Planning a Bridal Shower?

Hi Bridal Party! Are you stumped on how to plan your Bride a fabulous Bridal Shower? Well, be creative and think outside of the box. Think about your bride’s taste, style, and her sense of enjoyment. She may not want to sit on that white bridal/baby shower chair in a hall, or wear gift bows on a paper plate from presents on her head! (Try a tiara to make her feel like a beautiful princess)

Skip tradition and plan a gathering that she will remember. Perhaps, a garden theme bridal shower (a friend or relative’s backyard can be held for a garden theme), cruise bridal shower, tea party or spa bridal shower. Generally, wedding showers are exclusively for women. However, these days, many couples decide to have co-ed parties for all their friends.

Begin planning the event 6 months before the bridal shower, so you can discover the theme, budget the event, double check the guest list, choose the venue, and send out invitations. The bridal shower should be 2 months before the wedding.

Customarily the Maid of Honor and the Bridemaids host the party. Strict etiquette said that it was not appropriate for the mother to host the shower because the parents would host the wedding. However, these days, the rules are greatly relaxed. It is quite usual for relatives to hold the wedding shower. Even if the family is not hosting the shower, they can help share the cost by chipping in for the venue, décor and food.

The average shower has between 10 to 30 guests. However, this can reach 40 to 50 if you are holding a co-ed shower. Bridal showers are usually more intimate than the wedding, so invite the couple’s friends and relatives. In advance, request the bride her guest list for the bridal shower. Remember it is a bridal shower, not a wedding, so your guest list should be limited- Think Budget!

Be creative with what you have available. Fill a basket with garden flowers, add ribbons to house plants (buy house plants from Home Depot), inexpensive table runners, throw petals around the tables, candles in vases, or memorable pictures of the couple in a frame- that can be a centerpiece. You might want to try do-it-yourself decorations to lower your expenses in décor. The possibilities are endless-so have fun with your bridal party while planning this occasion. I’m sure your Bride will be surprised with your efforts!

Check out the above picture for decor on a Moroccan Theme Bridal Shower. More pictures are seen in Facebook. Please join MyBridalBudget Facebook to see fabulous pictures!

How to Tip Wedding Vendors? Is it Mandatory?

A lot of couples might find tipping to be a “gray area”. When you have spent most of your wedding in expenses such as your venue, ceremony, photographer, videographer, DJ, makeup artist, officiant, limo, and the list goes on…. we always ask our selves –“Should I tip and to whom should I tip”?
The answer is yes and no. Gratuities are a kind and generous gesture of appreciation for going the extra mile to make your wedding day perfect. It is customary, but not mandatory.
It all depends if your vendor provides you with exemplary service on your big day. If your vendor/venue provides excellent service and goes beyond what is contracted, then a nice tip would show your appreciation or referring the vendor to your family and friends. Most of the business in the wedding industry comes from word of mouth.
You want to prepare your gratuities before the wedding such as 2 or 3 days. (This should be included in your budget). All tips should be in cash. Enclose your gratuities in an envelop and give the envelops to your wedding planner to distribute. If you do not have a wedding planner you may have your Best man to distribute it. It is best to distribute your tips towards the end of your reception so that way you can judge if the tip is well deserved, according to the service that was performed.
Please read the fine print on your vendors’ contract to see if a tip is included in their price. In particular cases the tip is on the contract, in that case you do not need to tip, especially if you have already paid it. In contrast, if the gratuity is not stated on the contract-Here are suggested tip guidelines:

Hairstylist, Makeup Artist, Beautician:
Tip between 15-20% in this category. You should expect to tip these vendors just as you would on a normal visit to the salon.

Florist (Delivery & Setup): $15-$20 per person

Baker & Party Rentals (Delivery & Setup): $5-$10 per person

Officiant (Clergy, Priest, Minister etc):
If you are having your ceremony at a church, synagogue, or at any religious denomination institution it is suggested to give a donation. If you are a member at your church, synagogue, or any religious institution it is suggested to give a donation of $500 and up. Please inquire with clergy the donation amount to officiant and organists. Otherwise, if you have a non-denomination officiant that performs your ceremony at a location (i.e. the venue) and charges you a fee, then a tip is not required.

