Weddings At Sea

An afternoon of sun
and sea, is there
anything sweeter in
Southern California?

The most unique
wedding ideas are
sparked by your
imagination, and
not by tradition.

Invited guests are welcomed onboard by the uniformed Captain and Crew.
They are greeted with smiles and warmth by the professional
staff on duty for your big day. The Bride is sequestered in the Bridal
Suite while guests enjoy a stroll on the deck, or visit the bar prior
to the ceremony.

Once ready for departure and all guests are seated, the ceremony
commences while cruising the tranquil waters of Marina del Rey.
Sparkling chandelier overhead, white lights around the deck and
fragrant flowers reflect your style, warmth and romance during
the ceremony amongst loved ones.

Afternoon cruising offers your guests the opportunity to experience
the full beauty of the Marina with stretches of lavish residences,
and the hundreds of sail boats cruising the main channel.

Either married by one of our uniformed Captains or a minister
of your choosing, the smooth marina setting reflects the natural
elements of beauty in the harbor and allows for your guests to
experience the Southern California Coast while enjoying your Wedding.

For more information on how you can "Cruise through Your Wedding"
please visit:
www.fantaseayachts.com

Weddings With a Theme

Theme weddings have become
very popular over the last
decade.
In fact, 40% of couples will
choose to plan their wedding
around a favorite theme.
Some of these themes are
simple like beach weddings
and others are more extravagent like
getting married at a ball park or exchanging
rings while jumping out of a plane with their
whole wedding party in tow. Either way, theme
weddings are fun and completely personal.

So how can you pull it off?

A major problem that many engaged couples encounter
when they are planning a theme wedding is that there is
a heck of a lot more to research than just flowers and
place settings.

For example, suppose you and your fiancé both have some
Irish ancestry and have decided that you want to have an
Irish-themed wedding.
How would you know that:

* The traditional color for an Irish bride is NOT green...

* In Ireland, it is good luck for someone to throw an old shoe over the bride's head as she leaves the church...

* There is a right kind and a wrong kind of bagpiper to have play at an Irish wedding...

... and the list goes on!


by Wedding Guide of Alaska

Register to Buy a Home

Are you getting married in Orange County?
Where will you be buying your first home?
Here is a great new service available to help
you achieve your dream of owning your home.
A new concept in Bridal Registry.
Check it out!
Angie Weeks, The Weeks Team, Realtors
www.vow2save.com

Wedding Season in Southern California

The end of October marks the
traditional end of the
“Wedding Season” for most
Wedding services.

Years ago, the
”Wedding Season”
was May through
September.
Now, April and October
have been added to the
list.
Surprisingly, June is no
longer the busiest month
for Weddings as it’s
been for years.
In recent years, August has
become the month with the most
Weddings, with October the second
busiest, and May, June, and September
next.
April and July have the fewest number
of Weddings during the season.

When planning your Wedding, there is one
simple way to save money, make booking
your Wedding services easier and may include
more extras at no charge.

Just like when you book a cruise, air fares, hotels
and resorts during their off season, the rates will
go down.
You may also receive better service when things
are not so hectic, and their staff isn’t stretched thin
with so many events on the same day.

Fridays and Sundays are also not as popular as
Saturdays, so may have the same benefits when
booked.
Any events held on a Monday through Thursday,
will have the best discounts.
This is something you may want to also think about
for a shower or Bachelorette party.

Wedding Professionals in Southern California

I have been attending a lot of
wedding events lately, and I
am absolutely amazed by all
of the wonderfully creative
ideas people have for making
your Wedding unique.
Brides have so many choices!
The quality of Wedding services
has definately improved greatly
over the last few years.
There are very few “fly-by-night”
companies these days offering
Wedding services, especially with
the state of our economy.

Remember, if the price sounds “too good to be true”
you should be wary. If someone is charging significantly
less than the average cost, there is a reason. The quality
of their service or the product you are buying, won’t be
as good. No one is willing to work for free.
The old saying “you get what you pay for” is true for
Wedding services too. But just because someone is
expensive, doesn’t necessarily mean that their work
is superior to others. Look for a price that is in the
range of being the average for that type of product
or service.
Be sure to compare apples-to-apples for a fair comparison.
Most importantly, aways get everything in writing on
your contract.
Most Wedding professionals are flexible and are willing
to work within your budget to create something wonderful
just for you!

There are so many creative, quality Wedding professionals
available, you just need to look for them!

Until next Friday...

Debbie

Bridal Shows in Orange County

The larger Bridal shows can be a bit overwhelming for
newely engaged Brides.
Most of the time, the smaller Bridal shows are better for actually crossing things off your “To Do” list, because it is much easier to talk to the vendors when it’s not so busy.
You should mark the business cards of the people you want to contact later for a consultation.
Even though you think that you will remember who you
talked to and what they promised to do for you, sometimes
it’s hard to remember everything after you leave the show.

When you attend a Bridal show, to make your life easier,
and for a more enjoyable experience, always remember to
BRINGING MAILING LABELS, with your name and mailing address on them. If you have time you can make labels, which should include your name, mailing address, e-mail address, wedding date and grooms name.
Almost every booth will have something to fill out
with your information for some type of give-away.
I only know of one Bridal show producer who gives these labels
to Brides if you register in advance, and it is such a great idea.
It really makes registering for prizes so much easier for
both the Brides filling out the cards, and the vendors trying to
read their writing.

