New Boutique Photos

Lenny Gotter with Impression Arts took some fantastic pictures of the boutique! Check them out! Thank you Lenny for these pictures!

Scott also completed the sign for the boutique and it looks great he is such an artist!

Professionals Only PLEASE!

Recently with the economy the way it is many brides are trying to find any way to save a buck on their wedding. There is the correct way to save money and the incorrect way. A couple of places people seen to try and save money is with the cake. Everyone knows someone who likes to "bake" but, does that person have the right type of ovens to bake large cakes in and do they know that there needs to be support dowels inside the cake? Then can they put the cake together at the facility and do they have a refrigerated truck to transport the cake with? These would be some of concerns I would have with having a friend make the cake.

I personally have repaired many cakes and every time it has been a cake made by a friend or family member. I have seen cakes arrive melted because the people driving were getting cold in the car from the AC being on high. I have seen cakes fall because they don't have the dowels in them. I have also seen people eat these cakes and spit them out because the baker got the ingredients wrong.

You may spend more on having a professional bakery make your cake but, if something does go wring you can't take action against that person. So when someone offers to make your cake for you just make sure you know what you are getting into.

Another way people try to save money is by using an IPOD instead of a DJ. I am not a fan of this but, I have seen it be done well and not so well. A DJ is not just there to press buttons and take requests the DJ is your Master of Ceremonies and a very important element of any wedding. They are the ones who will announce you into your reception and make sure everyone is in attendance for all of the reception events such as cake cutting, first dance, garter toss etc. So if you must use an IPOD please make sure you have a microphone and someone who will make these annoucements.

TIP: Make sure that all of your music on the IPOD is at the same high volume level. This can become a problem if something is recorded at a low volme and then you can't hear it even if the speaker that it is playing through is turned up all the way. Imagine your ceremony music playing but, people can barely hear it.

Wedding Budget Tips

Many brides face the predicament of going to try on gowns and finding that "the one" is over their budget. So here are some money saving tips that you can use to ensure the wedding is what you dreamed of and the gown is "the one"

Typically when brides come into our boutique they have a budget from $1500 to $3000 for a gown. Sometimes they might find something that is a few hundred more than what they wanted to spend and need ideas of how they can save that money later in the planning process.

5 Cost Saving Ideas

1. Hire a wedding planner! This may seem like an added expense but, many planners can save you money with vendors that they know and get discounts from. Plus they review contracts and make sure that you are not being taken advantage of. They are also know about how much items really cost.
2. Another way to save is by cutting the guest list, does your second cousins neighbor really need to be invited to the wedding? Many people think they have a huge guest count but, if you really examine who truly will be invited and be able to come might be a number less than what you were expecting.
3. Have your wedding on a weekday! This seems crazy to some people but, many vendors and facilities offer huge discounts to weekday weddings. Some of my favorite weddings that I have planned have been on weekdays. They were also some of the biggest fun dance party raging weddings that I have done as well. If you send out save the date cards there is no reason why your guests would not be able to take a day off work. Many guests love that they have to take time off. If people are traveling the day of the wedding does not make a difference because they are taking time off anyway.
4. Fore go the favors! Many times brides spend way to much time and money on favors that people don't end up taking with them at the end of the night. Or it is something that goes in a drawer and eventually gets tossed. Unless it is something they can truly use or eat I would pass. A fantastic idea is to donate money or time to a charity you are interested in and then have not cards at each place setting that says in lieu of a favor you have donated to the charity.
5. Have just a beer and wine bar. Or if you really want to have cocktails, have those for just a set amount of time during the cocktail hour. Many couples are shocked when they get their bar bill for a full hosted bar. I have done events where for just 100 people the bar bill came to over $16,000! This couple was expecting this but, could you imagine if you had no idea the cocktails would cost that much. Or you can set a budget for the bar and ask to be notified when that number is reached. Many people will say that they don't have many drinkers (everyone says this) however, when the bar is free many people who typically don't drink much will enjoy the 25 year scotch that they have always wanted to try.