WEDDING WEEK: Save the Date and Your Money

Weddings are obviously expensive and according to Cost of Wedding, the average cost of a wedding is $24,066. However, the majority of couples spend between $18,050 and $30, 083 on their wedding, NOT including the honeymoon or engagement ring!

For those of you on a tight budget, let me suggest a couple of things: 1) Create a budget & STICK TO IT. There are frugal ways to make your wedding look fabulous and this week I will share some tips on decorations and other things that will still make your wedding stand out.

2) Take out a piece of paper right now. In your head set a number for the amount of people you would like at your wedding -the least amount and the most. Now, on a separate piece of paper write down all the people you are really close to. Then, go back to the numbered piece of paper and fill in the spots starting with the people closest to you--------You now have your wedding guest list ;-). It is this major step that will help lead you toward planning the perfect wedding. We will discuss this more later in the week.

I will leave you with one of my cost saving ways that can make your wedding fabulous!

Karen's Fabulous Frugal Wedding Tip: Save the Dates

So you've set a date and you want to make sure the ones you love can make it to your special day. The details are not completely set for the wedding other than the date, but it is crucial to get the word out soon so that your potential guests don't forget it. It needs to STICK in their minds... what other way to ensure they remember than by sending MAGNET 'Save the Dates' through Vistaprint.com?!

Above is an example of one of the MANY templates they have to offer that is completely customizable. You can even insert a photo to make it more personable. The best part is that for a set of 25 'Save the Date' magnets you can get them for less than $13!!

Keep checking back for more of my wedding tips :-)

How to Plan a Large Birthday Party-Part 3: Minor Details

Minor Details tie the whole party together. They are the little, yet BIG things that you add to a party that make it stand out. Below I will show you just some of the minor details I used during my 23rd Mardi Gras meets Masquerade Birthday Party.

Minor Details #1: Welcome Party Bin

For all of my guests' rooms I left them a welcome party bin that included their masks for the party, personalized door hangers with a bag full of candy, more treats, and an itinerary for the weekend.

To make the above door hanger I simply purchased a wooden door hanger from Michaels

I then painted it royal purple with paint also purchased from Michaels, and then adorned it with a cute mini frame. Next, I took the first letter of each guest's name, cut out the corresponding letter from a magazine, and fixed it in the middle of the frame that I glued onto the door hanger. On the back of the door hanger I placed this bag of treats equipped with EBOOST to give them lots of energy for the weekend...

As for the itinerary for the week, I used Vistaprint to design a welcome/itinerary card.

Click here for a continuation on the Minor Details I used for my party!

How to Plan a Large Birthday Party-Part 1: Creating an Itinerary and Invitations

When planning a large birthday party, especially if it is going to require people to travel, you must FIRST outline the entire party in terms of what you will be doing on each day. The easiest way to do this is by opening up a Word document, writing out a 24 hour day and inputting things you would like to do on designated hours. This week I will get into more of that process, but for now, the most important thing to consider when guests need to fly/drive to your party is where they are going to stay. For my birthday party I wanted us to stay in the Beverly Hills/Hollywood area so I chose W Los Angeles-Westwood as our hotel to stay at. Why? W Los Angeles-Westwood has extremely spacious rooms and fit the trendy, young atmosphere that I wanted for my guests.

Now the WORST thing you can do is simply book a hotel and not check it out first. Go to the hotel and make sure that it fits all your explicit needs.

Another thing to keep in mind is how your guests will be getting around throughout your party. Especially when accommodating a large group, you must have clarity and structure with transportation so people don't get lost. To fix any hiccups along the way, I ordered a limo for the weekend. Other options could be a party bus or even setting up taxis. The limo company that I used was Five Star Limousine located in the Southern California area. There were punctual with excellent service!!

Once you have decided on an itinerary for your birthday party, created a potential guest list, and have chosen a theme with your main colors for your birthday party it's time to send out invitations! As much as I love hand making invites, there is another creative way and that is through Vistaprint! Since my theme was Mardi Gras meets Masquerade I chose a design that mirrored the theme.

Front

Back
Vistaprint makes everything from fliers, to banners, to business cards, to wedding invitations and so much more. You can customize things right down to the envelopes like I did!

*Click on the images to see a larger view :-)

There are a few key things that you must include on the invite: Dates of birthday party celebration, theme, location of venue/hotel, name and number of who to RSVP to, when to RSVP, special comments/criteria your guests should know. RSVPing is so crucial to the success of a party because it allows you to effectively plan and account for each individual. Later on this week we will discuss how to handle people who have not RSVP'd.

Stay tuned for Part 2: Decorations!!


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