This image is from Friartux.com, one of the vendors that has been in our publication
for many years, and attends almost as many Bridal shows as we do!

The Wedding Guide attends all of the Bridal shows in the
South Bay, Long Beach and Orange County areas, so we will see
you at the next Bridal show!
Be sure to stop by our booth to say “Hi” and to pick up the latest
copy of our Wedding Guide publication.

Bridal Shows

I would like to talk today about Bridal shows.

As a Bride, you should take advantage of Bridal shows, and attend
at least a couple of them, with your fiancee, Mom or some of your
Bridal party.

The shows can be a lot of fun as well as informative.
You can talk to a variety of different Wedding services, get some great
new ideas, and have some of your questions answered all in one day, at
one location, within just a few hours.

However, NOT ALL BRIDAL SHOWS ARE CREATED EQUAL!

It is a good idea to contact the facility in which the show is being held,
or the show producers prior to the show, to get a list of the vendors
participating in the show. The exibitors should be listed on the show
producers' website, along with directions, fashion show times and
other information to help you plan the day before arriving.
You want to be sure that the vendors participating in the show
are people that you are interested in meeting with, and services that
you still need for your upcoming Wedding.

There is usually a charge to attend a Bridal show, but if you
pre-register for a Bridal show, most times you will receive a
discount on the entry fee, and sometimes get pre-printed mailing
labels for you to use at the show.

You want to be able to view a few different photographers' Bridal
books, watch videos of other Weddings ceremonies and receptions,
taste samples of cake, see DJ’s in action, get ideas for your
flowers, and see a lot of products and services that you hadn’t
even thought of!

A lot of vendors offer discounts, or free merchandise when you book
them from a Bridal show. Take advantage of these savings, if you
want to book their services. Usually, a contract isn't signed until
you meet again for a consultation at a later date after the show.
There is usually a fashion show to enjoy. Although you might not
find your gown or bridesmaids dresses from the show, it’s fun to watch
and get ideas of what styles you may want to consider.
Prizes are almost always given out before and after the fashion show,
and usually you need to be present to win. Sometimes these are some
really great prizes given out by the vendors who are participating in
the show, so it is worth staying for.

More tips on Bridal shows next week.

See you next Friday...

Debbie

Here are some basic common sense ideas to ensure that your
Wedding day goes well and is enjoyed to the fullest by you
and all of your guests.

Hire professionals who specialize in Weddings and let
them help you. Part of the fee you are paying them, is
for their advise and ideas, so consider what they suggest.
They have been involved in more Weddings then you have,
so take advantage of their experience.

Only hire someone that you like and trust. Go with your feelings
after meeting with them. Be sure that you are meeting with
the professional who will be working at your Wedding. If you
meet with a company that will be taking care of sending someone
else to work at your Wedding, be sure that you meet with that
person prior to the day, just to confirm with them what you expect
from them, and to be sure they are a good match for you.

DO NOT ask friends or family to work at your Wedding, taking care
of shooting photos, video, being your DJ, or coordinator.

It is not a good idea to hire friends for several reasons, but most
importantly of all, is that they will need to work instead of being
able to enjoy your Wedding as your guest.
If they don’t work hard, and instead just relax and enjoy the day,
(which is probably what you want them to do anyway) you will be very
disappointed with the quality of their services at the end of your
special day. Many friendships are lost after bad feelings about
a day which should be your happiest ever, and you can't do it again.

Wedding professionals make it look easy, but they are working very
hard to make the day run smoothly and for you and your guests, and
for you to have many priceless memories and keepsakes afterwards.


More tips to come, so I'll see you here next Friday!



Debbie
Publisher of
The Wedding Guide

Southern California Wedding Guide - welcome!

Hi!
Welcome to The Wedding Guide blog.

Weddings are fun! At least they should be...

The best advise I have heard from a Bride planning her Wedding was that as a Bride, all of your close friends and family are getting together at your Wedding, to enjoy your celebration of love, so just relax and enjoy your special day without worring about perfection.
Something will always go wrong even if it is the weather which you have no control over,
but it doesn’t matter.
The focus is on you as a couple and everyone will have a good time and share their love regardless of what goes wrong with the details. These mishaps, are great stories to share with family for many years and hopefully ones to tell your grandchildren!

Getting Marrried should be about the Marriage and not about the Wedding.

So many Brides get caught up in planning a perfect Wedding, they don’t think about
the “Ever After” .

I am a firm believer in Marriage and “Happily Ever After”.
That doesn’t mean that everything in your life after your Wedding will always be perfect,
but if your expectations aren’t unrealistic you can have a very happy life together.
When you go through the good times, it is so wonderful to have someone to share and enjoy those times with, and when times are tough, you have someone by your side to help you, and you can work through them together.
The secret is, not having any secrets from each other.
That doesn’t mean that you need to report to each other on every little detail of your life, but that you always share your feelings and opinions with each other.
You can agree to disagree, but at least you are talking.
Don’t try to change each other, just accept each others faults and focus on your strengths.
Work to bring out the best in your partner, and allow them to bring out the best in you
as well.


•Check back every Friday for our weekly blog!

MAKE it a good week!

Until next Friday...

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Southern California Wedding Guide