Monday, January 19, 2009
Master of Ceremonies Guide
Tom Haibeck (High Beck) is the author of the bestselling book, “Wedding Toasts Made Easy!”
He is an award-winning public speaker and an accomplished toastmaster and emcee. In recent years, he has appeared on local, national and international radio and television talk-shows to talk about how to make a great wedding toast, and would welcome the opportunity to be a guest on your show or to do an interview for your publication.
Get Your Copy Here
Wedding Master of Ceremonies – What You Need to know
Usually the first toast is proposed by the Father of the Bride to the Bride & Groom.
The second toast is proposed by the Groom to the Bridesmaids and his Bride.
The Best man will propose a second toast to the Bride & Groom and a toast to the Parents of the Bride & Groom.
Should any guests of note not be present, then a toast to Absent Friends is appropriate. Often the name of person of note is coupled with the toast.
This is the traditional order but you may have as many people speak as you like. Just remember it can get rather dull for guests if they have to sit through over an hour of wedding speeches.
Depending on the type of ceremony that the Bride and Groom want the Wedding Master of Ceremonies should set the tone. Discuss with your chosen Wedding Master of Ceremonies if you would like a tradition service, light hearted or humorous and chose a person that will be able to deliver this well.
You can hire a professional Wedding Master of Ceremonies but many couples now days like to use a loved one. Try not to select someone that you think will struggle with the job, for instance a relative with a fear of public speaking is not a good choice. It will put your loved one in an awkward position if you ask them to do a job that they would be uncomfortable with. This goes for your wedding speeches as well. If you’re best man or father of the bride is too nervous to speak then ask them to consider getting someone to deliver the wedding speech on their behalf.
Give your Wedding Master of Ceremonies and other people you have asked to deliver a wedding speech a hand as well and check in with them if they need any help, provide them with some resources to help them write and deliver the speech.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Planning a Wedding Budget
It is essential that you start planning a wedding budget before buying anything for your wedding.
If you do not have a budget it is highly likely that your cost will blow out of proportion. A wedding budget will allow you to get what you want and spend your money wisely. Any money that you save in the process is an extra bonus.
Some things to consider when planning a wedding budget.
Who is paying? -Most couples pay for their own wedding these days however if you are expecting to receive some financial help it is good to sit down with the parties offering the help and discuss the budget. If you are not expecting any help then make sure you plan a budget that is realistic and affordable for you.
Be organised - Buy or create a comprehensive wedding planner that will help you make sure you have included everything. You will use this throughout your entire wedding planning process.
Do research - Never guess how much you think things will cost. Weddings are expensive and things tend to cost more when the word wedding is mentioned. Make sure that you do some research into prices. If your wedding budget is nothing more than a rough estimate then it is likely to cause you some real headaches.
Shop around and negotiate -Don’t be afraid to shop around and bargain and be prepared to walk away. If something is too expensive see if the company are willing to negotiate as many are. However if they are unwilling you must be prepared to keep looking for other options.
Be educated – Talk to other brides and read up on wedding tips. This can help you find out how others saved money and stuck to their wedding budget.
It not a competition – Just because your work colleague, cousin or friend had a wedding that cost more than your car does not mean that you have to. It is your special day and it is about what you want and what you are comfortable with.
The debt will not disappear – Your wedding day may be beautiful but if you rack up a debt to pay for it this will be around for some time. Think long and hard before over committing yourself. After all do you really want to start your married life with wedding day debts?
These 7 tips will make help you with planning your wedding budget and keep you organised and in control throughout the wedding planning process.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
The Top 5 Cheap Wedding Favor Ideas
1. Sea Shells
This idea works really well if you are having a beach wedding. You can buy shells very cheap in most bargain shops or you could always collect them. Wrap the shells in tulle. You could always use the shells as a favour and the place card holder. Just paint the guests name on the shell or tie a ribbon around each shell with the name attached. It will be a special gift for them to remember your wedding.
2. Flower or Plant Seedlings
This is a lovely idea as each guest will get to plant flowers or a your favourite plant variety in hour of your big day.
3. Chocolate or Candies
You can buy very cheap chocolates and candy and add divide them into tulle pieces and tie a ribbon around each piece of tulle. You can get all different shapes and sizes. Some favourites are hearts, butterflies and shells. To save even more money skip the tulle and just add the candies or chocolates into the wine glasses of the guests.
