to ensure availability.

Be sure to include these fees in your budget, as well as include the time slot in your day of coordination timeline so your photographer/videographer is aware of the time.

Here is the link to learn more info about NYC parks http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/general-info/weddings/

Image Source- Omar Lopez Photography
Location –Conservatory Gardens
My Bridal Budget client- Mr. & Mrs. Steadman
Wedding date- 3/18/12