Regardless of the stage of your planning … you should be cat-like and ready for anything that comes your way. This rule stands true for anything new you bring into your perfect day.
How Negotiating with Your Wedding Vendors Can Help Save
Most brides are aware, but not familiar with how to negotiate with wedding vendors. For some reason negotiating is a daunting, and embarrassing task that is often skipped. For example, when booking my hall, we originally planned to have it on the Sunday of a holiday weekend, thinking it would save us some moo-la. Once we had our deposit together, I put my game face on. Having been in sales for quite some time I went into our ‘booking’ meeting knowing that they wanted my business and acted accordingly. I talked about various dates and different options while my future hubby bonded with them about how he is a chef. While they massaged each others ego’s , I asked about different dates and reminded them that I had cash in my pocket and was ready to make a deal …. Well, long story short … Our tag team tactics not only saved us money, but we walked out of the office with a contract to have our wedding on a Saturday for $10 less per person than the original offer for the Sunday afternoon wedding.
Photo Credit: BlueBouquet.com
You know the term ..you can’t win if you don’t play. This is more true than you know …. I know a couple who will be getting married weeks after us. I tried to offer them advice on how to save money by negotiating and they actually declined the offer stating that I sometimes come on too strong and that is not how they like to act. Although a bit slighted, I did understand. What happened as a result? They took the offer given to them and were charged more for a Sunday morning wedding than the going rate for a Saturday night wedding at the same venue!
Photo Credit: Lemonade3d.com
You have NOTHING to lose by asking a few basic questions … and you MUST shop around!
I have a few rules that I would like to share!
1) Ask questions! Regarding services and fee’s. Ask if there is a discount for cash!
2) Shop around, get quotes from all qualified vendors. You may know you do not want to use a particular vendor, but they do not. Get a price, use it for leverage, and move on.
3) ASK FOR A DISCOUNT … just flat out ask! The worst thing they can say is NO!
4) If you have a vision …. Tell them! The more they know about what you want, the smaller the likelihood of being considered a bridezilla … making demands at the last minute will cost more and cause stress!
5) Did I mention shopping around and asking for money off?
6) Confidence
7) Confidence
8 ) Confidence
Local Flowers: An Eco-Friendly and Wallet-Friendly Choice
My husband and I spent a whopping total of $51 for all of the flowers at our wedding. We had my bouquet, three bridesmaids bouquets, flowers for our hair, boutonnieres, and several large arrangements for food tables at the reception hall. That total included the ribbon and floral supplies needed to make the bouquets.
Photo Credit: The Real Estreya
How was this possible? We took full advantage of the seasonal flowers available in our location for our wedding. And we got a little help from our friends. From the beginning, we knew that we would locally source as many elements of our wedding as possible. Wildflowers grow naturally with little effort, so no pesticides are required. If your flowers are seasonal, chances are they weren’t grown in a hothouse, which requires a lot of fossil fuels to heat. Plus, local plants eliminate the refrigerated transportation required to ship exotic or out-of-season flowers, thus lowering the environmental impact even more.
Photo Credit: Ian Hayhurst
I’ve always been a big fan of wildflowers. My favorite flower is the daisy and, lucky for me, daisies were in full bloom for my June wedding. They were also free for the picking in gardens, fields and even by the side of the road, along with other beautiful wildflowers.
I asked my parents and a friend from Vermont to let wildflowers grow in part of their large yards. My mom showed up with a cooler full of daisies, and my friend had a huge variety of daisies, yarrow, yellow larkspur, and purple lupine, some of which she stopped to pick from the roadside on her way to the wedding. She also brought gorgeous pink peonies from her garden. My father purchased a few bouquets of flowers grown at a local farm, which included delicate pink calla lilies and purple allium. The morning of my wedding, we employed a few friends to make the arrangements and the bridesmaids and I had fun creating our bouquets together.
Photo Credit: Chrissa Markos
If you decide to grow your own flowers, make sure you plan ahead and plant extra so you will have a large selection to choose from. I recommend visiting a reputable garden center for growing advice. Many nurseries do have a local flower section, if you don’t want to start from seed. I would also suggest having some friends or family members grow flowers as backup. My sister had a mini-disaster with the flowers she planted for her wedding when they were accidentally trampled by a construction crew at her apartment. We ended up picking wildflowers along the road the morning of her wedding, and supplementing them with sunflowers from a local farm stand. For my wedding, I noted the location and hours of several local florists, in case my plans fell through and I had to purchase flowers at the last minute. You can also inquire with your area florists and nearby farms about seasonal, locally grown flowers that you can order in advance.
Photo Credit: Jasmine&Roses
Seasonal Flower Guide Resources:
http://www.theflowerexpert.com/content/growingflowers/flowers-and-seasons
http://weddings.about.com/od/weddingflowers/a/Season.htm
To see what’s available at local farms: http://www.localharvest.org
DIY Wedding Bouquet Instructions:
http://100layercake.com/blog/archives/2390
http://www.projectwedding.com/wiki/show/diy-how-to-make-a-wildflower-bouquet