4. Donate to charity
Donate 1 dollar from each guest to a charity and place a card on each place setting with the details of your chosen charity. At least the money will not be wasted and your guests will feel good about their contribution. Add details of where to donate as some guests may wish to donate more. Get in touch with your charity of choice they may be able to provide you with cards to give to the guests.
5. Wedding Cake
Don’t be afraid to give guests the wedding cake as the favour. As each guests leaves ask your bridesmaids to hand out cakes to them. Buy something for the guest to store their cake in such as tulle, noodle boxes or napkins. This is a particularly good idea if you are serving desert and wedding cake.
Remember that if you are on a budget wedding favors are not essential your guests will appreciate the wedding without the favours, but most people do like to give out favors so at least these cheap wedding favour ideas will not break the bank.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Inexpensive Wedding Ideas That Don’t Compromise Your Big Day
People spend a lot of money on wedding but there are some inexpensive wedding ideas to save you that will not compromise your big day. There are inexpensive ways to make your wedding looks as though you spent a great deal of money to ensure that everything is perfect. The average wedding costs over 25 thousand dollars. This is a lot of money for young couples. Knowing how to spend your wedding money wisely will get you everything that you need for the perfect wedding day without paying off the debt for the next 10 years.
The Dress – Most women will tell you that the dress is so important. That is right but to have a beautiful dress does not mean that you have to spend thousands. Be smart about your dress, if you really don’t have the money for a designer dress then avoid heading into the designer bridal boutiques where you are in danger of falling in love with a dress that costs more than your car. If you do fall in love with a dress that is too expensive then think about ways that you may be able to have a similar one made. You may know a friend who could make it for you or you could use less expensive material. Also remember there is nothing wrong with buying an inexpensive dress and spending some money or customising it. This way you will have a unique dress for half the price. You could try adding lace, crystals or accessories to turn something plain and simple in spectacular. It just takes a little imagination. Another option is purchasing a second hand dress and customising it. This will save you lots and if you have enough patience and can scour through the racks you could end up going down the aisle in designer after all. Above all remember that while it is your big day you will only wear this dress once so remain realistic about the price.
The Reception – The most important thing with your reception is that you shop around and get quotes. Make sure you read all the fine print as you need to ensure everything you need is included otherwise you may find hidden costs such as tablecloths and chair covers popping up. When looking at venues use your imagination, it may look drab but add some lights and decorations and it could transform into an elegant room. Don’t be afraid to have a backyard reception either. This saves a lot of money and if you or someone you know has a nice and large enough yard then you can turn it into a beautiful setting.
The Photographer – Photographers are expensive and the packages can turn into thousands to get all the shots that you want. Why not ditch the photographer all together and have family friends do it. If that is a little too extreme try to book the photographer for a small amount of time. This will limit the shots they take and then try to sell to you and will give you some beautiful professional pictures. Once the photographer has left, arm your friends and family with cameras and get their shots from them. You will be amazed at how nice some of the natural shots can be.
The Flowers – Try do it yourself wedding flowers. The flowers are beautiful on their own so do not stress too much about the arrangement. This can save you lots of money.
Above all remember that incorporating some inexpensive wedding ideas into your big day will not compromise how lovely it is or how much fun your guests will have.
I was shocked when I read this amazing fact.
You may heard that the average cost of a single
wedding is around $27,000..
Now get ready for this one.
Can you believe that the average cost of a SECOND
wedding is around $12,000?
In other words, the first timers (probably without any
experience) spend more than twice of what the second
timers spend.
That tells me that having experience can save you more
than $10,000.
Of course, there may be other factors like number
of guests and wedding qualities. But I guarantee that
experience and know-how's are the main factors.
If you want to know how you can save $1,000's or
even $10,000's for your wedding, I strongly recommend
that you read Erica Yoon's Amazing Wedding Planning
guide. She has saved over $10,000 on her wedding and
reveals just exactly how she did it.
And she will also layout the process in easy to follow
step-by-step so you can duplicate the process.
For more information... visit her website
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Do It Yourself Wedding Flower Book
Do it yourself wedding flowers are a huge saving so if you do decide to do your own wedding flowers have a look at this book as it is really helpful . It can help you learn the art of flower arranging and will make sure your flowers like like you paid hundreds for them.