Advice for  intending Couples

·         Pray about EVERYTHING and for all vendors

·         Try as much as possible to work with a budget you both agree on

·         Never underestimate the importance of Pre-Marriage Counselling.

·         Give yourself time to plan and start early.

·         Don’t allow the challenges of wedding planning come between the two of you. Go through everything and make decisions together.

·         Once you’ve done your best, leave the rest to God and on your wedding day focus on each other and ensure you enjoy EVERY bit of your day….it goes by so fast

·         Get a wedding planner or a Wedding Co-coordinator at least. ..you can’t imagine the amount of stress they take off you.

Quote yagazi...

cheers!

 The 500k wedding is possible!

Weddings are not meant for the show they have been changed to in Nigeria today. Especially amongst the elites, it has become a competition and an opportunity to show off their wealth. It may be surprising to note that you can have a beautiful wedding with only 500k in Nigeria, without running into debts or putting a dent in your pocket. All you need do is cut down on all the unnecessary stuff by setting your priorities on the important things and STICK TO THE BUDGET!

Planning a wedding is one of the most important tasks a bride or groom will have to handle, even when working with a wedding planner. It comes with the excitement, joy and thrills but is also something that can get you worked up and worried if everything about the wedding is not properly taken care of. In a case where all you have is 500k, many will ask, how can you have a glamorous, stylish and classy wedding that you will remember forever, without milking yourselves dry of funds?

Here are few tips on how you can successfully go about it without shooting yourself in the leg.

1. Stick to your budget! : be determined about your budget, do not waiver, a lot of things would look very attractive to you especially after attended some friend’s wedding such as a top musician coming to perform, a mobile bar with all the exotic drinks on display or the beautiful marquee used as the reception. Wait and think it through before you take that loan or do anything on credit. A wedding party is an investment with no gain. If all you have is 500k please stick to it and don't spend a kobo more. Shikena!
2. Minimize your guest list: One of the major factors that determine the budget of a wedding is the number of guests. This plays a crucial role in picking a hall and decoration, the budget for food and drinks, souvenirs and goodie bags (if you have to) and sometimes it even determines the charges of the DJ. If all you have is N500,000 then you need to start plan for properly trimmed guest list of between 50-100 people. You might think I am kidding with the figure I just proposed, but I assure you as long as you don't put up your invite on Facebook or send out any invitations to people you do not plan for it a sure thing. If they are not family members and your closest friends they don't have to be there.

3. Prioritize and have a realistic checklist: Have a comprehensive checklist on all it takes to have a wedding ceremony. Then set priority based on what gives you joy and will leave pleasant memories years after the wedding party. You can develop a chart to indicate the percentage of the budget allocated for each item on the list on a scale of 100%.

• Venue - 15%
• Catering - 18%
• Make up - 2%
• Photography/Video- 7%
• Entertainment - 10%
• Brides Wardrobe - 13%
• Grooms Wardrobe - 8%
• Decoration - 12%
• Wedding Rings - 5%
• Invitation/Programs - 4%
• Miscellaneous - 6%

Do a rough estimate based on the percentage allocated to each item, and this will give you an idea on what to spend on what. In order to achieve this successfully you need to employ the services of an event consultant who will put you through and help out in recommending seasonal and professional vendors, who are flexible enough to work with your budget. A wedding consultant who has being in this wedding business and knows how to play ball, will be able to help out in the proper allocation of your bills.

Many blissful couples enter the meat-grinder known as the wedding industry completely unprepared; without research and planning proper within their budgets. Planning a wedding on a 500k budget is perfectly realistic. It should be a rewarding experience that will provide memories for a lifetime. And for the faint of heart, there is always Plan B: elope!

source
Seyi Ayinuola

Wedding Check List

The day you decide to get married your mind starts to work overtime in order to come up with all those ideas that are bound to make you happy on your wedding day. The only problem is that as more and more ideas start to crowd your mind you are likely to become overwhelmed with the things you need to do. When that happens, you will become more and more likely to forget some of the important things that matter when it comes to your wedding day. If you want to avoid such a situation you should put together a wedding check list that will keep your thoughts organized and will help you make sure that, one by one, all your wedding ideas become reality. To be even more organized you should divide that checklist into categories of tasks related to important elements of a wedding such as the wedding venue, the bridesmaids, the groom, the music and so on. That way you will make sure you focus at a time on a certain category of tasks and you exhaust all the ideas related to that category.

For instance, when it comes to the wedding venue make sure it has all the necessary requirements, Then, you should make sure the space available can accommodate the maximum number of guests that you are expecting. Don’t forget to evaluate safety measures and discuss with the owner the matter of liability because you definitely don’t want to pay more than you should on extra mess or other problems that are likely to arise. You should also look into the possibility to make available a bar in charge of serving alcoholic drinks to your guests. Then, there’s the matter of food which plays an important role in any wedding, so it needs to be seriously considered.

When it comes to the bridesmaids and the groomsmen you will first of all have to decide what you will do in order to take care of their look. This is a decision that you will have to make while taking into consideration the budget available. For instance, if you are not that willing to spend serious money on your bridesmaids’ clothes and accessories, you should consider allowing them to come up with a look based on items already available in their wardrobe. You should also have sections dedicated to the flowers, the transportation necessary, the decorations you would like to use and so on.

If you are afraid that by creating this check list on your own you risk forgetting about some important details, you should opt for the pre-made options that you can find on various websites dedicated to wedding planning. Those checklists tend to be extremely detailed and help you to even take into consideration all those factors that make a certain venue suitable for your wedding or not. What you should avoid doing is confusing this checklist with the schedule that you need to create in order to make sure on the day of the big event everyone gets on time to the planned events.

At the end of the day do have fun planing

Cheers!!!