Wedding Ceremony Musician:
$20-$25 per person in a band/quartet

Limousine: 15-20%. In most cases the gratuity is already reported on your contract.

DJ & Emcee: $50-$100

Maitre’d: It is usually $3.00-$6.00 per invited guest or some venues may charge 5%, which will be noted on the contract.

Reception Hall: 20%- that is noted on the contract, which is split amongst the staff (banquet manager, bartender, clean staff, chef/kitchen staff, etc). It is a good idea to ask the catering hall who receives the 20% just to make sure all essential staff is included.

Valet Drivers: If the 20% reception gratuity doesn’t include valet drivers, you can give $1.00-$1.50 per car. The total should be divided between the valet drivers.

Wedding Photographer/Videographer:Suggested $50-$100-If your photographer & videographer is not the owner to a studio and works under a photography/videography business.

Wedding Planner:
It is optional to tip the Wedding Planner if they have their own business. But if you wish to tip them 10-15% is adequate. In addition, a great review, photos of your big day posted to their site, and word of mouth referral is greatly appreciated.

The Perfect Shoe

You've imagined your wedding dress all your life, but what about your wedding shoes? Do you want a modern and stylish look? Instead of the traditional white satin shoes to wear with your wedding dress- Lets spice it up!
You can wear a shoe color that matches to your bridesmaid dresses, such as fuchsia, teal, silver, gold, red, yellow, purple or if you do want to stick with tradition and you want to wear “something blue” you can wear Manolo Blahnik Royal Blue shoes (Remember that infamous scene-These are the shoes that Carrie Bradshaw wore when tieing the knot with Mr Big). They will look perfect for your wedding pictures.
Don’t forget to break in your fabulous shoes before the wedding- wear them around the house so they can loosen up and you can dance the night away with your husband!

The Art of Calligraphy

Want to express your invitations with an elegant and personal look? Try calligraphy!
Whether if it is designing your wedding invitation or just addressing the guest envelops without using print mail labels- calligraphy adds both intimacy and sophistication. In addition, you can display a unique touch on your escort cards, place cards, menus, vows, wedding favors or guest books.
You may think that calligraphy services are expensive, however if you budget wisely your guest list-You can add that special touch to your wedding!
My calligrapher vendor Francesca Simon has been a calligrapher for about 30 years. Francesca has exquisite and innovative taste when it comes to her work of art. I had a meeting with her in Starbucks; she pulled out her calligraphy pen and a blank envelop readily available. She began to write on the envelope showing different examples of calligraphy (block, italic, & script). Amazing! It was fast, neat, and graceful!
She cares immensely to meet her clients’ needs. Please visit her blog to learn more about her services.
http://calligraphybyfrancesca.blogspot.com/

Welcome

Hi, My name is Fouzia and I'm the Founder of My Bridal Budget, LLC. My Bridal Budget, LLC is a wedding planning company in Queens, NY. I'm excited that I have launched my business in Wedding Planning. My Bridal Budget introduces a unique concept on how to plan your big day in a budget savvy way. Due to our rough economic times we live in, I want to offer guidance to couples in how to plan their big day without going over the budget and to not live beyond their means. Weddings are beautiful celebration, but we have to be realistic that it can add up. So with a little advice from My Bridal Budget -we can make your day beautiful and unique without going over your budget!

I know that wedding planners is recognized as a luxury expensive service, but actually it is not. We offer affordable packages, such as Getting Started, Full Service Planning, Month & Day of Coordination & Day of Coordination. In addition we offer pre-wedding event planning services for Bridal Showers, Bachelor/Bachelorette Parties, Rehearsal Dinners & Day after wedding brunches. Our core is weddings, but we can plan milestone celebrations such as, anniversaries, birthdays, holiday parties and more. Please visit www.mybridalbudget.com to learn more about my services.

Stay posted with more updates!

Happy Planning,
Fouzia Elidrissi
Founder of My Bridal Budget, LLC