New Hope Soap Blog

Resources that could make your wedding planning less stressful and more productive!

Ah, weddings!  Love and romance fills the air while dreams of a future together occupy the heart and mind.  The wedding plans themselves, however; can frustrate and sap the energy of even the most excited bride-to-be.  To keep you from biting your nails over the plethora of decisions that must be made, take a look at these wedding planning resources created for helping a bride plan her own wedding.

Staying within your budget is important

This should be the first thing to consider.  From choosing the venue to bridesmaid’s gifts, before you know it, you’ve over-spent your wedding allowance.  See Bridal Guide, The Simple Dollar, and The Knot, for budget-friendly advice.

Organizee your ideas

To keep your ideas together, especially if you are playing around with more than one theme idea, a wedding journal comes in handy.  Zazzle offers an array of notebooks just for the occasion that range in price from $5 to $50 with a variety of subject and design options.  Of course, if you’re a super-organizer, any pad of paper will do.  For the computer savvy, there are web sites that offer online planning software to organize your thoughts and ideas.  The Knot offers iPhone apps such as a planning checklist, wedding budgeter, and guest list manager, as well as personalized wedding websites to help organize details and showcase your ideas to family and friends.

As anyone who has ever been married can tell you, you want everything at the wedding to be perfect.  This means the venue; the decorations, invitations, catering, cake and everything else must be looked at time and time again to insure nothing goes wrong.  This is particularly true with your decision for the Wedding Entertainment.  Every wedding needs music, and there will always be the debate of which is better: a wedding DJ or house band.  Both offer their advantages and disadvantages, so it will be up to you to decide which is best for your special day.

From the day he asked you to marry him, you've probably had an idea of what colors you want your wedding to be.

1. Tiffany Blue

Even though your dream wedding may be Tiffany bluewith white accents, there are a few things to consider before selecting your colors.

First, where are you having your ceremony and reception? You may want your colors to be complemented by the venues so taking into account the colors already present is important.

2. Lavender

For example if your reception is in a lodge filled with moose heads, deep red walls and carpeting, your Lavender color scheme might not exactly match the decor already present. You should consider the lighting, carpets, and decor already in place.

3. Sand

If your church is ultra modern with big windows and a lot of light, Sand might not be a great color as it will look white.

A wedding planner thinks about all the hassles and takes care of all the details of your special day, freeing you to calmly enjoy the celebration. But with so many people purporting to be experts at creating your event, how do you pick the one that's right for you? Start by asking the following three questions.

• How do you charge? Some wedding planners charge by the hour, which is ideal if you only need to consult one for specific details. Many also charge per event, typically basing their fee on a percentage of the total event cost. If yours does the latter, ask her if that fee is fixed once the contract is signed or does it go up every time you add an additional expense, such as more food for more guests. Are any of the fees refundable and under what circumstances.